More than 2,100 U.S. cities

artappraiser — Tue, 14 Apr 2020 09:54:08 +0000

In reply to Congressional stalemate deepens as Pelosi, Schumer say they won’t budge on funding demands

More than 2,100 U.S. cities brace for budget shortfalls due to coronavirus, new survey finds, with many planning cuts and layoffs

Report comes as White House and states continue to battle over how to address economic fallout

By Tony Romm @ WashingtonPost.com, April 14

More than 2,100 U.S. cities are anticipating major budget shortfalls this year and many are planning to slash programs and cut staff in response, according to a new survey of local officials released Tuesday, illustrating the widespread financial havoc threatened by the coronavirus pandemic.

The bleak outlook — shared by local governments representing roughly 93 million people nationwide — led some top mayors and other leaders to call for greater federal aid to protect cities now forced to choose between balancing their cash-strapped ledgers and sustaining the public services that residents need most.

“There’s no question that the coronavirus pandemic has had, and will have, a major impact on cities of all sizes,” said Clarence Anthony, the executive director of the National League of Cities.

The NLC joined with the U.S. Conference of Mayors to conduct the early inquiry into the economic effects of the novel coronavirus, finding that many local governments are bracing for sharp declines in tax revenue as businesses shutter, workers lose their jobs in record numbers and tourism grinds to a halt.

Nearly 9 in 10 cities surveyed — from smaller hubs with populations of fewer than 50,000 to the largest metropolitan areas in the country — signaled they expect a revenue shortfall. Among them, more than 1,100 cities are preparing to scale back their public services, the survey found. Almost 600 cities predicted they may have to lay off some government workers amid the crunch. And local leaders in 1,000 cities said the reductions probably would affect their local police departments and other public safety agencies.

The findings inject new urgency into a simmering congressional debate over Washington’s role in safeguarding cash-starved cities and states from financial ruin [.....]

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More than 2,100 U.S. cities