- Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Michigan may be among hardest hit
- National League of Cities analysis shows ‘unprecedented times’
U.S. cities are projected to lose about $360 billion of revenue through 2022 because of the economic damage caused by the coronavirus pandemic, an unprecedented loss that would trigger deep spending and job cuts, according to a National League of Cities analysis released Thursday.
Pennsylvania’s municipalities will be hit the hardest, with the potential loss of about 40% of their revenue this year, followed by those in Kentucky, Hawaii, Michigan and Nevada, the advocacy group calculated. The projections are based on the expected rise in unemployment and assumes that every 1 percentage point increase in joblessness will cause tax revenues to fall about 3%.
The dire outlook adds to the growing warnings from state and local government officials about the financial impact of the pandemic-related shutdowns. Without aid from the federal government, cities will be forced to enact vast budget cuts that would exert a drag on the economic recovery.
Bloomberg Markets
By David Voreacos, Amanda Albright, and Danielle Moran
May 14, 2020, 9:00 AM PDT