Message from the Cal Cities Executive Director and CEO Carolyn Coleman
Mar 17, 2021
Dear California City Leaders,
Last Thursday, President Biden signed the American Rescue Plan bill into law. The $65 billion in direct and flexible relief for cities included in the bill is monumental and would not have been possible if it weren’t for dedicated local officials like all of you. Thank you!
For a year, you have led your communities through this pandemic, protecting public health, helping the most vulnerable in your communities, supporting local businesses, and continuing to deliver essential local services despite growing budget shortfalls. Through it all, you also answered our calls to action to support local recovery with phone calls, letters, texts, and virtual meetings with your members of Congress to make a clear and compelling case for the need for direct and flexible relief to cities. Hundreds of city officials throughout the state, delivering one message, with one powerful voice. The passage of the American Rescue Plan demonstrates how Cal Cities can deliver for all cities when we come together as one. We are indeed stronger together.
With the resources for cities in the American Rescue Plan, the federal government has recognized that local leaders are in the driver’s seat leading the recovery of our communities, and will put this aid into action stabilizing local government operations, jumpstarting economic recovery, and helping our residents and businesses overcome the devastation of the pandemic. As U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said last week, the American Rescue Plan “will finally allow us to do what we came to government to do – not just fight fires and crises, but build a better country.”
Now that the American Rescue Plan is law, city officials across the country and here in California are now hard at work preparing to put this much needed aid to work in our communities. As you pivot from advocacy to implementation, Cal Cities will be providing resources and information to support you through the implementation process.
Yesterday, we hosted a special briefing for city officials on the American Rescue Plan and its relief for cities. A recording of the webinar can be found here. The White House has also created a fact sheet for the American Rescue Plan, as well as a summary of its impact on California. These are first of many resources in our guide to local recovery that we will be offering in the coming weeks and months.
Thank you for your continued partnership,
Sincerely,
Carolyn M. Coleman
Executive Director and CEO
League of California Cities
Last Thursday, President Biden signed the American Rescue Plan bill into law. The $65 billion in direct and flexible relief for cities included in the bill is monumental and would not have been possible if it weren’t for dedicated local officials like all of you. Thank you!
For a year, you have led your communities through this pandemic, protecting public health, helping the most vulnerable in your communities, supporting local businesses, and continuing to deliver essential local services despite growing budget shortfalls. Through it all, you also answered our calls to action to support local recovery with phone calls, letters, texts, and virtual meetings with your members of Congress to make a clear and compelling case for the need for direct and flexible relief to cities. Hundreds of city officials throughout the state, delivering one message, with one powerful voice. The passage of the American Rescue Plan demonstrates how Cal Cities can deliver for all cities when we come together as one. We are indeed stronger together.
With the resources for cities in the American Rescue Plan, the federal government has recognized that local leaders are in the driver’s seat leading the recovery of our communities, and will put this aid into action stabilizing local government operations, jumpstarting economic recovery, and helping our residents and businesses overcome the devastation of the pandemic. As U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said last week, the American Rescue Plan “will finally allow us to do what we came to government to do – not just fight fires and crises, but build a better country.”
Now that the American Rescue Plan is law, city officials across the country and here in California are now hard at work preparing to put this much needed aid to work in our communities. As you pivot from advocacy to implementation, Cal Cities will be providing resources and information to support you through the implementation process.
Yesterday, we hosted a special briefing for city officials on the American Rescue Plan and its relief for cities. A recording of the webinar can be found here. The White House has also created a fact sheet for the American Rescue Plan, as well as a summary of its impact on California. These are first of many resources in our guide to local recovery that we will be offering in the coming weeks and months.
Thank you for your continued partnership,
Sincerely,
Carolyn M. Coleman
Executive Director and CEO
League of California Cities