Municipal credit, debt, and budget consolidation have become a permanent companion of local politics over the past decades, with fatal societal consequences. Nevertheless, knowledge about the political-administrative processes in municipalities has been very limited. René Geissler succeeds in providing an administrative science explanation of the trajectories and outcomes of municipal budget policy based on three case studies. He particularly examines the effects of the constellation of actors, budget law, local political culture, and the management approaches of the treasury departments. Thus, the author conveys a deeper understanding of the processes, rationalities, and hurdles of municipal budget consolidation and presents possible courses of action.