States and Local Governments Are Still Sitting on Billions of Dollars of 'Emergency' COVID Relief

As the Biden administration rolled out a $350 billion bailout of state and local governments during the COVID-19 pandemic, officials stressed how the huge pile of money would address urgent needs across the country.

Those governments "have faced significant revenue shortfalls as a result of the economic fallout from the crisis," then-Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said in May 2021, as the administration began distributing the bailout funds approved by the American Rescue Plan. "As a result, these governments have endured unprecedented strains, forcing many to make untenable choices between laying off educators, firefighters, and other frontline workers or failing to provide services that communities rely on."