Medford faces plummeting revenue due to pandemic, calls on federal, state governments for aid

 

Medford faces plummeting revenue due to pandemic, calls on federal, state governments for aid   In a financial report delivered by Medford Finance Director Aleesha Nunley-Benjamin on Feb. 16, a troubling financial situation for the city of Medford was presented to the Medford City Council. Revenues plummeted due to the recession caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Nunley-Benjamin said that the city received $19,105,993 in local receipts for the fiscal year 2020, a nearly million dollar shortfall from the projected budget. Local receipts are projected to decline to $15,830,089 for fiscal year 2021, which would be a $4.2 million loss from the prior year.

According to Nunley-Benjamin, Massachusetts entered a recession in February 2020 with a recovery outlook between the fiscal year 2023 and 2025. This recession has seen the state’s gross domestic product decline by 3.4% with hotel occupancy plummeting and the shuttering of around 4,000 Massachusetts restaurants. The pace of the recovery slowed down with the winter surge of COVID-19 cases.   https://tuftsdaily.com/news/2021/03/12/medford-faces-plummeting-revenue-due-to-pandemic-calls-on-federal-state-governments-for-aid/