Amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today called on the U.S. Senate to pass a coronavirus relief bill that helps all Americans and provides unrestricted fiscal support for states. The next bill should focus on funding state and local governments, working families, state testing and tracing efforts and a real economic stimulus with no handouts to corporations who do not protect their workers and only enrich executives or shareholders. The House of Representatives has already passed a bill that includes $500 billion for states and $375 billion for locals; Medicaid funding for the most vulnerable; increased SNAP food assistance; 100 percent FEMA federal assistance; funding for testing; and repeals SALT cap to help states most affected by COVID-19.
Governor Cuomo also reiterated his call for the U.S. Senate to repeal the SALT limitations. The states most impacted by COVID-19 represent more than one-third of the national GDP. They also send tens of billions of tax dollars more to the federal government than they get back, and the dollars they send are then redistributed to other states and big corporations. These very same states that have been most impacted by COVID-19, are also the states that were hit hardest by the cap on state and local taxes, the politically motivated first double tax in U.S. history that was implemented by the federal tax law in 2017.
The Governor also announced that Long Island has met all seven metrics to begin phase one of reopening yesterday, joining the Mid-Hudson Valley, Capital Region, Western New York, Central New York, North Country, Finger Lakes, Southern Tier and Mohawk Valley Regions.
The Governor also renewed his call for Congress to pass the ‘Americans First Law’ to help prevent corporate bailouts following the COVID-19 pandemic. First proposed by the Governor on May 10th, the legislation states that a corporation cannot be eligible to receive government funding if it doesn’t maintain the same number of employees that the corporation had before the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Governor also urged President Trump to support a real public infrastructure program and to advance infrastructure projects in New York — including the LaGuardia AirTrain, the Cross-Hudson Tunnels, and the Second Avenue Subway expansion — to help supercharge the economy.
“We understand that states are responsible for reopening, but at the same time, the federal government has a role to play and must do its part as we work our way through this crisis,” Governor Cuomo said. “Washington is now debating their next bill that would aid in the reopening and the recovery. Prior bills have helped businesses and their interests and that is fine, but now they must also help the state and local governments that fund schools and hospitals. There cannot be a national recovery if the state and local governments are not funded – that is a fact. The recovery from this virus is not about politics – we are fighting a virus and the virus is not a democratic or republican virus – and the federal government must act now to pass a federal coronavirus relief bill that is honorable and decent and does the right thing for all Americans.”
Finally, the Governor confirmed 1,129 additional cases of novel coronavirus, bringing the statewide total to 364,965 confirmed cases in New York State.
