On the heels of a dizzying week in which the White House ordered—then rescinded—a freeze on federal funds, we wanted to discuss what this all could mean for state and local governments. To help us make sense of it all, we're thrilled to welcome Carolyn Bourdeaux, former U.S. Representative from Georgia's 7th district and Senior Visiting Scholar at the University of Georgia School of Public & International Affairs; Lisa Washburn, Chief Credit Officer and Managing Director at Municipal Market Analytics; and Noah Winn-Ritzenberg, Senior Director of Public Finance at the Volcker Alliance.

We kick off our 100th episode with some Public Money Pod trivia! Then, we speak to Bill Fulton, Founder of the William Fulton Group. With an extensive background in urban planning and economic development, Bill talks to us about connecting fiscal policy and urban planning, the role of "place" in promoting community development, and rethinking how we utilize real estate in a post-pandemic world. We also talk to Bill about the potential fiscal and policy impacts of the Los Angeles wildfires. In Ripped from the Headlines, we discuss the connection between natural disasters and the affordable housing crisis, and what potential solutions exist to mitigate these issues in the future.

This week, we welcome back to the pod Joshua Franzel, Senior Executive and Director of Research & Data Analysis at the National League of Cities (NLC), as well as one of our first ever guests from Season 1. We talk about NLC's recent centennial tour, which wrapped in November 2024 after touring 130 cities across the country. We also discuss the NLC's City Fiscal Conditions Report, along with how NLC works to improve communications and foster civil discourse between elected officials and their residents. In Ripped from the Headlines, we discuss the implications of a new law in Arizona that forbids cities from charging taxes on rent.

The NLC's City Fiscal Conditions Report for 2024 is available here: https://www.nlc.org/resource/city-fiscal-conditions-2024