WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) spoke from the Senate floor to urge action on coronavirus relief, including much-needed support to state and local governments across the nation. As need for government services rises and tax revenues fall, state and local governments face severe budget shortfalls which, if left unaddressed, will have harmful economic consequences including additional layoffs, reduced aid for citizens in need, and tax hikes when American household budgets are already pinched. Estimates indicate that without action, Maine could face a revenue shortfall of $1.4 billion over the next three years.

During his speech, Senator King expressed outrage and disappointment at attempts to politicize this critical relief to communities around our nation. (Starting at 8:45)

“Let's talk facts. Let's talk about the real impact of our lack of attention to this issue. This is a personal tragedy for these families and it's one more blow to the economy. And, by the way, this is not a blue state issue… it bothers me this blue-state, red-state stuff. I have voted for I don't know how many emergency appropriations for natural disasters, for wildfires and floods and hurricanes. It never occurred to me to ask what color the state is. It never occurred to me.…We're a community. This is one country. I don't ask how Florida voted, if there's a hurricane that strikes that state or Georgia or Alabama, which is being hit right now. If they need help, we should provide it. But what we're seeing now is a slow motion fiscal hurricane that's hitting many, if not all of the states of the United States, and we should come together and help them…

Make no mistake. We're talking about real, concrete, on-the-ground losses of jobs, and losses of the services that those jobs provide, whether it's public health workers, first responders, firefighters, police…that's who's being impacted here….so, Mr. President, I hope that we can come to an agreement and that we can get over this nonsense that this is somehow a blue state, red state thing and that we're bailing out states that weren't prudent. I'm tired of hearing that. We're talking about people's lives here. We're talking about the protection of public services. We're talking about teaching our kids. We're talking about people who are providing the basic protections that we all take for granted in our daily lives.

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During his speech, Senator King also emphasized the impact of inaction, which would cause states to choose between cutting services or increasing taxes, when neither choice is acceptable during an economic slowdown. (Starting at 5:29)

“States can't borrow money the way we can – they have to balance their budget on a year-to-year basis, and if they are being clobbered by the effect of this disease, not only in expenditures but in loss of revenues, they only have two choices. One is drastic cuts, and the other is raising taxes. Neither of which is an acceptable alternative in the midst of a recession. Neither of which makes any sense for the American people... and, by the way…in Maine about a third of our budget, between 25% and 35% of our state budget goes back to our communities. It goes to the capital city of Augusta, makes a U-turn and goes back to the towns and cities across Maine, mostly in the form of general purpose aid to education, but also in revenue sharing and other kinds of grants and contracts.

“When we talk about the states, it sounds like we're talking about these big impersonal entities, but we're really talking about towns, small towns, school districts. That's where a lot of this impact is going to fall. And it's a double-edged sword that cuts both ways. It's hurting people, the people who are being laid off, the people who are going to have to be laid off whether they are in a town, a city, a county or a state, but that hurts the economy.”

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At the conclusion of his speech, Senator King urged his colleagues in Congress to come together and pass meaningful, bipartisan aid for the American people that prioritizes funding for states and localities. (Starting at 11:50)

“So really I have two simple messages; one, let's make a deal, and, two, that deal should include support for those people and institutions in our states, in our cities, and in our smallest towns so that they will have the wherewithal to be able to help us all get through this thing together. That's what this is all about, and those are the people on the ground who are helping us to get through this together. Mr. President, we can do this. We proved in March we can do it. I think we must and can and will do it again.”    

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Senator King is an outspoken advocate for federal funding to states and municipalities, which is necessary during the pandemic so that state and local governments can meet the increased needs of their citizens despite falling revenues. Earlier this month, he voted against Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s “illusion of action” in part because the bill provided zero aid for states and localities facing massive budget challenges. In July, he joined a bipartisan push to provide significant, flexible funding for state and local governments.

In May, Senator King joined a bipartisan group of Senators to introduce the Coronavirus Relief Fund Flexibility Act, legislation that would allow the federal relief funds provided to states and local governments in the CARES Act to be used to replace revenue shortfalls resulting from the pandemic. Also in May, he urged top Senate leaders to include “substantial, additional aid” for states in the face of the coronavirus pandemic and the subsequent economic impact. Additionally, Senator King has stressed the importance of state and municipality funding during interviews with national media outlets, and on his social media channels.