Alliance Board Members, Richard Ravitch and Antonio Weiss, on Why Local Government Shortfalls Put the US Economy at Risk

Volcker Alliance board members Richard Ravitch and Antonio Weiss took part in an interview with Bloomberg Opinion columnist Brian Chappatta on whether states and cities could financially recover from the coronavirus pandemic. Both address pressing policy challenges cities and states are facing are today and respond to questions such as:

• US states and cities are projected to face massive revenue shortfalls in the coming years due to the coronavirus pandemic. And yet, Congress can’t seem to agree to another round of fiscal aid that supports municipal budgets. What’s the holdup in Washington? Just how critical is federal support?
• What are the most important things that state and local leaders need to do right now, from a fiscal budgeting standpoint, to get to the other side of this pandemic?
• You are both clearly passionate about the functioning of state and local governments. How did you get interested in the intricacies of municipal finance?

To read Mr. Ravitch and Mr. Weiss’ responses click the link for the full interview.