Detroit’s real problem: Out-of-control spending

Detroit may be teetering on the edge of bankruptcy, but revenue isn’t the problem: out-of-control spending is.

At $1,289 per person, the struggling city has the highest per-capita revenue in the country, according to the Michigan-based Mackinac Center for Public Policy. Between its higher-than-average taxes and a generous portion of state shared revenue, Detroit actually receives more per capita now than it has in the past.