ANNAPOLIS, Md. — Not waiting for more federal help, states have been approving their own coronavirus aid packages, spending hundreds of millions of dollars to help residents and business owners devastated by the pandemic’s economic fallout.
Maryland and California recently moved forward with help for the poor, the jobless, small businesses and those needing child care. New Mexico and Pennsylvania are funneling grants directly to cash-starved businesses. North Carolina’s governor wants additional state aid for such things as bonus pay for teachers and boosting rural internet speeds.
The spending also provides fuel for critics who say states don’t need another infusion of cash from Congress. The Biden administration’s $1.9 trillion relief plan would send hundreds of billions of dollars to state and local governments.
In Maryland, where direct stimulus checks were being distributed as part of more than $1 billion in relief, Catrina Garrett said the boost from the state was crucial. Garrett, a 35-year-old single mother with a part-time job, said it will help her pay rent and catch up on bills.
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Other states are considering significant spending to provide more relief to residents. Governors and lawmakers have said they are concerned the economy and job prospects will deteriorate even further before Congress acts on the Biden plan. A slow start to the nationwide vaccination program also has tempered expectations that inoculations will be widespread soon enough to rescue businesses that have struggled with shutdown orders.
Under a bill awaiting the governor’s signature, New Mexico would provide $200 million in direct grants to businesses, which could use them to pay rent and mortgages. It’s part of a proposed state pandemic relief package that also would provide a $600 tax rebate to low-wage workers, a four-month tax holiday for restaurants as they recover from indoor-dining restrictions and a waiver on liquor store license fees.
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, a Republican, signed legislation last week with bipartisan support in the Democratic-controlled Legislature for one-time stimulus payments of $300 for individuals and $500 for families, reaching about 400,000 people. It also provides up to $9,000 in sales tax relief for small businesses.
“Absent of a federal response, the states are having to step up,” said Robin McKinney, co-founder and CEO of the CASH Campaign of Maryland, a nonprofit organization that helps low-income residents file taxes.
The spending also shows that many states have proved unexpectedly resilient during the pandemic, with better-than-projected tax revenue and healthy budgets. Critics say the stronger-than-expected state finances undermine the Biden administration’s $1.9 trillion plan.
“Congress has already allocated more than $4.5 trillion to address this crisis, including roughly $400 billion for state and local governments,” U.S. Sen. Rick Scott, a Florida Republican, said this month.
Information for this article was contributed by Adam Beam, Morgan Lee, Marc Levy and Gary D. Robertson of The Associated Press.