I think that the reality of city-based finance in the USA is quite mixed, and that failed, failing and increasingly failed city administration, in cities of more than 100,000 people say, is widespread. I talked to some go-getter Code-for-America type consultants, and they said it was common to get retained to show numbers on the city budget, and that the depth and clarity of dot-com style numbers, overviews and flow analysis, would stun the city administrators, and not-a-few cases, cause an immediate cease-work order when embarassing or egregious budget allocations came to obvious light. My overall, gut reaction is that it is highly variable on a case-by-case basis, the amount money passing through city hall. In the case that started my rant, there is plenty of money. Yet maintenance not only does not grow with city growth, but falls behind further. Not always, but common now.