Congress’ Delay Slashes Main Street Investments Amid COVID-19
Congress is still playing politics with COVID relief to cities and states. The deepest cuts from the pandemic will show up on the Main Streets and 2021 budgets of cities, towns and villages across America. Carefully built reserves are depleted, and with no deal on the horizon, communities will need to make cuts that may sting for years to come.
President Trump Issues Executive Orders to Secure Environmental Legacy
Supreme Court Allows Census Count to Stop
NLC Members in Action
Stay Updated on Advocacy Initiatives:
- On October 19, NLC sent a letter to House and Senate leadership on the President’s “Memorandum on Reviewing Funding to State and Local Government Recipients That Are Permitting Anarchy, Violence, and Destruction in American Cities“, urging Congress to take immediate action to stop federal agencies from acting on the memo when establishing and allocating grants.
- On October 19, NLC submitted a joint comment letter on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Proposed 2020 Financial Capability Assessment (FCA) for Clean Water Act (CWA) Obligations. Local governments strongly support the proposed 2020 FCA Guidance, which acknowledges the economic burdens on residents and will potentially provide additional flexibility, transparency and financial relief for cities, counties and utilities in meeting CWA obligations in a more cost-effective manner.
- On October 19, NLC hosted “What Cities and States Learned from Expanded Drone Pilots”. From technical to practical, attendees heard first-hand from local leaders and experts including Mayor Wade Troxell, Fort Collins, CO, and FAA Drone Advisory Committee Member on how the UAS Integration Pilot Program (IPP) advanced integration priorities, and what is needed to support future expanded operations.
Announcements
Supreme Court Preview Webinar for States and Local Governments
Tuesday, October 27 | 1:00 PM ET
While the Supreme Court has agreed to hear lots of interesting cases relevant to states and local governments in its new term beginning on October 5, 2020, many are holdovers from last term. The Court has also accepted numerous new cases of interest including another challenge to the Affordable Care Act and a challenge to Philadelphia’s refusal to work with Catholic Social Service regarding placing foster children because it won’t place them with same-sex couples. Join to hear a discussion of the cases most interesting to states and local governments that the Court has agreed to hear so far.
Register now!
Advocacy News
What We’re Reading:
- As Washington scrambles for more bailout money, the Fed sits on mountain of untapped funds – The Washington Post (October 19, 2020)
- City governments brace for long-term COVID impact – Albuquerque Journal (October 19, 2020)
- Issuer groups push for expansion of MLF as stimulus talks deteriorate – The Bond Buyer (October 16, 2020)
- Fed vice chair: US economy will take years to fully recover from coronavirus – The Hill (October 14, 2020)