If the $1.9 trillion federal stimulus package comes to pass, municipalities in eastern Onondaga County – and across the nation – stand to receive a significant windfall.
On Feb. 9, the House Committee on Oversight and Reform released a tentative list of the allocations for the proposed $350 billion in direct aid for state and local governments. All of the municipalities in the eastern suburbs are slated to receive substantial aid, although the amounts are subject to change. If approved as presented, municipalities in the eastern suburbs would receive more than $13 million.
“As our nation continues to combat the coronavirus pandemic, Congress must take bold, urgent action to confront this crisis and show the American people that help is on the way,” said Chairwoman Carolyn Maloney (D – New York). “This week, the Oversight and Reform Committee will consider legislation to provide direct funding to state and local governments striving to deliver critical services to struggling families and save the jobs of essential public servants like teachers, firefighters, and other first responders during the coronavirus pandemic.”
Aid to states and local governments has been debated since the pandemic began but has not been included in any previous relief packages. Republicans have been hesitant to provide aid to states that had fiscal challenges before the pandemic began.
Most local municipalities have borne some expense related to the pandemic, to include modifying work spaces, installing plexiglass partitions, and purchasing PPE and communications equipment. Municipal governments also received, or are slated to receive, less in state aid than they have in the past. But these expenses and revenue shortfalls are a small fraction of what they would receive if the federal funding is passed.
Manlius Supervisor Ed Theobald said Friday that the town had submitted a list of approximately $20,000 in pandemic-related expenses to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, although there were some expenses that were not deemed reimbursable by the agency. If the aid package is approved as presented, the town would receive more than $5.8 million.
Because towns and villages in Onondaga County are funded primarily by property taxes, they have not been challenged by the type of revenue losses that the county or the city of Syracuse have faced.
Property taxes in the town of Manlius rose slightly more than the state-imposed tax cap and included a 2.5 percent salary increase for town employees. DeWitt managed to squeak underneath the tax cap despite some additional costs related to the pandemic. Neither town has been forced to layoff employees like the county and the city of Syracuse, which have collectively laid off or furloughed hundreds of workers.
The amounts that local municipalities would receive as part of the tentative $1.9 trillion federal relief package are as follows:
Town of DeWitt: $4,636,672
Town of Manlius: $5,864,346
Village of East Syracuse: $542,328
Village of Fayetteville: $754,639
Village of Manlius: $823,562
Village of Minoa: $633,609
Onondaga County: $90,014,628
City of Syracuse: $116,710,773
