League President William Pitt, on behalf of the NCLM Board of Directors, identified a series of pressing issues facing cities and towns amid the pandemic in
letters Friday to Gov. Roy Cooper, Senate leader Phil Berger and House Speaker Tim Moore. Pitt, a member of the Washington City Council, thanked them and their staffers for the work they're doing to help the state through the crisis before he discussed the financial pressures facing the lifeblood of local economies -- small businesses. "For employers with smaller workforces and smaller operating margins, particularly retailers, surviving weeks of reduced or non-existent income streams is simply not feasible," said Pitt. "These businesses will need help to survive." Just as state government depends on sales tax revenue generated by these businesses, local governments do as well, Pitt continued. "Cities and towns receive $1.2 billion annually in sales tax revenue, with that revenue stream representing more than 25 percent of many of their budgets," he noted. "On the expense side, public safety makes up the largest portion of non-utility municipal operating budgets, and it is those personnel that we will be relying on heavily in the weeks ahead."
Meanwhile, water and sewer utilities -- many of which are already under financial hardship -- have pledged to avoid cutting off service to delinquent customers. They may face budget shortfalls, Pitt pointed out. "Meeting operational costs in this environment will be difficult, and customers need help," he told the state leaders.
Local officials are also discussing their need for legal and regulatory flexibility with remote council meetings and utility operations. "Addressing these needs through statutory changes may be necessary to best serve citizens and ensure that we are doing all that we can to limit Covid-19 exposure," Pitt said. It all comes as local governments are working on their budgets for the new fiscal year, and are now doing so blind, "without having a true picture of their revenues and financial status."
The crisis has further highlighted an issue the League has long pushed --
the need for better broadband access so individuals and communities aren't isolated. Allowing local governments to partner with private providers "is a critical step to ensure that businesses, workers and students will have the online access required."
"We very much appreciate you considering these concerns," Pitt told the governor, Sen. Berger and Speaker Moore. "We are all in this together, and know that the only way to adequately address the tasks before us in the days and weeks ahead is to, as we say at NCLM, work as one and advance all."