The City of Detroit has long been bankrupt -- but now it's official.
On Thursday, the City of Detroit petitioned the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Southern Division, seeking Chapter 9 bankruptcy protection. The petition has been assigned case number 13-53846. No judge has yet been assigned to hear the case.
According to the bankruptcy petition, Emergency Manager Kevyn D. Orr sought permission from Michigan Governor Rick Snyder and State Treasurer Andrew Dillon to file for bankruptcy, and both have given their approval. A letter attached as an exhibit to the bankruptcy petition notes that, in the Governor's opinion, "the financial emergency in Detroit cannot be successfully addressed outside of [a bankruptcy] filing."
The city is no longer able to "meet its basic obligations" to either its citizens or its creditors, says Governor Snyder, and, as a result, there is "only one feasible path" remaining: bankruptcy.
This is the path Detroit has taken.
