Presented with Lincoln Institute of Land Policy

Who holds the strings to the public purse that pays for crucial services and ultimately determines a city’s financial survival? From grassroots land grabs and infrastructure collapse, to Community Development Block Grant programs, we’ll pinpoint the state and federal policies and land-use loopholes that have major implications for municipal money. With an eye toward the post-industrial electoral convention host cities—Cleveland and Philadelphia—and sites of fiscal failures such as Flint, Michigan and San Juan, Puerto Rico, we’ll fill in the blank between ballots and budgeting, asking: Which cities are the winners and losers in the election process?