Calls on Congress to Allocate Additional $500 Billion
National Governors Association Chair Maryland Governor Larry Hogan and NGA Vice Chair New York Governor Andrew Cuomo issued the following statement:
“Governors across the country are leading the on-the-ground response to the national COVID-19 pandemic, implementing a variety of stay-at-home orders and other aggressive measures that are successfully flattening the curve of the spread of the virus. While these public health strategies are working to protect the American people, they result in catastrophic damage to state economies.
“Despite this grave challenge, the recently passed federal CARES Act contained zero funding to offset these drastic state revenue
shortfalls. To stabilize state budgets and to make sure states have the
resources to battle the virus and provide the services the American people rely
on, Congress must provide immediate fiscal assistance directly to all states.
“We must be allowed to use any state stabilization funds for replacement of
lost revenue, and these funds should not be tied to only COVID-19 related
expenses. Congress must amend the CARES Act to allow this flexibility for existing
federal funding.
“Moreover, Congress must appropriate an additional $500 billion
specifically for all states and territories to meet the states’ budgetary
shortfalls that have resulted from this unprecedented public health crisis.
This critical stabilization funding for states must be separate from much-needed
fiscal stabilization for local governments.
“In the absence of unrestricted fiscal support of at least $500 billion from
the federal government, states will have to confront the prospect of significant
reductions to critically important services all across this country, hampering
public health, the economic recovery, and — in turn — our collective effort
to get people back to work.”
