Today, Congress passed and the President signed the CARES Act, which, among many things, provides local governments funding to meet the immediate needs of residents, households, and small businesses on the economic margins. The Coronavirus Relief Fund, established under the CARES Act, provides $150 billion for necessary expenditures incurred in responding to the coronavirus outbreak.
Significant disruptions in community and regional services, as well as mass school closures due to Coronavirus, can keep people from having their basic needs met, including access to food. These include impacts to the youngest among us, school-aged children, low-income and poor vulnerable adults and the elderly. In this time, once reliable school meals and other regular operations are in flux; these disruptions may
Cities have already begun to alter arrest and detention practices in order to support social or physical distancing and related measures in response to COVID-19. In many cases, these alterations continue efforts underway to retool local public safety efforts to rely less on high and disproportionate arrest and incarceration rates. Sustained momentum with such practices will reduce risks for several groups: The nation’s three million first responders; Persons experiencing mental health crises, substance use disorder issues, and homelessness, who might otherwise go to jail;
As states and local governments declare shelter-in-place orders and shut down non-essential businesses, law enforcement officers will need to enforce these rules and disperse crowds of people at gatherings and other events. There is some apprehension that enforcement actions could require detention and fines, which could raise additional public safety and civil liberty concerns. Local government officials’ understanding of the critical role law enforcement
As cities and counties work to encourage social distancing and flatten the transmission curve during COVID-19, we are equally invested in ensuring that our critical infrastructure and public health support system can responsibly keep moving. To assist with clarifying who the essential infrastructure workforce is, on March 19, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released guidance on how to identify and support these workers. How to
Social distancing has caused businesses to close or curtail their services to slow the spread of COVID-19. Employees of non-essential services, such as restaurants and retail stores, in turn are losing their jobs or experiencing a drastic reduction in pay. These employees are already straining to make ends meet because they are more likely to earn hourly wages and lack benefits such as healthcare or paid sick leave. Before this pandemic,
In response to growing numbers of COVID-19 cases in states and communities across the country, municipal governments are being forced to either close their meetings to the public or operate meetings entirely remotely. However, most communities are subject to sunshine laws, accessibility laws, or concerns about public engagement. How are local governments responding to this
Mass closures of businesses and organizations due to Coronavirus can affect early childcare providers’ survival as small businesses. Parents who cannot work remotely have an acute need for childcare services. Critical personnel in this time of crisis include healthcare and public health workers; grocery store employees; police, fire and other emergency response workers and right
Consistent with the President’s National Emergency Declaration for the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic on March 13, 2020, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is urging local officials to take appropriate actions necessary to protect public health and safety pursuant to public health guidance, conditions and capabilities. Under emergency declaration, FEMA is authorized to reimburse local governments
By Richard Leadbeater Geography and location analysis has a crucial role in a better understanding of this evolving epidemic. For a long time now, the healthcare community has used maps to understand the spread of disease. Most famously in 1854, when Dr. John Snow connected location and illness with his history-making map of a London
