If this is what the BND is reporting, then I question its integrity.
Granite City and that other town have similar amount of city workers but Granite City has a higher budget, ergo the sky is falling.
There are so many problems with this - and so many lapses in basic critical thinking, that I question both the BND and anyone who would get worked up over this.
First of all, it is likely that staffing levels in Granite City have gone down over the years, as staffing levels in that other town have increased.
Perhaps by attrition, the workers in Granite City have more seniority and the new hires either weren't hired to replace old hires, or even some were cut at the bottom of the ladder, keeping on the ones with seniority.
It could also be which types of jobs each community hired.
They just said Granite City has X amount of workers and that other town has a similar amount...they never said how they were distributed amongst various departments.
So - the BND irresponsible in positing an argument that is simple to pick apart.