Over
the last several months, NCLM and its member cities and towns have worked
tirelessly advocating for the need for flexible and direct assistance to cities
and towns as part of a new round of federal COVID-19 relief. With that action,
and that by the National League of Cities, fellow state leagues and their
members, advocates for cities and towns in Congress have made such assistance a
priority in the on-again, off-again negotiations since spring. But other voices
in Congress have questioned our needs, even stating that they have not heard from municipal leaders.
The earlier efforts of cities and towns could now be close to fruition. A relief package being negotiated by a bipartisan group in Congress and supported by key leaders contains $160 billion for state and local governments.
Please contact your members of Congress, including Senators Burr and Tillis, to urge them to support this funding! Urge them to support funding for municipalities that is direct, flexible and comprehensive. Tell them about how the pandemic and the resurgence of the virus is hurting your city or town in specific ways.
Let them know that:
-Direct and flexible assistance is required if cities are to receive the needed funding to fill pandemic-caused revenue gaps and prevent a larger economic downturn.
-All cities and towns, regardless of size, are suffering; all need help.
-Cities and towns did not cause the situation that they now find themselves in and the resulting shortfalls; a global pandemic did.
-Roughly 30 percent of municipal general fund dollars go toward public safety, and without help, cuts to these services are inevitable.
-Municipalities are the primary providers of water and sewer service to North Carolinians, and those utility funds are suffering due to bill non-payments even as they have fixed costs that must be paid.
For North Carolina to emerge strong from the economic effects of COVID-19, the financial health of cities and towns is crucial. Contact your members of Congress now and urge them to support direct, flexible and comprehensive funding for cities and towns!
You can find contact information for your member of Congress here:
http://federalaffairs.unc.edu/resources/