Letter Text

Dear President Barack Obama, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, and Members of the 111th US Congress:

As leaders in state legislatures across the country, we urgently call on President Obama and the Congress to enact a new, broad-based job creation plan, including significant additional fiscal relief to states and local governments to foster economic growth and create and maintain jobs across the nation.

Almost eight million more Americans are unemployed today than at the start of the recession in December 2007. The number of Americans who are unemployed or underemployed has reached over 27 million. State tax revenues dropped nine percent during fiscal year 2009, the largest decline since the years directly following World War II. As states are forced to slash programs and jobs, more and more Americans are relying on public services.

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) helped prevent a far worse calamity, creating an estimated 600,000 to 1.6 million jobs as of September 2009, keeping millions of families from falling into poverty, and reducing the severity of poverty for tens of millions of Americans. By providing fiscal relief to the states, some of the cuts to vital programs, like education and health care, were avoided.

Unfortunately, this crisis is far from over. Even at the time of ARRA's passage, many economists were calling for a much larger package to provide the economic growth needed for full recovery.

States are facing an estimated $260 billion budget shortfall in fiscal years 2011 and 2012. States are taking drastic action to deal with these deficits, including measures that will lead to higher unemployment. Teachers, nurses, public safety officers, and many other state and local employees face the dire prospect of job loss during a time of economic uncertainty. At the same time, families will have to deal with the reality of budget cuts: larger class sizes, an inferior educational system, reduced health care services, and generally diminished quality of vital public programs.

Accordingly, the federal government must take proactive steps to create jobs and enact further fiscal relief for state and local governments. This includes extending FMAP increases for Medicaid, providing additional support for education, boosting funding for infrastructure projects and public transportation investments, supporting the long-term unemployed to sustain them until they reenter the workforce, and providing direct financial assistance to state and local governments to perform the vital services needed to maintain growth in local communities across the nation.

There is tremendous consensus that state fiscal relief must be a key focus of recovery. Programs administered by the states assist countless families and communities, have a high multiplier effect in boosting local consumer demand, and are one of the most effective methods for reviving the economy. Without further assistance, states will be forced to make painful layoffs and cuts to public services that will undermine economic recovery.

We need a strong job creation plan to foster growth, ensure that states perform the core functions that all American families deserve, and deliver jobs to Americans on Main Street. The gravity of the crisis demands swift and bold action.

We, the undersigned, call on President Obama and the Congress to enact a job creation plan, including comprehensive and enduring fiscal relief to state and local governments, as soon as possible and pledge our support as state lawmakers and allies.

Additional Resources

Model resolution calling on the President and Congress to enact a comprehensive job creation and state fiscal relief plan
Model resolution calling on the President and Congress to enact a comprehensive job creation and state fiscal relief plan (NM)

PSN looks forward to working with lawmakers and advocates on this issue. If you are a lawmaker interested in introducing a resolution requesting the federal government to move a jobs bill, PSN would like to assist you in that effort. Please see our model jobs bill resolution and one tailored specifically for New Mexico. You can contact us at jobcreation@progressivestates.org