Iowa governor Reynolds among 22 governors to oppose ‘biased fund allocation’ in stimulus package
(The Center Square) – Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds joined 21 other governors in releasing a joint statement opposing the latest federal stimulus bill.
The governors’ opposition stems from the bill’s allocation of funds to states based on the number of unemployed individuals rather than the state’s actual population.
The bill, the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, allocates $25.5 billion among the 50 states and the District of Columbia. It also divides another $168.55 billion among the 50 states proportionately according to the average estimated number of seasonally adjusted unemployed individuals in each state compared to the rest of the country over the three-month period ending in December 2020, based on data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
“Unlike all previous federal funding packages, the new stimulus proposal allocates aid based on a state’s unemployed population rather than its actual population, which punishes states that took a measured approach to the pandemic and entered the crisis with healthy state budgets and strong economies,” the statement read, according to a news release on the governor’s website.
“A state’s ability to keep businesses open and people employed should not be a penalizing factor when distributing funds. If Congress is going to provide aid to states, it should be on an equitable population basis.”
Reynolds also tweeted from her personal Twitter account a link to a petition countering the bill, stating, “The Democrats’ COVID relief package will provide bigger checks to states who chose aggressive shutdowns and mismanaged their state budgets … if that doesn’t sound right to you click here.”
Iowa is expected to receive $734 million less through the stimulus bill’s appropriation formula compared with what it would have received if the allocations were solely based on population, according to a document from Rep. Jason Smith, R-Salem, Missouri.
The U.S. House of Representatives passed the bill 219-212 on Saturday.
Iowa’s three Republican representatives voted against the bill while Rep. Cynthia Axne, D-West Des Moines, voted in favor of it.
“I’ve heard from mayors in towns across southwest Iowa – from Council Bluffs to Creston and over to Des Moines – who’re projecting revenue losses because of COVID-19,” Axne said in a news release issued Feb. 26. “This package delivers on our promise to protect local services from disastrous budget cuts, and I’m pleased that towns across Iowa will have the support they need to close their deficits from last year.”
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