A total of 23 local governments in New York state were designated in fiscal stress for local fiscal years ending (FYE) in 2024, up from 14 a year ago, with increases in each category of stress, according to a report released today by State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli. These designations were based on the State Comptroller’s Fiscal Stress Monitoring System (FSMS) scores.

“The number of local governments designated in fiscal stress, while still low, rose over the prior year, as federal pandemic relief funding was winding down,” DiNapoli said. “Local governments now facing volatility in revenue sources and uncertainty from significant shifts in federal spending should remain vigilant and pragmatic when spending and planning for the future.”

DiNapoli launched FSMS in 2013 to evaluate fiscal stress for local governments, using indicators based on year-end fund balance, operating deficits, cash-on-hand, short-term borrowing and fixed costs. The system’s fiscal stress scores provide an early warning to local officials about fiscal issues and give the public insight into their communities’ financial condition.

DiNapoli releases fiscal stress scores for municipalities, excluding New York City, twice a year. The scores announced today are for local governments operating on a calendar year basis for FYE 2024, covering all counties and towns, 44 cities and 13 villages. This round of scoring designated 14 local governments in fiscal stress, including four cities, nine towns and one village. In April, DiNapoli announced that nine villages with non-calendar fiscal years were designated in stress. School district scores are released in January.

For FYE 2024, the City of Little Falls (Herkimer County), as well as the villages of Cambridge (Washington), Island Park (Nassau), and Saugerties (Ulster), were designated in the highest-ranking category of “significant stress.”

The cities of Albany (Albany) and Poughkeepsie (Dutchess) were designated in “moderate fiscal stress,” along with the towns of Massena (St. Lawrence) and Yates (Orleans) and the villages of Coxsackie (Greene), South Blooming Grove (Orange), and Washingtonville (Orange).

The City of Elmira (Chemung), as well as the towns of Bennington (Wyoming), Canton (St. Lawrence), Centerville (Allegany), Kent (Putnam), Louisville (St. Lawrence), Schroeppel (Oswego), and West Turin (Lewis), were designated as “susceptible to fiscal stress.” The villages of Chateaugay (Franklin), Huntington Bay (Suffolk), Kaser (Rockland), and Liberty (Sullivan) were also designated as “susceptible to fiscal stress.”

Along with the scores released today, DiNapoli released a report summarizing FYE 2024 fiscal stress scoring results for both calendar year and non-calendar year municipalities, including designations by class, FSMS indicator analysis, and issues of concern, among other things.

The report found that:

• Ten of the municipalities designated in fiscal stress in FYE 2024 also received a designation in 2023. This includes the cities of Albany, Little Falls, and Poughkeepsie.
• While the percentage of cities designated in fiscal stress increased from 6.8% in FYE 2023 to 8.5% in 2024, it was still well below the double-digit rates seen from 2020 to 2022.
• The number of towns designated as susceptible to fiscal stress more than tripled, from two to seven; however, the number of towns designated in moderate stress decreased by one, while none were in the significant category.
• No counties received a fiscal stress designation for the fourth consecutive year.

The report also found that the number of municipalities that failed to file required annual financial reports with DiNapoli’s office in time to receive a fiscal stress score declined in FYE 2024, dropping from 264 in 2023 to 240. However, that number is nearly double what it was 10 years ago. In 2025, DiNapoli’s office has made additional targeted outreach and training efforts to help local governments comply with the law and bring their financial reporting up to date.

A municipality that fails to file its financial reports in time to receive a fiscal stress score may indicate a lack of proper financial management, prevent local officials from taking necessary steps to avoid a fiscal crisis, and diminish transparency and accountability, undermining public confidence.

Three of the municipalities designated in fiscal stress in FYE 2024 had not received a FSMS score in multiple years because they failed to file annual financial data in time: the Village of Island Park, which had not received a score from FYE 2020 to 2023, was designated in significant stress in 2024, and the Town of Massena and the Village of Washingtonville were each designated in moderate stress in FYE 2024 after not filing in time to receive a score from 2018 to 2023.

Lists
Municipalities Designated in Stress for Fiscal Year Ending 2024
Municipalities Who Did Not File in Time or Filed Inconclusively

Excel Spreadsheet
Detailed List of All Municipalities in State and Fiscal Stress Scores

Report
Fiscal Stress Monitoring System – Municipalities: Fiscal Year 2024 Results

Online Interactive Visualization
Fiscal Stress Monitoring System Statistics