Implementing The Recovery

In 2020, we confronted the pandemic and made it through together. In 2021, we began setting the stage for recovery. Here in 2022, our leaders are working to ensure that as we implement the recovery, we address the problems and inequities laid bare by the pandemic, and build a stronger society and economy. 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 now leveraging these funds to build a foundation to create a better life for all Americans. The NewDEAL supports their work by highlighting, promoting, and amplifying ideas and best practices for these recovery funds, and by working to strengthen the partnerships between federal, state, and local elected leaders.

Check back often 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

CLIMATE SOLUTIONS

Colorado: Senator Chris Hansen’s two bills to advance the state’s clean energy transition were signed into law. The first bill will lead to the development of a carbon management roadmap for the state and ensure future carbon management projects are eligible for the clean air grants program. The other bill will update the mission of the state’s energy and carbon management commission, broadening its regulatory authority to include innovative sources of clean energy.

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

Representative Anthony Daniels’s bill, the Innovation and Small Business Act, was signed into law. His legislation establishes a $25 million tax credit program to support underrepresented small businesses. Daniels hopes to foster entrepreneurship and help Alabama become the “Silicon Valley of the South.”

HOUSING

Colorado: Senator Dylan Roberts’s bill to increase the supply of affordable housing was signed into law. The bill will provide $13 million in funding to support the construction of “affordable workforce housing units on state-owned land and help Colorado workers such as teachers, nurses, find housing that fits their budget.”

PAID LEAVE

Maine: Assistant House Majority Leader Kristen Cloutier is leading the effort in the state legislature to codify paid family and medical leave. Her proposal would provide workers in companies with 15 or more employees up to 12 combined weeks of paid family and medical leave, helping new parents bond with their newborns and workers care for parents and other family members.

TRANSPORTATION

Alabama: Montgomery Mayor Steven Reed will allocate $6.5 million in local and federal COVID relief funding to expand the city’s transportation system. Reed aims to reach more residents by using a new app-based system to deploy new buses and vans for more frequent and reliable transportation. “We believe public transportation is important because it serves as the biggest economic inhibitor for those who are trying to get from one level economically to the next,” Reed said.

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!