June 10, 2020 - Washington, D.C. – Speaker Nancy Pelosi issued this statement on clarifications published by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office on the projected decline in GDP in response to questions submitted by the Speaker:

“This CBO report is chilling confirmation of the life-and-death stakes of Congress’s action to stem the economic hemorrhaging from COVID-19.  Now is not the time to take our foot off the gas.

“The CBO report confirms the life-saving role of Congress’s COVID-19 relief as it warns of the costs of inaction: ‘In CBO’s assessment, those laws will partially mitigate the deterioration in economic conditions.  In particular, greater federal spending and lower revenues will cause real GDP and employment to be higher over the next few years than they would be otherwise.’  Specifically, the CBO points to the role of payments and tax credits to works, federal assistance for state and local governments, loans and grants to small businesses and support for health care providers in easing the pain.

“Yet, unless more is done, economic growth will be nearly $4 trillion lower than expected before the crisis, with growth grinding to a near-standstill over two years.

“As I have said before, the most expensive course of action is no action.  Leader McConnell and the President must join the House to protect lives and livelihoods by passing The Heroes Act now.  We cannot ‘pause’ as Leader McConnell wants us to, while millions of desperate families and communities continue to struggle.”
Source: Speaker Nancy Pelosi