A letter urging more Congressional action in response to the economic impact of the pandemic calls for "new assistance to states and localities" as part of new legislation. "An adequate response must be large, commensurate with the nearly $16 trillion nominal output gap our economy faces over the next decade," the letter to Majority Leader McConnell, Minority Leader Schumer, Speaker Pelosi, and Minority Leader McCarthy said. The letter was endorsed by more than 150 scholars, including two former Chairs of the Federal Reserve Board, three former chairs of the Council of Economic Advisers, and two Nobel laureates. The list of co-signers includes former Fed Chairs Ben Bernanke and Janet Yellen, and former Council of Economic Advisors Chairs Jason Furman, Austan Goolsbee, and Christina D. Romer.
Contact: Jon Moran, Senior Legislative Analyst, jmoran@njlm.org, 609-695-3481 x121.