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Best Defense Against Virus Proves Crushing to States' Finances

Posted on March 27, 2020

Bloomberg

As state and local governments continued to increase the intensity of their responses to the Covid-19 pandemic, this article examined the effect social distancing and business closures could have on state and local budgets. Civic Federation President Laurence Msall noted that the State of Illinois and the City of Chicago were in fiscal distress prior to the pandemic, making them particularly ill-positioned to weather the crisis. He said the only way to prop up governments like Illinois and its municipalities is a massive federal stimulus package.

 

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