“The Challenge Is Enormous.” Newsom, Western Governors Ask Feds for $1 Trillion.

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Saying a huge budget surplus has been turned into a sea of red, Governor Gavin Newsom said Monday he’s joined with the governors of four other Western states in asking for an additional one trillion dollar package of aid from the federal government.

Newsom pointed to projections that show California is headed toward tens of billions of dollars in deficits and unemployment approaching 25 percent, this after having arguably the healthiest and most robust economy in the nation in the months preceeding the coronavirus emergency.

The governors and legislatures of Washington, Oregon, Nevada and Colorado, which with California form the Western Pact, joined in requesting the aid package from Congress and the White House.

Newsom said the funds are badly needed to support public health and safety at the county and city level.

He also pledged to continue working with individual California counties in helping them to reopen additional businesses at a pace that meets public health needs locally.

The governor also said more than 70 percent of the state’s economy has been allowed to reopen, and that on Tuesday he would lay out the conditions for reopening additional offices, shopping malls and restaurants across the state.

Currently state guidelines require new coronavirus cases to be falling consistently, deaths to be largely curtailed, and additional mitigation steps be in place before a county can push further into stage two of reopening. That would allow high risk businesses, such as indoor restaurants and shopping malls, to resume operations.