VIRONMENTAL DESIGN LIBRARY For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office DEC 01 1989 JOINT ECONOMIC COMMITTEE (Created pursuant to sec. 5(a) of Public Law 304, 79th Cong.) SENATE JOHN SPARKMAN, Alabama HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES HENRY S. REUSS, Wisconsin MARTHA W. GRIFFITHS, Michigan WILLIAM S. MOORHEAD, Pennsylvania THOMAS B. CURTIS, Missouri WILLIAM B. WIDNALL, New Jersey W. E. BROCK III, Tennessee JOHN R. STARK, Executive Director Opening remarks and statement_. Announcement of hearings and schedule.. Hurlbert, J. Clifton, mayor of the city of Aberdeen, S. Dak_ Comparative statistics of interest to the municipal bond Geographic comparison of New York City's revenues, avail- Harkins, Peter, representing the National League of Cities.. Subsequent submission: Letter to Chairman Patman re the record of Whalen, Hon. Charles W., Jr., a Representative in Congress from the Third Congressional District of the State of Ohio: Statement.. III FINANCING MUNICIPAL FACILITIES TUESDAY, DECEMBER 5, 1967 CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES, OF THE JOINT ECONOMIC COMMITTEE, Washington, D.C. The subcommittee met at 10 a.m., pursuant to notice, in room S-407, the Capitol, Hon. Wright Patman (chairman of the subcommittee) presiding. Present: Representatives Patman and Brock. Also present: John R. Stark, executive director, and Arnold H. Diamond, consulting economist. Chairman PATMAN. The Subcommittee on Economic Progress will please come to order. Our hearings today are concerned with a very important problem that faces our towns, cities, and counties. They all face serious difficulties in marketing their bonds. According to earlier studies of this subcommittee, the problem will very likely get more serious. We estimate that over the next 10 years State and local public agencies will have to invest over $300 billion in public facilities. Most of this money has to be financed by borrowing in the municipal securities market. It is appropriate that the subcommittee hear first from those who are directly affected by the credit problems of small municipalitiesthe mayors and municipal officials. At the same time, the problem affects all cities, big and small-particularly such problems as bond ratings. For that reason, we have invited representatives of some large cities. We had hoped that Mayor Vern W. Miller, of Salem, Oreg., would be able to join our witnesses today, but he is a surgeon as well as a mayor, and his medical duties have delayed him in Oregon. We have, therefore, arranged for him to appear with other witnesses on Thursday. At this point, without objection, I would like to submit a longer statement for the record outlining some of the background to our hearings, particularly our findings in the two-volume study entitled "State and Local Public Facility Needs and Financing" which we published a year ago. Copies of these volumes have been made available at the press table. We will also include notice of hearings and schedule of witnesses. (The documents referred to follow :) STATEMENT OF HON. WRIGHT PATMAN, CHAIRMAN OF THE SUBCOMMITTEE ON ECONOMIC PROGRESS Chairman PATMAN. One of the important responsibilities of the Joint Economic Committee is to carry on a continuing assessment of 1 |