Biden will urge mayors to use more COVID aid for building workforces. Official

Biden will urge mayors to use more COVID aid for building workforces: Official. 

WASHINGTON: A White House official stated that President Joe Biden would call on U.S. mayors to increase their workforces using more state and local COVID-19 funds. 

This effort is partly aimed to ease economic bottlenecks as well as inflation.

Biden will address the U.S. Conference of Mayors winter meeting in Washington. 

The official said he would call for more worker training programs, apprenticeships, and education to develop a better workforce and decrease income inequality.

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The $350 billion State and Local Fiscal Relief Fund is available to cities in various ways. It was approved by the American Rescue Plan COVID-19 aid legislation last year.

The Treasury Department issued the final rules earlier this month for the program, allowing for greater flexibility in using funds for programs like affordable housing and early childhood education.

This funding allows the funding to be used to replace lost revenues by city, county, state, and tribal governments and invest in broadband infrastructure and other uses.

As the Biden administration is under pressure to curb inflation, cities are being urged to invest more in their workforces. 

Last year’s increase in consumer prices of 7% was the most significant annual increase in almost 40 years. 

This is due to increased demand for goods, and housing, which economists attribute partially to a shortage of qualified workers.

On Thursday, Janet Yellen, U.S. Treasury Secretary, stated that the Federal Reserve and the administration would take steps to curb inflation.

She also said that more people needed to return to the workforce to ease supply pressures.

According to the official, Biden will likely stress the importance of having enough workers for construction projects that are enabled by his $1.2 billion infrastructure package.