Chester’s (PA) Chapter 9 Clash

On the latest episode of the Debtwire Municipals Muni Lowdown podcast, Managing Editor Paul Greaves speaks with Paul Gunther, legal analyst for Debtwire and Greg Clark, head of municipal research, about the Chapter 9 filing of Chester, PA. For decades, the City of Chester has experienced incremental credit deterioration that eventually led to a Chapter 9 filing in November 2022. On this podcast, Greg Clark details the economic, fiscal, and political landscape that led to this bankruptcy filing including the city’s movement into state oversight (1995) and the eventual the naming of a receiver, Michael Doweary, in 2020. Paul Gunther continues the conversation by highlighting the receivership process. Paul details the key issues facing the city in bankruptcy and the significant financial pressure placed due to its pension obligations. The discussion turns to how the city is attempting to address its bond obligations. Paul concludes the podcast by providing context to the city’s efforts to monetize its water system and the loan approved by the court in December 2022. Paul concludes with how the power struggle between the elected officials, the receiver, and bondholders has affected the bankruptcy filing. Greg Clark is a municipal analyst with more than four decades of experience at a rating agency, broker-dealers, commercial banks, bond insurers, and a hedge fund. He is also a former chairman of the National Federation of Municipal Analysts and of the Municipal Analysts Group of New York. Paul Gunther is a former practicing restructuring and litigation attorney. Prior to joining Debtwire as a Legal Analyst, Paul practiced in the New York offices of several law firms in New York City and has represented various constituencies in high-profile restructurings. #Chapter9 #restructuring #muniland