Implementing The Recovery

In 2020, we confronted the pandemic and made it through together. In 2021, we began setting the stage for recovery. NewDEAL Leaders are continuing the work to build a stronger society and economy and address the problems and inequalities laid bare by the pandemic. The Biden-Harris Administration has led the federal government in providing the funds and resources state and local governments need to recover, and NewDEAL Leaders are delivering tangible results for their communities and advancing policy solutions and programs to create a better life for all Americans. The NewDEAL supports their work by highlighting, promoting, and amplifying ideas and best practices, and by working to strengthen the partnerships between federal, state, and local elected leaders.

Check back each week for new policy recommendations, details on work done by NewDEALers, and recordings of events featuring thought leaders, experts, and NewDEALers on the ground.

The American Rescue Plan – Impact in the States

One Year Later
Ongoing Impact Addendum

As we look back on the year and a half since the passage of the American Rescue Plan, take a look at our reports for successes stories from across the country to see how investments from state and local officials from NewDEAL’s network of innovative leaders are not only changing the present, but building lasting change for millions of Americans.

Read Both Reports Here!

This week’s five stories on Implementing the Recovery in the States

HOUSING

New Jersey: As chair of the Senate Community and Urban Affairs Committee, Senator Troy Singleton advanced a legislative package to spur housing development, including by transforming underutilized commercial properties into mixed-use properties. The bills mandate at least 20% affordable units in redevelopment of vacant commercial properties targeted by the legislation; streamline local zoning requirements; establish a $25 million grant program for transit village development; and reduce parking requirements near transit hubs. Senator Singleton discussed his broader efforts to tackle New Jersey’s housing crisis as a guest on An Honorable Profession.

INFRASTRUCTURE

North Carolina: Canton Mayor Zeb Smathers worked with a bipartisan group of leaders, including a Republican member of Congress, to secure nearly $41 million from a Biden-era water resources program to deal with an aging, deteriorating water system, as well as to solve wastewater treatment challenges by allowing the city to construct its own treatment plant.

PUBLIC SAFETY

Alabama: Representative Phillip Ensler’s bill banning the use of Glock switches earned bipartisan support in the legislature and was signed into law by Governor Kay Ivey this week. After three years of introducing similar legislation amid an uptick in gun violence across the state, Ensler recruited law enforcement officers to speak in support of the bill, pushing beyond party lines to keep communities safe.

PUBLIC SAFETY

Wisconsin: This week, Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson unveiled plans for 60 traffic-calming projects across the city to reduce reckless driving, incentivize new modes of transportation, and build on the city’s bold Vision Zero plan. Data released in 2024 shows that similar measures taken by Johnson have successfully reduced speeding and fatal collisions.

SMALL BUSINESS/HEALTH CARE

Colorado: Representative Meghan Lukens and Senator Dylan Roberts are sponsoring legislation to cut costs for rural, independently-owned pharmacies by regulating drug reimbursement rates and reducing the power of pharmacy benefit managers over local businesses. Since 2010, nearly 1 in every 3 pharmacies across the country has closed, and a 2024 study by the Federal Trade Commission linked inflated drug costs to pharmacy benefit managers, which set reimbursement rates. This bill from Lukens and Roberts will support local business owners and increase options for Coloradans looking to fill prescriptions.

Tracking the Recovery database

Explore our new database of ways NewDEALers around the country are using stimulus funds to build back better and speed up the recovery as we emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Explore the Database

The Equity Initiative

Hear from NewDEALers on how they’re tackling systemic injustice, and how they’re working to ensure we address discrimination at the core of our institutions in this historic time of disruption.

Explore the Initiative

How to Get and Use Infrastructure Funds for Climate Impact

The NewDEAL, in partnership with Third Way, hosted a virtual forum on February 15, 2022, focusing on how state and local leaders can maximize the impact of federal funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law on promoting clean energy and other climate solutions. Click below to read takeaways, or watch the recording of the event.

Featured speakers:

Elizabeth Noll, Deputy Assistant Secretary for House Affairs, Department of Energy;
Aimee Witteman, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Intergovernmental Affairs, Department of Energy;
Former U.S. Senator Mary Landrieu;
Ryan Fitzpatrick, Director of the Climate and Energy Program, Third Way;
Shalini Vajjhala, Executive Director, San Diego Regional Policy & Innovation Center;
NewDEAL Leader Michigan Senator Mallory McMorrow;
Trenton Allen, Managing Director and CEO, Sustainable Capital Advisors;
and NewDEAL Leader Norfolk, VA Councilmember Andria McClellan

Read event takeaways here!

Improving Access to Affordable Housing

At our housing virtual forum on March 18, 2022, the NewDEAL convened elected officials with experts to discuss how state and local leaders can take meaningful actions on housing solutions to help with affordability in their communities. Click below to read quick takeaways from the event, or to view a recording.

Featured speakers:

Richard Cho, Senior Advisor, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development;
Paraag Sarva, CEO, Rhino;
Michela Zonta, Senior Policy Analyst for Housing Policy Center for American Progress;
and NewDEAL Leaders:
- Kansas City, MO Mayor Quinton Lucas;
- New Hampshire Senator Rebecca Perkins Kwoka;
- and Massachusetts Representative Andy Vargas.

Read event takeaways here!