U.S. cities suffered more harm to their fiscal condition in the latest recession than during any other economic decline in nearly a quarter of a century, a survey released by the National League of Cities on Wednesday found.

And cities are just beginning to see the effect of the downturn that began at the end of 2007 on property taxes, though the recession officially ended in June 2009. Property taxes, a key revenue generator for cities, fell 1.8 percent in 2010 from 2009, according to the survey. Get the full story »