How is municipal Financial resilience calculated?
Financial resilience is Pothole Portal’s experimental, equally weighted indicator of maintenance, cash coverage and operating balance. It is our analysis of Treasury data, rather than an official government rating or a verdict on corruption or service quality.
By Pothole Portal · Independent interpretation of public evidence
Three financial inputs
Maintenance compares annual repairs and maintenance with the relevant property and asset base. Cash coverage expresses year-end cash in months of operating expenditure. Operating balance expresses the annual operating surplus or deficit as a percentage of revenue excluding capital transfers.
The score averages three bounded components: maintenance divided by an 8% reference, cash coverage divided by three months, and operating balance mapped from −10% to +10%. Each component is limited to 0–100 before taking the mean. The reference values and equal weights are design choices.
When a score is unavailable
All three inputs must be present and pass the published source-quality checks. Missing data, invalid maintenance ratios, negative relevant asset components or negative cash coverage can prevent a score. Unavailable does not mean zero or the worst-performing municipality.
Read the components alongside audit findings, service responsibilities and reporting periods. A score change may reflect revised source information as well as changed finances. The methodology page contains the operative formulas and qualifications.
Sources and definitions
Source publication dates and data coverage differ. For a municipality’s figures, check the observation period and original evidence rather than assuming this guide establishes the latest available data.
Explore the evidence
Found an error? Read our corrections process.