Strong Towns Finance Decoder — City of Elmira, NY
Elmira's Fiscal Health Report
Seven indicators drawn from Elmira's audited financial statements, mapped to the
Strong Towns framework for assessing long-term municipal fiscal health.
Based on FY2020–2024 audited data. FY2025 report pending.
−$81M
Net financial position (FY2024)
28¢
Financial assets per $1 owed (FY2024)
27%
Revenue from government transfers (FY2024)
3 Red · 3 Yellow
of 7 indicators · only interest payments are green
How this works
The
Strong Towns Finance Decoder
translates an annual audited financial report (ACFR) into seven plain-English fiscal health
indicators. Green = healthy. Yellow = monitor. Red = structurally unsustainable. All figures
come from Elmira's independently-audited reports — see
Data Sources.
Can the city meet its financial obligations over the long term? These four indicators
measure the relationship between what the city has and what it owes.
1. Net Financial Position
Unsustainable
Current financial assets minus total liabilities. A negative number means the city
owes far more than it holds in cash and receivables. Capital assets (roads, buildings)
are excluded — they can't pay bills.
Healthy benchmark: Positive (financial assets exceed liabilities).
Elmira has been deeply negative every year since FY2020. A brief FY2022 improvement
(boosted by $14M in federal ARPA/SLFRF funds) reversed by FY2023, with no recovery path.
2. Financial Assets-to-Liabilities
Unsustainable
For every dollar owed, how much does the city hold in financial assets (cash and
receivables)? A ratio below 1.0 means liabilities cannot be covered by liquid assets
alone — and Elmira is falling further below that threshold every year.
Healthy benchmark: Above 1.0 (can cover all liabilities with financial assets).
The ratio has been below 0.4 every year since FY2020. Elmira covers only
28 cents per dollar owed as of FY2024 — and declining since the FY2022 peak.
3. Assets-to-Liabilities (Total)
Monitor
Total assets (including capital assets like roads and buildings) divided by total
liabilities. The city hovered well below 1.0 in FY2020–2021 — owing more than everything
it owned — climbed just above 1.0 in FY2022, dipped again in FY2023, and barely recovered
in FY2024.
Healthy benchmark: Consistently above 1.0.
Elmira sat below 1.0 in three of the last five years — FY2024 recovered but barely.
Note: capital assets are hard to liquidate and degrade over time.
4. Net Debt-to-Revenues
Unsustainable
Net Financial Position divided by total revenues. Expresses the city's financial
debt burden as a multiple of what it earns in a year. A ratio of −1.74 means
the city's net financial obligations equal nearly two years of total revenues.
Healthy benchmark: Positive, or at least trending toward zero.
The ratio improved from −1.93× in FY2020 (when revenues were lower) but has slid back to
−1.74×. Elmira would need roughly 1.74 years of its entire revenue stream
just to zero out its financial obligations.
How much room does the city have to maneuver? These two indicators reveal whether
the city is constrained by debt costs and aging infrastructure.
5. Interest-to-Revenues
Healthy
What percentage of total revenues is consumed by interest payments on debt?
This is Elmira's only green indicator — interest charges are modest relative
to the city's total revenue base.
Benchmarks: Under 5% = healthy. 5–15% = monitor. Over 15% = unsustainable.
Interest payments are well-managed — but the total debt load (indicator #4) is still
a long-term concern.
6. Net Book Value-to-Cost of Capital Assets
Monitor
Net book value of tangible capital assets divided by their original cost. As assets
age and depreciate, this ratio falls. A low ratio signals aging infrastructure that
will require replacement — a future fiscal burden. Elmira's roads, buildings, and
equipment are roughly half depreciated.
FY2024
0.50
▲ slight improvement
Benchmarks: Above 0.6 = good condition. 0.4–0.6 = monitor. Below 0.4 = aging.
The ratio has sat in the 0.44–0.50 monitor band for five years — roughly half of Elmira's
capital assets have been consumed by depreciation. The FY2024 uptick reflects new capital
investment, though the base is aging. (FY2022 total-cost figure not reported in the comparison year.)
How exposed is the city to forces outside its control?
This indicator measures dependence on outside funding that can be cut.
7. Government Transfers-to-Total Revenues
Vulnerable
What share of the city's revenues come from state and federal transfers (grants)?
A city heavily dependent on outside money is vulnerable to funding cuts it can't control.
Elmira's dependence spikes when grant-funded projects are active.
Healthy benchmark: Below 20% (self-sufficient revenue base).
Elmira has run above the 20% threshold in all five years, peaking at 30.8% in FY2021
when federal ARP-era pass-throughs and grant-funded projects surged.
If transfers are reduced, local tax pressure increases immediately.
| Indicator |
Category |
FY2020 |
FY2021 |
FY2022 |
FY2023 |
FY2024 |
Rating |
| Net Financial Position |
Sustainability |
−$83.6M |
−$84.4M |
−$72.1M |
−$81.5M |
−$81.0M |
● Unsustainable |
| Financial Assets-to-Liabilities |
Sustainability |
0.23 |
0.23 |
0.37 |
0.35 |
0.28 |
● Unsustainable |
| Assets-to-Liabilities |
Sustainability |
0.76 |
0.95 |
1.04 |
0.97 |
1.03 |
● Monitor |
| Net Debt-to-Revenues |
Sustainability |
−1.93× |
−1.62× |
−1.50× |
−1.74× |
−1.74× |
● Unsustainable |
| Interest-to-Revenues |
Flexibility |
2.5% |
1.8% |
1.6% |
1.8% |
1.9% |
● Healthy |
| Net Book Value-to-Cost of Assets |
Flexibility |
0.44 |
0.46 |
n/a |
0.46 |
0.50 |
● Monitor |
| Govt Transfers-to-Revenues |
Vulnerability |
22.4% |
30.8% |
28.0% |
23.3% |
27.3% |
● Vulnerable |
Governmental Activities figures from City of Elmira audited financial statements.
Elmira Water Board excluded (separate component unit). All dollars.
See data sources →
| Line Item |
FY2020 |
FY2021 |
FY2022 |
FY2023 |
FY2024 |
| ASSETS |
| Current Assets |
$24,278,193 |
$25,317,773 |
$42,122,939 |
$43,633,696 |
$31,884,856 |
| Capital Assets (net of depreciation) |
$52,458,164 |
$61,055,163 |
$65,389,073 |
$67,748,143 |
$75,706,574 |
| Total Assets |
$81,829,724 |
$104,096,291 |
$118,793,826 |
$121,486,598 |
$115,976,147 |
| Deferred Outflows |
$23,119,027 |
$28,896,147 |
$24,229,949 |
$22,675,928 |
$22,426,243 |
| LIABILITIES |
| Total Liabilities |
$107,854,862 |
$109,681,987 |
$114,232,853 |
$125,085,497 |
$112,871,958 |
| — Noncurrent Liabilities |
$89,259,382 |
$94,055,337 |
— |
— |
$92,334,352 |
| — OPEB Liability (incl. in above) |
$46,828,660 |
$50,615,583 |
— |
— |
$41,573,398 |
| — Net Pension Liability (incl. in above) |
$16,271,883 |
$4,430,050 |
— |
— |
$14,806,624 |
| Deferred Inflows |
$9,234,504 |
$22,266,925 |
$21,280,308 |
$11,308,286 |
$20,046,224 |
| REVENUES |
| Total Revenues |
$43,413,493 |
$52,087,934 |
$48,039,586 |
$46,892,194 |
$46,596,585 |
| — Operating Grants & Contributions |
$1,855,467 |
$5,326,448 |
$7,887,425 |
$7,575,650 |
$10,824,236 |
| — Capital Grants & Contributions |
$7,859,964 |
$10,731,996 |
$5,568,264 |
$3,341,815 |
$1,901,059 |
| Interest Charges on Long-Term Debt |
$1,070,824 |
$936,692 |
$752,321 |
$855,211 |
$890,947 |
| CAPITAL ASSETS |
| Total Original Cost |
$120,068,405 |
$132,402,942 |
n/a |
$147,178,032 |
$152,245,996 |
| Accumulated Depreciation |
$67,610,241 |
$71,347,779 |
n/a |
$79,429,889 |
$76,539,422 |
FY2025 Data — Pending
The City of Elmira's FY2025 audited financial report had not been posted to the city's
DocumentCenter as of June 2026. A comprehensive sweep of document IDs 200–1350 confirmed
no city financial report beyond FY2024 (doc ID 1145). The report is expected once the
independent audit is completed — typically 6–9 months after fiscal year end (December 31, 2025).
This page will be updated when FY2025 data becomes available.