State College mayor: Direct aid to local government must be part of any new emergency assistance package

The United States Senate is considering the fourth iteration of the Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions Act or HEROES Act. I want to urge Senators Pat Toomey and Bob Casey to include direct and flexible funds to State College and other municipalities to help us stabilize our communities and reboot our local economies. Recent National League of Cities economic analysis finds that municipalities across the country are facing over $360 billion in lost revenues over the next three years because of COVID-19. State College is one of those municipalities, and without federal aid the future is not bright.

The Borough is currently not in a good financial state. Our known COVID-19 impact as of June is $1.2 million. This number will climb substantially. We have no firm idea yet of the impact on our earned income and public services tax revenues, however, we do know that there will be an impact. Income from the refuse and recycling and sanitary sewer funds will drop dramatically because of the closure of so many businesses. Our parking fund has already lost nearly $800,000. The cancellation of events like concerts and meetings, and the elimination of fans at sporting events will hurt parking revenues even more. Not to mention the impact it will have on local businesses.

The Borough has already taken prudent steps to mitigate the immediate effects on our budget. These include deferring important capital projects, furloughing some employees, not filling vacancies, and planning to dip into our reserve funds. Without federal help, we will struggle to provide essential services at the level that our citizens have come to expect, make necessary debt payments, and help our local businesses survive and recover.

For the first time ever, Congress is positioned to provide direct budget aid to towns like State College. The first stimulus plan awarded direct aid only to cities with populations over 500,000. That meant only Philadelphia received aid in Pennsylvania. I am using my voice to advocate for State College, and I am asking you to help. We need YOU to contact your senators today and tell them that direct aid to local government MUST be part of any new emergency assistance package. Thanks for your help and stay safe.