Suozzi Declares Big Victory for New York because The Heroes Act Includes his Three Biggest Priorities: A Special Fund for Hardest Hit States, SALT, and Billions for Local Municipalities

Today, Congressman Tom Suozzi (D - Long Island, Queens) announced that his three biggest priorities have been included in The Heroes Act, the latest COVID-19 stimulus package introduced today. Suozzi represents three of the six counties in the nation which have been hardest hit by the coronavirus pandemic.  

“There are many good things in this bill, but my big focus has been a special fund based on ‘rate of infection’ for the hardest hit states, the elimination of the cap on State and Local Tax (SALT) deductions, and the inclusion of local municipalities both with populations over 50,000 people and under 50,000,” said Congressman Suozzi. “It is a huge victory for my constituents that all three have been included in The Heroes Act, which was introduced today. I will continue to fight for my state, which has been hit harder than anywhere else in the nation, by putting pressure on my colleagues in the House and Senate to pass this bill as soon as possible.”

For months, Suozzi has successfully led a bipartisan coalition in the House to advocate that the New York State Government, New York State hospitals, and New York State local governments receive special attention as part of the federal response to coronavirus.

Suozzi co-led a unanimous bipartisan letter with every Democrat and Republican from New York and New Jersey advocating for a special fund that should be distributed based upon the rate of infection and not population. Here is a link to the letter. The Heroes Act includes a special $49 billion fund which will be distributed based upon the criteria that Suozzi and his colleagues asked for.

Suozzi has long advocated that the SALT cap should be removed as part of the coronavirus response. The SALT cap is incentivizing New Yorkers, especially wealthy New Yorkers, to move away from the state. This loss in tax revenues is especially damaging at this time. Suozzi first sent a letter to Speaker Pelosi with 75 Democratic Members of Congress and another to her with 95 Members of Congress. He then sent a bipartisan letter to Speaker Pelosi and Leader McCarthy with six Democrats and six Republicans. You can also see Suozzi’s op-ed piece in the Wall Street Journal from April 5 here. Elements of Suozzi’s bill, which passed the House in December 2019, are included within The Heroes Act. The bill will eliminate the SALT cap for 2020 and 2021.

Lastly, Suozzi helped lead the entire bipartisan Long Island delegation in fighting for smaller cities and towns to be eligible for federal funding. He has led them in press conferences, letters, and discussions in the House to fight for this. The Heroes Act will include billions of dollars in funding for municipalities with populations both under and over 50,000. As a former mayor and County Executive, Suozzi understands the pressure cities and villages are under as they try to address local concerns while facing declining revenues from stalled building construction, slowing tax collections, and other reduced activity.

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