Bing announces Detroit finance chief's departure

DETROIT (AP) -- Detroit Mayor David Bing says he's accepted the resignation of city finance director Thomas Lijana. In a news release Monday, Bing said Lijana is leaving the job Aug. 5. Bing named Lijana as his finance director in January 2010, saying he needed him to help direct Detroit's efforts to get on a path of fiscal stability. Lijana says with completion of a municipal budget deficit program, he's "comfortable handing these responsibilities off to others to continue to move the administration forward." Bing has cut hundreds of millions of dollars in spending, but a $155 million deficit remains in the $3.1 billion budget for the current fiscal year. Published: Wed, Jul 27, 2011