[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 138 (Tuesday, August 4, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4706-S4709]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              CORONAVIRUS

  Mr. CASSIDY. Madam President, I rise to address the issues regarding 
the COVID crisis. Now, as we know, the COVID crisis is a public health 
crisis which has led to an economic crisis and, in turn, an educational 
crisis.
  Today, I am going to speak about an aspect of the economic crisis--
specifically State and local governments, which have had to shut down 
their economy and, in turn, have lost all the tax revenue they 
otherwise would receive and, because they have lost that tax revenue, 
have put the jobs of firefighters, police officers, teachers, 
sanitation workers, and other essential frontline workers at risk. So 
let me proceed.
  Senate Republicans have unveiled a proposal for a second line of 
support for American families and small businesses as our Nation 
continues to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. The virus is an 
unprecedented challenge, but we shall overcome, and the HEALS Act 
attempts to do that.
  The introduction of this proposal signals Republicans' commitment to 
seeing America through this challenging time, as was with the CARES 
Act. The ultimate safety of the people of Louisiana and the United 
States are my top priority, and the HEALS Act, as with all major bills, 
is a starting point of negotiations to build consensus among Members of 
both parties for the best path forward.
  The HEALS Act includes stimulus checks for Americans, support for 
small businesses, and billions to help schools reopen. While these are 
critically important to economic recovery, so, too, are the essential 
services provided by States and local communities. I am talking about 
police officers, firefighters, teachers, sanitation workers, and other 
municipal workers. Because of this economic lockdown, State and local 
governments have seen their tax base erode, which threatens their 
ability to keep these very people we need employed--these people who 
keep our communities running.
  I don't want to see, for example, a situation where cities slash 
police budgets and force layoffs of those who put their lives on the 
line to keep us safe. That is why Congress should include additional 
relief for State and local communities in this relief package.
  Senator Bob Menendez--and his staff has been a wonderful team to work 
with--and I have offered a bipartisan proposal called the SMART Act to 
help communities through this pandemic. I am privileged to be joined 
today by Senator Menendez and Senator Collins to speak on its behalf.
  The SMART Act calls for $500 billion in funding for State and local 
governments, and it would be dispersed in thirds. One-third is based on 
a State's population. Clearly, California needs more than Alaska. One-
third is based upon the COVID-19 impact. My State has had one of the 
highest per capita incidences of coronavirus infection. We have been 
terribly impacted. One-third is based upon revenue lost, which, again, 
my State, as well as the States of my colleagues, has been very 
impacted. It is a fair formula that prioritizes funding to the hardest 
hit.
  The need is great. S&P Global released a report detailing the State 
susceptibility to fiscal distress in a COVID-19 recession. There were 
38 States that had a high or very high risk of economic exposure. S&P's 
findings echo a Moody's report that also predicted dire effects to 
States and cities if nothing is done. Moody's found that 34 States will 
see tax revenue fall by double-digit percentage points, the worst of 
which are Alaska falling 80 percent, Louisiana at 46 percent, and North 
Dakota at 44 percent.
  According to the National Association of Counties, local 
communities--not States; local communities--anticipate a $202 billion 
impact to budgets through 2021. Their report shows that 71 percent of 
counties have delayed capital investments, including infrastructure and 
economic development projects; 68 percent have cut or delayed county 
services--or parish services in the case of Louisiana--human services, 
public safety, and community development support; and 25 percent have 
cut the county workforce. Moody's estimates that 1.3 million have 
already been laid off, and an estimated 1.4 million more State and 
parish county workers and municipal workers will be laid off in the 
coming fiscal year. Sixty-six percent of counties receiving CARES Act 
coronavirus relief indicate that the funding will not cover the COVID-
19 budget or they are uncertain if the budgetary impacts will be 
covered. This is the impact of what has happened.
  By the way, we spoke earlier of $202 billion, and this is how the 
breakdown is in terms of lost revenue and lost State funding, et 
cetera. The impact upon State and county and municipal governments is 
huge. All told, the National Association of Counties predicts a loss of 
4.9 million jobs and $344 billion lost in GDP. It does not have to be 
that way. We can save jobs for police officers, firefighters, teachers, 
and others by including State and local support in the act we are 
considering.
  As I mentioned before, Louisiana, my State, is facing serious 
shortfalls. We are still struggling with a second wave of COVID cases. 
Yesterday, we had the No. 1 per capita incidence of coronavirus. The 
State is having to continue in a phase 2 lockdown, which strains not 
only my folks in Louisiana but also the revenue of the local 
communities where they would otherwise spend their money.
  Folks back home know the consequences if they don't receive support. 
There were 22 parish presidents who signed a letter supporting the 
SMART Act. They wrote:

       As elected leaders with parish populations ranging from 
     over 400,000 to 18,000, the COVID-19 pandemic has created 
     unprecedented challenges for all local governments not only 
     within Louisiana, but nationally. The extreme loss of tax 
     revenues, which provide for essential services, coupled with 
     unforeseen costs brought onto us by the response to COVID-19 
     pandemic, has the potential to have an extremely detrimental 
     effect on our role to provide for the citizens of our 
     parishes.

  I received a letter from more than 80 mayors across my State giving 
``their strong support and thanks'' for efforts to pass the SMART Act 
because they know I am working to deliver the support they need for 
their communities or mutual constituents. And mayors ranging from 
cities as large as Shreveport to as small as Glenmora and Athens wrote:

       The SMART Act would provide funding for municipal economic 
     recovery that will support the reopening of businesses and 
     allow Louisiana to move forward. We are grateful for Senator 
     Cassidy's bipartisan efforts and for his longstanding 
     partnership with Louisiana's governments.

  The same sentiments have been echoed by Louisiana's Chamber of 
Commerce.
  I understand concerns about spending money on State and local 
government. Some are worried the money will be used to bail out poor 
management decisions and overly generous and unfunded pension plans. I 
share those concerns, which is why the SMART Act includes specific 
provisions prohibiting spending in those areas. The SMART Act money 
replaces lost revenue caused by COVID-19 and nothing more. A city or 
parish or county would have to show their books and show that they have 
lost revenue relative to a year ago before they would be eligible to 
receive funding from this.
  I understand concerns about spending, but the cost of doing nothing 
is worse. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell spoke on the State and 
local funding needs, saying that while costly, it would be ``worth it 
if it helps avoid long-term damage and leaves us with a stronger 
economy.''
  Congress should not allow police officers, firefighters, first 
responders, teachers, sanitation workers, and others to lose their jobs 
by the millions at a time when our country needs them most. The United 
States cannot fully recover economically if local communities cannot 
provide basic services, allowing commerce to flow.

[[Page S4707]]

  As I end, I commend my colleagues on the work thus far on the HEALS 
Act. More work is left to be done, and I look forward to working with 
others in this Chamber in the coming days to strengthen this bill even 
further and finding a common path forward with our Democratic 
colleagues. We cannot let Americans down in this time of tremendous 
need. By working together, we can deliver the support they need, and we 
will be stronger as a nation for having done so
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mrs. Blackburn). The Senator from New Jersey.
  Mr. MENENDEZ. Madam President, I rise today to join my Republican 
colleagues from Louisiana and Maine to make a plea for us to break any 
partisan logjam and support bipartisan, commonsense solutions. I want 
to especially commend Senator Cassidy, who from the beginning has 
joined me in this effort and has been true to his commitment to the 
issue and to his work. We have engaged in a series of conferences with 
major national organizations in support of the legislation, and I 
appreciate his leadership in this regard. I also appreciate Senator 
Collins, who joined us from the very beginning in this effort.

  Exactly 76 days ago--yes, 2.5 months ago--Senator Cassidy and I stood 
here on the floor of the Senate with our colleagues Senator Collins and 
Booker to talk about the challenges facing our State and local 
governments and the need for Congress to deliver robust, flexible 
assistance to help them deal with the pandemic and economic fallout.
  In 76 days, we have seen COVID-19 sweep across our land. The virus is 
surging in States coast to coast. From the Deep South to the Upper 
Midwest, no community has been spared.
  America is no stranger to tough times. In just the past 100 years, we 
have fought two World Wars. We have faced a Great Depression. We have 
confronted a nuclear-armed Soviet Union. We have faced calamitous 
disasters, both natural and manmade, from Hurricanes Katrina and Sandy 
to the terrorist attacks on 9/11. We have lived through many dark days 
of our history, but no matter how steep the challenge, no matter how 
hopeless things appeared at the moment, we always came together as a 
country, and we saw ourselves as Americans above all else.
  I am proud to be a New Jerseyan. I am proud to be from a State that 
invests in its people, has a great educational system, and has an 
innovative economy. But when my parents fled tyranny in Cuba, their 
dream wasn't to move to any one State. No, they dreamed of moving to 
the United States of America to give me and my siblings the opportunity 
they never had.
  We are not a collection of 50 separate States. No, we are one Nation, 
indivisible. When hurricanes hit the gulf coast, flooding inundated 
communities along the Mississippi River, or wildfires raged in the 
West, I have never hesitated to act and cast my vote to help my fellow 
Americans. I have never asked how many New Jerseyans were affected or 
how this would impact my State. But some in this body have chosen to 
undermine that unity and to, instead, pit Americans in one State versus 
their fellow citizens in another. They have derided Senator Cassidy's 
and my efforts to avoid millions of layoffs of essential workers as a 
``Blue State Bailout.''
  For example, the junior Senator from Florida has said he refuses to 
support assistance because it will go to progressive States like New 
Jersey, New York, and California. He spreads falsehoods about States 
carrying over large annual budget deficits, even though he must be well 
aware that States, unlike the Federal Government, must balance their 
budgets according to their State Constitution.
  He has the gall to chide other States about taking from Florida, even 
as his own State is the second largest ``taker'' State in the entire 
country. Indeed, according to the latest estimates, Florida receives 
about $45 billion more from the Federal Government than it pays each 
and every year. By comparison, New Jersey actually pays about $21 
billion more each year to the Federal Government than it receives. Let 
me say that again. Florida takes $45 billion more per year out of the 
Federal coffers than they put in. New Jersey puts $21 billion back in.
  To my colleague from Florida: You are welcome.
  Why is New Jersey a donor or ``maker'' State while Florida is a 
``taker'' State? Quite simply, it is because we invest in our people 
and in our communities. New Jersey has the best public schools in the 
country, ranking No. 1 in Education Week's 2019 report. Florida, well, 
it ranked in the bottom half of the States.
  A better education leads to a better economy with higher paying jobs, 
so it is no surprise that New Jersey also has the highest per capita 
income among States at over $110,000 per year. By comparison, Florida's 
per capita income is almost $35,000 less, which puts it, once again, in 
the bottom half of States.
  So if you want your children to have a quality education, if you want 
to work in a vibrant economy that creates high-paying jobs, you should 
live in a State like New Jersey. But New Jersey, like all States--and 
through no fault of our own--is facing a health and fiscal crisis of 
historic magnitude. And because here in Washington we have failed to 
implement a national response to a national emergency, our local towns, 
cities, counties, and States have to deal with this crisis alone rather 
than united as a nation, and they are running out of money.
  They are running out of money to combat this deadly disease. They are 
running out of money to maintain the services our residents and 
businesses depend upon. They are running out of money to pay our first 
responders: police, firefighters, paramedics, and emergency personnel. 
They are running out of money to make sure that there are teachers in 
the classrooms when our kids can safely head back to school and nurses 
in our hospitals when a sick patient is brought in. They are running 
out of money to make sure the trash gets picked up, the buses and 
trains run on time, and the lights stay on at City Hall.
  They have been squeezed on both sides of the ledger, spending 
billions of dollars in unforeseen costs on emergency response while 
watching revenues dry up due to the slowing economy and necessary 
orders to contain the virus.
  Without help from Washington, our States, counties, and 
municipalities will have to swallow a toxic cocktail of tax hikes, 
service cuts, and layoffs that will only poison our economic recovery.
  It would be the height of irony--and a horrible one at that--for the 
men and women we have needed the most to be the ones fired as a result 
of the economic distress that the virus has created. We need our 
essential workers on the job dealing with the pandemic, not on the 
unemployment line.
  Already, nearly 1.5 million State and local workers have been 
furloughed or laid off--and that is only since February--and double the 
total local public sector jobs we lost during the entire great 
recession of a decade ago.
  If we fail to deliver the robust, flexible funding our States and 
communities need, we will effectively be sending pink slips to millions 
of Americans. We will be saying to all of them: You are fired.
  That will be millions more who aren't collecting a paycheck, millions 
who can't afford to shop at our stores, eat at our restaurants, pay 
their rent, or their mortgage.
  Leading economists respected by both parties predict it would 
decimate our economy and send us on the path to another Great 
Depression. We can't allow that to happen.
  That is why Senator Cassidy, Senator Collins, Senator Hyde-Smith, and 
I came together. We saw early on the impact COVID-19 was having on our 
home States and constituents, so we came up with the State and 
Municipal Assistance for Recovery and Transition, or the SMART Act.
  As Senator Cassidy says, it delivers $500 billion in flexible funding 
to frontline States, counties, and municipalities. It targets areas 
with the greatest need based on infection rate and lost revenues. 
Unfortunately, from when we started this, that is a growing reality 
across the country. Every single town, city, and county, regardless of 
its size, would qualify for direct funding. No one is left out.

[[Page S4708]]

  We immediately built a bipartisan coalition with Senators Collins, 
Booker, Hyde-Smith, Manchin, and Sinema--Republicans and Democrats from 
all walks of life, cutting across the political and geographic 
spectrum.
  We knew the assistance Congress provided our State and local 
governments in the CARES Act wasn't enough to deal with the growing 
need, and we warned our colleagues--each and every one--that what was 
happening in New Jersey, Louisiana, and elsewhere would eventually come 
to their State if we didn't get this pandemic under control. Well, we 
haven't, and it is raging. Our fellow Americans are suffering, and too 
many of them are dying.
  We have waited for 76 days. What is now being offered is wholly 
inadequate to address the needs of the American people. In Colorado, 
for example, the estimated State and local shortfall due to the 
pandemic is $10 billion, and counting, through 2022. In Alaska, it is 
expected to exceed $4 billion. In Georgia, it will be $2.5 billion in 
2021 alone. Kentucky could see nearly a 20-percent drop in its revenues 
in 2021, at a time when the State's fiscal house is already in 
disorder. But we are being offered not a dime--zero--to help our 
cities, counties, and States confront this challenge--zero, nothing. 
That is not something that is acceptable.
  That is the problem when we ignore regular order and let leadership 
hijack the legislative process: We lose our voice, and the needs of our 
constituents are left out.
  I, for one, didn't come to Washington to sit on the sidelines and 
wait for a handful of people to reach a deal behind closed doors, 
forced to vote on a 1,000-page bill within an hour of seeing it. But 
that is exactly what we have been doing here for far too long.
  We need to end this high-stakes game of closed-door posturing and 
restore the Senate back to the foundation as the greatest deliberative 
body in the world.
  It would have been easier for me just to embrace the $900 billion for 
fiscal relief in the Heroes Act. It would have been easier for Senators 
Cassidy, Collins, and Hyde-Smith to just toe the party line, but we all 
knew that sticking to our respective corners wasn't going to help a 
single one of our constituents.
  It is not too late for the Senate to get back on track. Let's do our 
jobs. Let's work together on a bipartisan solution that delivers the 
Federal support our States, counties, and cities on the frontlines of 
this pandemic need to defeat COVID-19 and serve the American people.
  Let's bring the SMART Act up in committee, allow Members on both 
sides of the aisle to offer amendments to make the legislation even 
better. You all know what our State and local governments will get if 
we leave it up to the present status--absolutely nothing. Good luck 
explaining that to the people back at home.
  I hear some of my colleagues speak from this floor, calling not for 
unity but for division. They callously ignore the pleas for help from 
the fellow Americans, comforted by the selfish but mistaken belief 
their communities are immune to the fiscal Armageddon facing our 
communities.
  Let me be clear. It doesn't really matter how fiscally responsible or 
conservative your State budget has been when your revenue drops 30 
percent overnight. It is not a random blue State issue; it is an 
American priority.
  I believe that history will look kindly upon those who stood up for 
some unity and compromise over demagoguery and obstinacy, those who put 
the well-being of the country over scoring partisan points, those who 
stuck their necks out and took a political risk for no reason other 
than it was the right thing to do. That is what I believe we are doing 
on the floor right now--the right thing.
  With that, I am happy to turn to my friend Senator Collins.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Louisiana.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Maine.
  Ms. COLLINS. Madam President, I have listened to the presentations of 
my two colleagues, Senator Cassidy and Senator Menendez, and I could 
not agree with them more. We have an opportunity to solve a problem 
that is affecting each and every community in our country.
  With the COVID-19 pandemic continuing to devastate our public health 
and our economy, towns and cities across our country are facing 
increasingly significant new challenges and plummeting revenues at the 
exact same time. I urge my colleagues to be problem-solvers, to address 
this crisis as part of the relief package that is now being negotiated. 
We cannot wait.
  I have joined with Senators Menendez and Cassidy and others in this 
Chamber in introducing the SMART Act. It would provide much needed 
financial assistance to State and local governments while providing 
safeguards to prevent wasteful spending.
  It is a lifeline to our communities, just as the Paycheck Protection 
Program has been a lifeline to our small businesses and their 
employees.
  The consequences of local government shortfalls are dire. Without our 
providing them relief, communities face having to lay off essential 
employees and reduced services at the worst possible time for working 
families.
  What is their alternative? They cannot raise taxes. That would be the 
worst thing for them to do. Municipalities are already scaling back 
their budgets, furloughing workers, and postponing needed purchases and 
projects.
  These cuts threaten the jobs of our police officers, our 
firefighters, our EMS personnel, our dispatchers, our sanitation crews, 
and our public works employees at the time when their services are 
vitally needed. They are the people who make our communities operate, 
who make them livable. We need them.
  We already know about the stresses our schools are undergoing. Do we 
really want school budgets to be cut and educators laid off at this 
important time?
  The CARES Act did provide $150 billion to our States and to very 
large communities, but those funds came with restrictions, and they did 
not require direct distributions to municipalities with populations 
under 500,000. There is not a single county in Maine, much less a city 
or town, that has a population of that level.
  The National Governors Association has called for $500 billion in 
assistance to aid our Nation's recovery. Organizations supporting our 
towns and our cities and our counties have all endorsed the SMART Act.
  Moody's Analytics warns that failing to act could shave 3 percentage 
points from real GDP, from our economic growth, and result in the loss 
of 4 million jobs. That is the worst thing to happen at this time.
  This week, the Maine Municipal Association released projections 
anticipating a combined $146 million in lost revenue from Maine cities 
and towns by the end of this year alone. We know that the revenues are 
going to take a while to recover and are going to affect next year as 
well.
  This builds on Maine's Revenue Forecasting Committee, which expects a 
$1.4 billion State budget shortfall from lost sales and income tax 
revenues over the next 3 years.
  As people are driving less, we are also seeing our gas tax revenues 
plummet.
  I have talked with town and city managers, with mayors and members of 
town councils, selectmen and -women, all across the State of Maine 
about the difficult decisions they are facing as they attempt to 
balance their budgets.
  These cuts are not theoretical. The harm is not just possible; it is 
occurring today. Let's look briefly at what some Maine communities are 
already having to do.
  The city of Westbrook has announced a hiring freeze affecting all 
city departments, including the police department. Well, that police 
department has five open positions that it needs to fill and cannot do 
so.
  Auburn, a city in Androscoggin County, has had to freeze six vacant 
positions because of expected revenue losses--again, vital positions: 
two firefighters, a police officer, and three public works employees. 
These cuts come as the city of Auburn has spent more than $200,000 in 
new expenses to respond to the virus.
  The town of Falmouth has eliminated four open positions, including a 
police officer, and can no longer go ahead with the purchase of a much 
needed new firetruck.
  The town of Windham has kept seven needed positions open. These are 
not

[[Page S4709]]

large communities. This is a large number of positions. Five of these 
are public works positions, without which, how is the plowing going to 
be done this winter to keep the roads safe and clear?
  The town has also postponed $1.6 million in capital projects. That 
has a ripple effect on the local economy. It means the contractor is 
neither buying supplies nor hiring employees at this time.
  In northern Maine, in the northern Maine city of Madawaska, the town 
manager has shared with my office that the town has had to scrap a $3 
million road-paving project and will have to keep at least three 
positions vacant.
  This is what they are doing already. It is only going to get worse 
for these towns and cities as revenues continue to plummet.
  Senator Menendez made a very important point that I want to 
reiterate, and that is, the way our bill is structured, every city, 
every town, regardless of size, will receive direct assistance. Every 
county will receive direct assistance. They will not be dependent on 
the largesse of the State. The money will go to them to meet these 
essential needs.
  It is common sense to provide the relief needed to avoid these 
widespread layoffs and cuts to essential services at the local level, 
where they often are most often needed. These are the public servants 
who keep our communities and our citizens safe. They are the public 
servants who keep our communities and our citizens healthy. They are 
the public servants who keep our communities and our citizens educated. 
They are the ones who are plowing our roads and repairing our bridges. 
They are the ones who make our towns, our cities, our neighborhoods 
livable.
  Congress must act to provide assistance to every community. This is a 
problem we can solve. Let's enact the SMART Act as part of the next 
coronavirus package.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Cassidy). The Senator from Delaware

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