Fiscal climate will soon worsen, Latta warned Bucyrians facing fiscal emergency threat

During a visit to Bucyrus, U.S. Rep. Bob Latta (R-OH5), he was asked for suggestions on how the city could avoid a fiscal emergency, but the conversation quickly turned to the country's deficit.

Latta said federal authorities cannot offer easy remedies financial situations pointing to the country's national debt.

“We owe foreign creditors $7.6 trillion. The interest rate is going to go even higher, and that’s going to affect everybody out in our communities,” Latta said. “I want to make sure that I’m doing what I can to get that under control, and that’s very important because we just can’t keep that up on the federal side.”

What can the federal government do about fiscal emergency threat in Bucyrus?

When asked about the danger of the fiscal emergency in Bucyrus, Latta said it was a local issue and brought up instead the question of $1 trillion in interest payments on the federal $34 trillion deficit that should start within the next three or four years.

“It’s going to be even tougher to borrow money out there,” Latta said.

The top three lines of expenditure on the federal level soon will be Social Security, Medicare and interest payments, national defense falling below that, he said.

The best remedy the federal government can offer to communities like Bucyrus is to keep federal spending under control because federal debt payments and the interest rate formed by those two factors affect every individual in the nation, Latta said.

“That’s why it’s important that we do a real positive can on the federal side to get the spending under control because it is going to affect everybody in the communities across the country,” Latta said.

Wastewater treatment plant payments might be reimbursed with federal dollars

Regarding the need for the wastewater treatment plant update in Bucyrus and sewer rates increase, Latta said although the federal authorities can’t help with the EPA mandates, federal dollars will be available to help the community when the time comes.

Latta said other things he discussed with city leaders were the delivery of services, water and sewer and the costs of snow removal.

Latta typically visits Crawford County and Bucyrus a few times during the year, including attending entertainment events, such as the Bucyrus Bratwurst Festival.

“It’s important for me to be out,” Latta said. “The most important thing that we do is to help our constituency, and I can’t do my job if I don’t hear from people.”

Latta is running for reelection to his House seat this year.

This article originally appeared on Bucyrus Telegraph-Forum: U.S. Rep. Bob Latta discusses national debt during visit to Bucyrus