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Aurora committee hears federal legislative update; municipal bond tax-exemption and grant backlogs highlighted
Summary
City federal legislative staff briefed the committee on Congress’s budget reconciliation, risks to the municipal bond tax exemption, appropriations, a large backlog of grant agreements and a DOT PROTECT grant currently under review.
Aurora City federal legislative staff briefed the committee on congressional activity affecting the city, including the budget reconciliation package, the appropriations process and a backlog of federal grant agreements that is delaying several city grants.
Laurie, federal legislative staff, told the committee Congress has resumed work on a budget reconciliation package that contains broad priorities for defense, border security, energy streamlining and tax policy. She said one provision under close watch is “removing the tax exemption status for municipal bonds.” She noted several House Republicans have opposed eliminating the exemption.
Laurie described the president’s recent “skinny” budget request as a messaging document and said that, because appropriations require 60 votes in the Senate, the large proposed cuts to HUD programs are unlikely to be enacted as presented. She added that committees are holding hearings with federal agency heads about proposed cuts.
On grants, Laurie said the federal government had just released “80 grants just 5 minutes ago,” but that “there are 3,200 grants on pause right now.” She said the city is watching a DOT PROTECT grant closely; DOT told staff the city’s grant agreement “is still under review” and that the agency is working through a backlog of agreements.
Council member Juranski told the committee she had raised Aurora’s eligibility to have funds released when she met with Representative Gabe Evans and Representative Lauren Boebert. Juranski said both members “committed to me that they can get in front of this and work towards specifically the grant funding for Aurora and getting it released.”
Council members asked staff to keep lines of communication open with the congressional delegation and federal agencies; staff said they will continue to provide updates to the committee as they come in.
The committee discussed HUD funding for the city’s navigation campus and requested staff keep advocating for release of those funds; staff said they had been in contact with a federal chief-of-staff staffer who had agreed to follow up.
