San Francisco has landed at the very bottom of a recent nationwide ranking evaluating how well American cities are governed, according to a financial services firm’s latest report.
WalletHub conducted the analysis by assessing the “effectiveness of local leadership” through “determining a city’s operating efficiency.” Out of 148 cities surveyed, San Francisco ranked dead last at 148th.
“We can learn how well city officials manage and spend public funds by comparing the quality of the services residents receive against the city’s total budget,” explained WalletHub Financial Writer Adam McCann in the report.
To arrive at its rankings, WalletHub assigned each city a “Quality of Services” score. This score was derived from 36 individual metrics across six categories: financial stability, education, health, safety, economy, and infrastructure and pollution. These scores were then compared to each city’s per capita budget.
San Francisco’s poor performance comes after years of challenges, including a notable wave of residents leaving the city, falling public school enrollment, and soaring housing costs.
In a sign of shifting public sentiment, voters recently elected Daniel Lurie as mayor, replacing incumbent Democrat London Breed in a decisive victory, 56% to 43%.
That election outcome suggested growing frustration with the city’s lenient stance on crime, drug use, and homelessness, issues that have plagued San Francisco in recent years.
Following San Francisco, the report named Detroit (147th), Oakland (146th), New York City (145th), Philadelphia (144th), and Baltimore (143rd) as the next worst-run cities.
At the opposite end of the spectrum, Provo, Utah was ranked the best-run city in America. WalletHub attributed this to the city’s strong economic performance, low crime and unemployment rates, and clean streets.
“Provo, UT, is the best-run city, and the reasons for that are that the city is experiencing business growth of around 5.2%, alongside a high school graduation rate of nearly 91%, a combination that signals a strong foundation for the future,” McCann noted.
Provo Mayor Michelle Kaufusi expressed her pride in the ranking during an interview with Fox News Digital, calling it “truly an honor.”
“We’ve always believed in getting the fundamentals right—delivering quality education, maintaining safe neighborhoods, ensuring well-maintained infrastructure, and practicing responsible fiscal stewardship. This national ranking validates that approach and shows that when you focus on providing exceptional core services efficiently, the results speak for themselves: residents prosper, businesses flourish, and our entire community thrives,” Kaufusi said.
Add Comment