WASHINGTON (AP) — Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen told a conclave of U.S. mayors Wednesday that government-approved economic aid was like a vaccine that prevented catastrophic economic damage like those seen at the start of the coronavirus pandemic. .
The $1.9 trillion “American Rescue Plan” pushed by President Joe Biden “acted like a vaccine for the American economy, protecting our economy from the possibility of new variants,” Yellen said at the mayors’ conference in Washington.
“The protection was not total, but it was very strong,” Yellen said. “It prevented communities from suffering the most severe economic effects of omicron and delta.”
The mayors’ conference, led by Miami Mayor Francis X. Suarez, has as its central themes the application of aid in cities, ways to make the pandemic recovery more equitable, the reduction of armed violence, the reduction of homelessness and the fight against climate change.
Yellen spoke about the implementation by the Department of the Treasury of the fund for fiscal recovery at the local and state level, included in the American Rescue Plan, of 350,000 million dollars, which has provided direct fiscal assistance to states and local jurisdictions during the pandemic. .
As of January 6, the Treasury Department had doled out more than $245 billion to help communities expand access to tests and vaccines, increase public sector hiring and provide child care, among other projects, according to the agency. Since then it has expanded the eligibility criteria for projects under the fund.
“Back then, I think, we all thought that funding at the local and state level was important, that it was essential,” Yellen said.
“Looking back, it’s clear that that particular program—and ARP in general—turned out to be absolutely essential. It is possible to draw a straight line between the approval of the PRA and our economic performance during delta and omicron”, declared the official.
He added that economic aid for pandemic recovery set the stage for Biden’s trillion-dollar infrastructure package, which he called “the biggest investment we’ve made since Eisenhower built the Interstate.”
