Jefferson County, Alabama
Jefferson County is a county in the U.S. state of Alabama.
Jefferson County | |
|---|---|
 Jefferson County Courthouse in Birmingham | |
 Location within the U.S. state of Alabama | |
 Alabama's location within the U.S. | |
| Coordinates: 33°31′N 86°49′W / 33.52°N 86.81°W | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Alabama |
| Founded | December 13, 1819[1] |
| Named for | Thomas Jefferson |
| Seat | Birmingham |
| Largest city | Birmingham |
| Area | |
| • Total | 1,124 sq mi (2,910 km2) |
| • Land | 1,111 sq mi (2,880 km2) |
| • Water | 13 sq mi (30 km2) 1.1% |
| Population | |
| • Total | 674,721 |
| • Density | 600/sq mi (230/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−6 (Central) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−5 (CDT) |
| Website | jeffconline |
The county was named after Thomas Jefferson, the third President of the United States. The county has the largest population of any county in Alabama. As of the 2020 U.S. census, 674,721 people lived there.[2] The largest city in Jefferson County is Birmingham, Alabama.
History
changeJefferson County was created by the Alabama legislature on December 13, 1819, 42 years before the American Civil War.[3]
Bankruptcy
changeJefferson County was spending more than its total revenue, so it sold bonds to finance its operating deficits. Normally, governments sell bonds to borrow money to build infrastructure. But Jefferson County borrowed money to put off tax increases or service reductions. Jefferson County worked with Wall Street banks (such as J.P. Morgan) to sell the bonds and to make interest rate swaps on its debt. These financial deals happened in 2002 and 2003 while the economy was healthy. People who purchase bonds want to know the source of the money to pay back the bonds. So, Jefferson County used its sewer system fees to back its bonds. The county sold $3.14 billion in sewer bonds. It also paid the banks millions of dollars of fees for their help in selling the bonds and setting up the county's debt.
By 2011, Jefferson County could no longer borrow more money and its total revenues fell because of the bad economy. So, the county went to Wall Street and asked them to forgive $1 billion of the debt. After months of talking, the county and the banks were $130 million apart from a final agreement. The banks wanted the county to raise sewer rates to cover the missing money. The county wanted the banks to forgive more debt.
On November 9, 2011, the county gave up and filed for bankruptcy. Jefferson County became the subject of the most expensive municipal bankruptcy ever in the United States, at $4.1 billion, with debts of $3.14 billion relating to sewer work. This means that a court will decide what the county owes. Under bankruptcy, people who loaned money to the county will not get all of their money back.[4]
References
change- ↑ "Jefferson County Extension Office". Alabama Cooperative Extension System (ACES). Archived from the original on April 16, 2000. Retrieved September 27, 2007.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "QuickFacts: Jefferson County, Alabama". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 8, 2023.
- ↑ "Jefferson County Extension Office". Alabama Cooperative Extension System (ACES).
- ↑ Corkery, Michael (November 12, 2011). "Blame Flies in Alabama". Wall Street Journal. p. B16.
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