As chair of the nation’s governors, Governor Hogan continued his national push to secure emergency aid to states this week.
On Monday, Governor Hogan made a direct appeal while leading a call with the White House and the nation’s governors. On Tuesday, Governor Hogan spoke with No Labels – a bipartisan group that has been working to broker a compromise on this issue. On Wednesday, while leading a meeting of the Board Public of Works, Governor Hogan once again spoke about the painful cuts states around the country are being forced to implement.
Governor Hogan’s bipartisan efforts come as states “face their worst fiscal crisis in decades brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic that’s decimated tax collections.” 1.6 million state and local government workers have already lost their jobs in this crisis with another 4 million still at risk according to Moody’s Analytics. “Whether the state is run by Republicans, Democrats, or split between the two parties, limited federal support is forcing states into austerity at the very moment when the opposite is needed.” As Axios recently reported, this is already stalling the economic recovery.
76% of Americans – including strong majorities of Republicans and Democrats – support providing financial assistance to state and local governments.