LOC News
NLC Congressional City Conference – We’re Not Done Yet
A contingent of more than 50 attendees from Oregon converged on Washington D.C. this week to take part in the 2022 National League of Cities’ (NLC) Congressional Cities Conference. The last time the NLC held this event was back in 2020, less than two weeks before the pandemic shut down activities nationwide. Oregon was well represented this year, with more than 30 elected city officials, city staff and LOC staff. There were also nearly 20 youth delegates and youth councilors from Tigard, Lake Oswego and Happy Valley.
Much of the conference focused on the details of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Legislation (BIL). It was a time to celebrate and take a victory lap on what should be framed as a generational investment in communities. The results that the NLC accomplished on behalf of cities across the country was simply amazing given the challenges of the pandemic. Funding assistance that started from the CARES Act, direct funding to every city, town, and village via ARPA, and the largest infusion of infrastructure funding since the interstate highway system was built with the passage of the BIL, should be celebrated for its lasting positive impact.
Leading up to the event, attendees were also reminded that despite the success with funding from the federal government, cities must never let their guard down. Last week the Biden Administration was seeking $30 billion in emergency funding for support of Ukraine. In order to get bipartisan support, Senate Republicans were demanding a significant “claw back” of the Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (SLFRF) program to balance the emergency funding request. The SLFRF funds are the $350 billion in direct funds that were part of ARPA that cities fought hard to keep, and now less than a year after passage some in Congress want to use it as a bargaining chip for funding other requests. In the end, fortunately no cities had their direct funding allocations taken away, and Oregon did not lose funding because funds have been committed to project investments. Other states were not so lucky and lost a collective $7 billion that was supposed to be available for investment.
Lesson learned - always keep your eyes and ears open.
It’s also clear that cities will need to be transparent with their use of federal assistance, whether it came from the CARES Act, ARPA, or projects that are funded from the BIL. The NLC will continue to ask for examples to highlight the success of the federal investments in communities to respond to those in congress trying to turn the clock back.
Cities fought to get the funds and will need to keep fighting to prevent Congress from taking the funding commitments. The best way to do this is by showing responsible use of funds. Cities that have not yet updated their communities on the scale of these new investments are strongly urged to do so now.
Contact: Jim McCauley, Legislative Director - jmccauley@orecities.org
Last Updated 3/18/22
