Mayor Leclerc Calls for Change
(June 2, 2020) - On May 8, 2020 I wrote to our congressional delegation regarding my concerns with the inequities that I see within my community and what will be needed to recover from this pandemic. It was 17 days before the death of George Floyd but somehow is every bit about it. These societal and racial disparities didn’t just happen the day Mr. Floyd’s life was taken. We have failed collectively on every level of government and society and we are just as responsible for his death because we have sat quietly by and accepted what has been provided to us.
To date, the federal government has provided no emergency fiscal relief for America’s cities that can be used to mitigate the budget shortfalls resulting from COVID-19’s impact on our local economies. These impacts are very real and will have devastating and painful impacts on our budget as we close out this year and anticipate loses well into the next fiscal year.
While East Hartford is not unique in the very real negative impact the closure of the economy has had our town, I am extremely worried that communities like East Hartford are being overlooked because the only conversations happening are for large cities and those with populations of 500 thousand or more.
Unless Congress and the Administration come together to provide emergency fiscal relief for all America’s cities, more workers will be unemployed, critical services provided during this national crisis will be curtailed, and we will likely become a drag on the very economic recovery that they would otherwise be leading.
While East Hartford has a population of 50,000 we have all the challenges and issues of a large city, perhaps even more, since our federal and state allocations are never impactful enough to provide meaningful effect to our distressed municipality where in any given year we boost one of the highest unemployment rates, have a high number of uninsured residents and whose average family incomes fall below the poverty line.
The full impact of this pandemic will add additional strain to our community who prior to the pandemic had a per capita income of $25,303, which is 37% lower than the Connecticut average and 15% lower than the national average, a median household income of $50,750, which is 29% lower than the Connecticut average and 8% lower than the national average, an unemployment rate in East Hartford pre COVID-19 was 7%, which is 59% higher than the national average and we can expect that number to increase well into the double digits as unemployment numbers in our state climb to over 430,000 further driving our poverty rate of 14%, which is 4% higher than the Connecticut average even higher.
How can a community like East Hartford survive the ramifications of a pandemic that will result in years of struggle and will increase the financial impact on our residents through tax increases to homeowners and businesses that are struggling and may not survive? As I write this letter, as of March 30th, East Hartford has experience a $6.2M revenue shortfall. This loss will be catastrophic for my community and my only option, without federal intervention, will be to pass it along to our taxpayers who already have one of the highest mill rates in the state. Moving forward into the 20-21 Budget we can anticipate the loss of revenue to continue and further impact our revenue collections and state subsidy to further impact our community.
This pandemic has uncovered that policy-makers and other decision-makers have much work to do to properly address the intersecting forces of racial disparities and poverty that not only have impacted my community but many others throughout the U.S.
The opportunity is now to bring about the change required through investments in our human capital, our workforce and our businesses. Increased funding to our human capital must include housing stability, childcare, affordable healthcare, educational funding both PreK-12 and advanced education opportunity for all.
Ensuring modern, quality, clean and affordable housing and increased housing subsidies will keep families intact and in communities and as a result will decrease transiency and positively impact educational attainment and further stabilize family units. Increased federal funding for education in distressed municipalities is critical to change the course for the disenfranchised and underserved communities and will ensure that every American has the ability to reach their full potential.
Getting people retrained and back into the workforce should be a top priority not only for the benefit of earning a living wage but the economic impact it generates. We need every individual regardless race, color, national origin, sex, religion, or age to have the same opportunities presently only afforded some not all. Federal investment in defense, health, sciences and transportation will expand the opportunities to get America working again and earning a fair wage. We know that a good job can bring about long-term sustainable recovery that rights the past and changes the future?
Thank you for allowing me to provide my thoughts, concerns and opinions on how we rise together. This tragedy cannot stand alone and must be the foundation on which our recovery charts a new path for our nation. This may not be an easy fix but nothing worthy of change is.
I wish you the best in this undertaking and know that we support you and the work you do. Your leadership and voice is more critical now than ever before and I know you will do your best to seize this opportunity for our collective America that includes the rising of every man, woman and child.
God bless,
Marcia A. Leclerc
Mayor, Town of East Hartford