States could see years of money woes, job losses from the COVID-19 recession

As Congress struggled last week to reach a deal on the latest coronavirus relief package, alarms were again being raised that the lack of federal aid could mean years of service cutbacks, layoffs and employee furloughs for state and local governments across the country.

Georgia, which has avoided mass furloughs, has fared better than many other states. Nationally, about 1.5 million college, school and other government workers were laid off or furloughed during the early months of the COVID-19 recession, eclipsing the declines during the Great Recession, according to U.S. Department of Labor figures.

Without federal assistance to fill holes in state and local budgets, some analysts have said spending cuts and tax increases that communities may need to continue providing services could delay the country’s recovery. Continue reading.