December 2, 2020
The Honorable Mitch McConnell The Honorable Nancy Pelosi Majority Leader Speaker of the House United States Senate United States House of Representatives U.S. Capitol Building, Room S-230 U.S. Capitol Building Washington, DC 20510 Washington, DC 20515
The Honorable Chuck Schumer The Honorable Kevin McCarthy Minority Leader Minority Leader United States Senate United States House of Representatives U.S. Capitol Building, Room S-224 U.S. Capitol Building Washington, DC 20515 Washington, DC 20515
To our Federal Partners,
As we get closer to winter and the COVID-19 crisis worsens, the needs of our communities continue to grow. To address the needs of millions of Americans who are faced with job loss, housing instability, and hunger, we ask that you pass additional COVID-19 relief legislation during the lame duck session of Congress. This is not about politics – it’s about people’s lives.
We ask that COVID-19 legislation prioritize funding to assist individuals and families in need, provide financial assistance to small businesses and organizations, and assist local governments. Additionally, we need to recognize that Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC), people with disabilities, the undocumented, people experiencing houselessness, and people experiencing poverty and housing insecurity have been disproportionally affected by this crisis.
Assistance to Individuals and Families – Families kept from work or impacted by unemployment due to COVID-19 face housing instability, food insecurity, and numerous other needs. We need you to help prevent a tidal wave of evictions and foreclosures across this country by passing legislation that provides emergency rental assistance, mortgage assistance, and programs to prevent COVID-19-related evictions and foreclosures. We are also seeing enormous demand at our nonprofit partners and food banks which need additional funding and expanded access to the USDA Food and Nutrition Service Programs. And as the virus surges, we ask that you also support an extension of the Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation program, which is keeping individuals and families financially afloat.
Assistance to Small Businesses and Organizations – Small businesses are what makes each of our communities unique, and they are being decimated by this crisis; particularly BIPOC-owned businesses. We urge additional funding for the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and transparency requirements to ensure that banks are providing loans to BIPOC- and women- owned businesses. Additionally, we need support for businesses for whom the PPP does not work, such as restaurants and performance venues.
Assistance to Local Governments – Local governments need direct and flexible financial assistance in order to continue providing vital services to our communities. Nearly 70 percent of cities have not received CARES Act funding to date and over 70 percent are instituting staffing cuts to meet budgetary restraints. During a time of increased need for municipal services to ensure our communities weather the public health emergency and economic slowdown, cities have been hamstrung by restricted access to federal stimulus funding. We ask that you provide financial assistance directly to local governments, utilizing HUD’s Community Development Block Grant Entitlement Program formula as a guide. Additionally, assistance to the nation’s transit agencies, which are lifelines that will continue to allow front line workers to commute to jobs and to help the economy recover. Without direct financial stimulus, local governments will not be able to meet the basic and expanding needs of our communities as the pandemic worsens.
We appreciate the energy and thoughtfulness that you bring to your work, especially during this time. We thank you for the opportunity to communicate our thoughts and the needs of our communities as we continue to address this crisis together.
Sincerely,
Mayor Ted Wheeler, City of Portland Mayor Jenny Durkan, City of Seattle
Mayor London Breed, City of San Francisco Mayor Libby Schaaf, City of Oakland
Mayor Sam Liccardo, City of San Jose Mayor Lauren McLean, City of Boise
Mayor Lee Brand, City of Fresno Mayor Darrell Steinberg, City of Sacramento
Mayor Lucy Vinis, City of Eugene Mayor Jesse Arreguín, City of Berkeley
Mayor Cassie Franklin, City of Everett Mayor Lindsey Horvath, City of West Hollywood
Mayor-elect Todd Gloria, City of San Diego
cc: Congressional delegations representing cosigners