HLS 20RS-1580 ENGROSSED
2020 Regular Session
HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOL UTION NO. 70
BY REPRESENTATIVE SCHEXNAYDER
CONGRESS: Expresses support for the State and Municipal Aid for Recovery and
Transition (SMART) Fund, proposed for the purpose of helping states and local
governments respond to the current public health and economic crisis
1 A CONCURRENT RESOL UTION
2To express support for the State and Municipal Aid for Recovery and Transition (SMART)
3 Fund as proposed by Senator Bill Cassidy of Louisiana and Senator Bob Menendez
4 of New Jersey for the purpose of helping states and local governments respond to the
5 current public health and economic crisis while maintaining essential services.
6 WHEREAS, Senator Bill Cassidy of Louisiana and Senator Bob Menendez of New
7Jersey have announced a bipartisan plan to deliver critical federal resources to the states and
8communities on the front lines of the COVID-19 fight; and
9 WHEREAS, the State and Municipal Aid for Recovery and Transition (SMART)
10Fund would build upon the existing $150 billion set aside in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief,
11and Economic Security (CARES) Act to help states and local governments; and
12 WHEREAS, Senators Cassidy and Menendez plan to expand eligibility for CARES
13Act aid with the SMART Fund to include parishes and municipalities with populations of
14fifty thousand people or more, which would increase direct participation and aid access to
15parishes and municipalities that are currently excluded by the five hundred thousand person
16population threshold in the CARES Act; and
17 WHEREAS, the SMART Fund legislation would also ensure that every eligible
18entity receives additional funding, increase flexibility for states and local governments to use
19the funds to replace revenue losses due to the COVID-19 outbreak, and target additional
20funding toward coronavirus hot zones to directly combat the pandemic; and
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HCR NO. 70
1 WHEREAS, Louisiana has been severely impacted by the COVID-19 epidemic, and
2this is an important step toward assisting the state's communities in maintaining essential
3services and protecting the state's financial future; and
4 WHEREAS, the SMART Fund would call for an additional five hundred billion
5dollars in COVID-19 state stabilization funds to help support state and local government
6efforts to fight the pandemic; these funds could be used to help meet the current demand
7while helping communities transition toward reopening by expanding testing and contact
8tracing and providing additional resources to residents, local hospitals, small businesses, and
9schools; and
10 WHEREAS, specifically, the SMART Fund would deliver funding to state and local
11governments, United States territories, and the District of Columbia in three equal tranches
12based on a new formula that takes into consideration areas of the country with the greatest
13need: one-third to eligible entities based on population size to ensure they each receive
14additional federal resources to meet their growing needs, one-third to eligible entities based
15on the number of COVID-19 cases relative to the U.S. population to target the urgent public
16health challenge, and one-third to eligible entities based on state revenue losses relative to
17pre-COVID-19 projections to target the urgent economic challenge.
18 THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of Louisiana does hereby
19express support for the State and Municipal Aid for Recovery and Transition (SMART)
20Fund as proposed by Senator Bill Cassidy of Louisiana and Senator Bob Menendez of New
21Jersey for the purpose of helping states and local governments respond to the current public
22health and economic crisis while maintaining essential services.
23 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to each
24member of Louisiana's congressional delegation.
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HCR NO. 70
DIGEST
The digest printed below was prepared by House Legislative Services. It constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument. The keyword, one-liner, abstract, and digest do not constitute
part of the law or proof or indicia of legislative intent. [R.S. 1:13(B) and 24:177(E)]
HCR 70 Engrossed 2020 Regular Session Schexnayder
Expresses support for the State and Municipal Aid for Recovery and Transition Fund as
proposed by Senator Bill Cassidy of La. and Senator Bob Menendez of N.J. for the purpose
of helping states and local governments respond to the current public health and economic
crisis while maintaining essential services.
Summary of Amendments Adopted by House
The Committee Amendments Proposed by House Committee on Appropriations to the
original bill:
1. Make technical changes.
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