On the Eve of President Trump’s visit to Syracuse, City Auditor Alex Marion released a report that outlines the impact of federal funding on the city.
The report, called "Washington Worries," highlights where federal policy under the Trump Administration has hurt the city.
"It's hard to put a direct dollar amount on it," Marion said. "I think the bigger issue we have is an attitude problem. The federal government is dismissive of cities. The federal government does not have a unified urban policy. The federal government is not delivering what cities need right now and is largely uninterested in finding out what cities need."
The report includes residents who will lose food assistance because of cuts in federal SNAP benefits, the high cost of gasoline, and the loss of $30 million that was earmarked for street level infrastructure projects as part of the Interstate 81 project.
Marion said the report follows a report earlier this year that projected ways the city would fare under the Trump Administration.
"This is what we've been experiencing now two years in," he said. "This is a good follow up to that. This is how the federal government is impacting us today. And I hope that we are able to move ahead with a good understanding of what the real life impacts of the decision being made in Washington are."
The report includes two recommendations. One asks Congress replace the $30 million for street infrastructure. The other suggests the city work with government and non-profit partners to ease the loss of SNAP benefits.
