CONGRESSMAN JOE MORELLE RENEWS CALL FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT FUNDING RELIEF

(Rochester, NY) – Today, Congressman Joe Morelle renewed his call for Congress to take swift legislative action to help state and local governments cope with the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Through federal funding relief, Congress can help prevent cuts to essential community programs and services like education, law enforcement, and first responders.

"As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, the need for state and local funding relief has only become more urgent," said Rep. Morelle. "So many of the vital programs and social services that our families utilize on every day rely on this funding—and we cannot allow them to be jeopardized. That's why, as we begin a new Congress, one of my top priorities is to ensure we have expansive stabilization funds to help our communities continue to heal from this unprecedented health and economic crisis."

Providing financial relief for states, counties, and towns is critical to cover the necessary expenditures incurred during the COVID-19 outbreak and replace lost revenue. Without this relief, municipalities would face significant budget shortfalls that could result in devastating programming cuts to local school districts, emergency services, and more.

Last year, Rep. Morelle voted to pass the Heroes Act, which would have provided $915 billion in emergency funding for state and local governments facing budget shortfalls. It also invested more than $100 billion in direct emergency funding for students, schools, and institutions to maintain access to education. While the Heroes Act was never taken up by the Senate in 2020, there is renewed hope to collaborate with the Senate Majority and Biden Administration to pass it into law this year.

Rep. Morelle has been a champion of pursuing state and local funding aid throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2020 he sponsored a suite of legislation including The State Operations Stabilization (SOS) Act, The Coronavirus Assistance for States Act, and the Coronavirus Community Relief Act.

"Families have been through enough—they shouldn't have to lose access to the services they rely on," continued Rep. Morelle. "I look forward to working with the incoming Biden Administration towards the swift passage of this legislation to help our communities through this challenging time."