AP PHOTO In this file photo, the Target Fireworks display lights the sky over downtown Detroit. Even beaten-down cities like Detroit, which has been flayed by high unemployment and a faltering auto industry, have been able to keep their display, which is primarily paid for by corporate sponsors including Target Corp.

Lack of bucks means less bang this July Fourth for many cash-strapped cities. Fireworks shows are being canceled or scaled back, mostly in small and midsize cities, as municipalities’ tax revenue dries up with the slowing economy and falling home prices. Funding from corporate sponsorships also has fizzled as businesses deal with economic problems of their own. The budget realities are forcing communities to decide, for example, whether they can pay for extra police and fire protection for a fireworks show — or perhaps pay an officer’s salary for the rest of the year. And some organizers have concerns about seeking money for a celebration as communities struggle to take care of life-or-death needs worsened by the recession. In some cases, it’s not just the fireworks shows getting the ax. Municipal and corporate sponsors, forced into frugality by the tough economy, have reduced or pulled funding for whole festivals encompassing music, food and other staples of summer.