In January 2020, Truth in Accounting released its fourth annual Financial State of the Cities report. The study ranks the 75 largest US cities based on their fiscal health. Truth in Accounting analysts drew their data from the fiscal year 2018 audited Comprehensive Annual Financial Reports on file in city halls across the country. These reports are not analyzed on this scale by any other organization.

The report breaks down complicated government financial numbers to a per-taxpayer level with Truth in Accounting’s trademarked “Taxpayer Burden (Surplus).” The Taxpayer Burden is the money needed (available) to pay bills divided by the number of city taxpayers. This year’s study found that 63 of the 75 most populous US cities do not have enough money to pay their bills. The average Taxpayer Burden across the 75 largest cities is more than $7,000.