Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams released the following statement after Senator Charles Schumer announced that President-elect Biden's administration will deliver New York roughly $2 billion in additional COVID-19 relief through FEMA.
"I am grateful for the President-elect's commitment to provide New York with an additional $2 billion in reimbursement of COVID-19 expenses through FEMA, relief that I and others had called for the incoming administration to provide- I thank Senator Schumer and the de Blasio administration for raising their voices in this call. This support is critical to meeting the needs of the public health crisis and helping address the budgetary and economic crises caused by the pandemic that saw New York as its epicenter.
"As we await further details on the specific distribution of these funds, and assurances that the city's portion will be directly allocated, we also know that we will require much more action from both the state and federal government to facilitate a recovery centered on investment rather than austerity. We have an obligation to protect essential services and vulnerable populations with revenue from the wealthiest New Yorkers who have profited during the pandemic and funding from a federal government that has utterly failed in its response under Donald Trump."