加州斯托克顿市将宣布破产

时间：2012-06-27 07:46:16

（单词翻译:单击）

The Californian city of Stockton is set to become the largest US city to declare bankruptcy1.

加利福尼亚州斯托克顿市将成为美国最大的破产城市。

Mayor Ann Johnston told the city council which endorsed2 the move it was "the most difficult and heart-wrenching decision" they had ever faced.

But she said it had to be done to begin the recovery process.

The river port city of 290,000 - which lies 90 miles (144km) east of San Francisco - suffered badly during the US housing market crash.

Filing for Chapter 9 bankruptcy protection would allow the city to hold some of its creditors3 at bay while still paying for basic services like its police and fire department.

Drastic cuts

The city is facing a projected $26m budget shortfall and a bankruptcy filing could come as early as Wednesday.

The housing boom was good to Stockton. Flush with property tax, the city developed its waterfront, with a new marina and sports complex, and negotiated generous pension and healthcare benefits for city employees.

But in the past three years, officials in the city have dealt with $90m (£57m) in deficits4 through a series of drastic cuts.

They eliminated one-fourth of the city's police officers, one-third of the fire staff, and 40% of all other employees. They also cut wages and medical benefits.

Stockton's unemployment and violent crime rates now rank among the top in the nation. One in every 195 Stockton homes filed for foreclosure in May, according to RealtyTrac.

More than 15% of the population of Stockton is unemployed5 - nearly double the national average.

City buildings have been repossessed and "Out of Business" signs are a common sight.

City Hall was due to move into a new building, but since Stockton has run out of money, the new building has been repossessed.


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1 bankruptcy fPoyJ     
n.破产；无偿付能力
参考例句：
  • You will have to pull in if you want to escape bankruptcy.如果你想避免破产，就必须节省开支。
  • His firm is just on thin ice of bankruptcy.他的商号正面临破产的危险。
2 endorsed a604e73131bb1a34283a5ebcd349def4     
vt.& vi.endorse的过去式或过去分词形式v.赞同( endorse的过去式和过去分词 )；在（尤指支票的）背面签字；在（文件的）背面写评论；在广告上说本人使用并赞同某产品
参考例句：
  • The committee endorsed an initiative by the chairman to enter discussion about a possible merger. 委员会通过了主席提出的新方案，开始就可能进行的并购进行讨论。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • The government has broadly endorsed a research paper proposing new educational targets for 14-year-olds. 政府基本上支持建议对14 岁少年实行新教育目标的研究报告。 来自《简明英汉词典》
3 creditors 6cb54c34971e9a505f7a0572f600684b     
n.债权人，债主( creditor的名词复数 )
参考例句：
  • They agreed to repay their creditors over a period of three years. 他们同意3年内向债主还清欠款。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Creditors could obtain a writ for the arrest of their debtors. 债权人可以获得逮捕债务人的令状。 来自《简明英汉词典》
4 deficits 08e04c986818dbc337627eabec5b794e     
n.不足额( deficit的名词复数 )；赤字；亏空；亏损
参考例句：
  • The Ministry of Finance consistently overestimated its budget deficits. 财政部一贯高估预算赤字。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Many of the world's farmers are also incurring economic deficits. 世界上许多农民还在遭受经济上的亏损。 来自辞典例句
5 unemployed lfIz5Q     
adj.失业的，没有工作的；未动用的，闲置的
参考例句：
  • There are now over four million unemployed workers in this country.这个国家现有四百万失业人员。
  • The unemployed hunger for jobs.失业者渴望得到工作。

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