%1

Lawmakers across the U.S. are looking to enact rent control, reviving measures largely shunned in recent years in an effort to curb the surge in home rental prices throughout the country, the Wall Street Journal reported. These proposals, which would generally allow landlords to boost monthly rents by no more than 2% to 10%, are on the legislative agenda in more than a dozen states. Rental prices are up about 18% on average over the past two years, according to real-estate broker Redfin Corp., hitting record levels across the U.S. Large cities like Boston, affluent suburbs like Montclair, N.J., lower-income mobile-home communities in Colorado and fast-growing metros in Florida are among the places now considering rent control. “Rents are exploding at a pace far faster than income,” said Stijn Van Nieuwerburgh, an economist and professor at Columbia Business School who researches rent control. “The problem is now as bad as it has ever been. And probably much worse.” Rising rents are a big contributor to the recent surge in inflation that is starting to weigh on the U.S. economy. Cost of shelter accounts for 40% of the core Consumer Price Index, CPI’s biggest component. Economists at the San Francisco Federal Reserve said in a February inflation forecast that rent increases “point to significant upside risks to the overall inflation outlook.”

U.S. consumer sentiment fell more than expected in early March as gasoline prices surged to a record high in the aftermath of Russia's war against Ukraine, boosting one-year inflation expectations to the highest level since 1981, Reuters reported. The third straight monthly decline reported by the University of Michigan on Friday pushed consumer sentiment to its lowest level in nearly 11 years. It said 24% of respondents "spontaneously mentioned the Ukraine invasion in response to questions about the economic outlook." The University of Michigan's preliminary consumer sentiment index dropped to 59.7 in the first half of this month, the lowest reading since September 2011, from a final reading of 62.8 in February. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast the index falling to 61.4. The survey places more emphasis on gasoline prices and the stock market. The Conference Board's consumer confidence index, which puts more weight on the labor market, remains well above its COVID-19 pandemic lows. Economists said that the continued slump in the University of Michigan's sentiment index was overdone relative to fundamentals and they expected the economy to continue growing.

Cities and counties across the United States have found themselves in the surprisingly uncomfortable position of deciding how best to spend a windfall of federal relief funds intended to help keep them afloat amid deadly waves of COVID-19 infections, the New York Times reported. The pandemic, which is showing signs of waning as it enters its third year, prompted the largest infusion of federal money into the U.S. economy since the New Deal. President Biden and former President Donald J. Trump got Congress to approve roughly $5 trillion to help support families, shop owners, unemployed workers, schools and businesses. A large portion of the aid went to state, local and tribal governments, many of which had projected revenue losses of as much as 20 percent at the pandemic’s onset. The largest chunk came from Mr. Biden’s $1.9 trillion recovery bill, the American Rescue Plan, which earmarked $350 billion. That money is just beginning to flow to communities, which have until 2026 to spend it. In many cases, the money has become an unusually public and contentious marker of what matters most to a place — and who gets to make those decisions. The debates are sometimes partisan, but not always divided by ideology. They pit colleagues against each other, neighbors against neighbors, people who want infrastructure improvements against those who want to help people experiencing homelessness.

The Justice Department named a chief prosecutor for pandemic fraud yesterday, following through on President Joe Biden’s State of the Union promise to go after criminals who stole billions in relief money, the Associated Press reported. Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said that Kevin Chambers, an associate deputy attorney general, will lead criminal and civil enforcement efforts targeting pandemic-related fraud. Monaco on Thursday convened the department’s COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force, which includes nearly 30 agencies that administer and oversee pandemic relief funding. The Justice Department has already taken enforcement actions related to more than $8 billion in suspected pandemic fraud, Monaco and Attorney General Merrick Garland said yesterday. That includes bringing charges in more than 1,000 criminal cases involving losses in excess of $1.1 billion, opening civil cases against over 1,800 individuals and businesses for alleged fraud involving more than $6 billion in loans, and seizing more than $1.2 billion in relief funds.

The Senate passed a $1.5 trillion package to fund the federal government for the current fiscal year, after Democrats and Republicans resolved months of wrangling to quickly send aid to Ukraine, the Wall Street Journal reported. The measure was approved 68-31 and now heads to President Biden’s desk, one day before a temporary funding measure was set to expire and set in motion a partial government shutdown. The bill provides $13.6 billion in aid for Ukraine, including more than $3 billion for European Command operations mission support, the deployment of personnel to the region and intelligence support. Mr. Biden has said that the U.S. military won’t enter Ukraine, but the U.S. has sent troops, air defense systems and other equipment to Poland and other NATO states on the eastern flank to bolster their defenses. The assistance also includes $4 billion in humanitarian aid, helping refugees fleeing Ukraine and providing emergency food assistance and healthcare. The omnibus delivers on some priorities of both parties, such as the increased funding for child care and climate resiliency sought by Democrats and higher military spending pushed by Republicans. It includes billions of dollars requested by individual members for projects in their districts, representing the first time in more than a decade that the earmarks have been employed.

Pummeled by the pandemic, at least 40% of rural U.S. hospitals are in danger of shutting down and leaving millions of people in smaller and less affluent communities without a nearby emergency and critical care facility, Bloomberg News reported. That’s the conclusion of the Center for Healthcare Quality and Payment Reform, whose recent study sees 500 hospitals at immediate risk for closing within two years and more than 300 others at high risk within five years. The grim assessment by the policy center found the problems spread across the country, and that the threats will persist even if the pandemic ends because rising costs are outrunning revenue. All told, there are about 38 million Americans in the at-risk areas; they’d have to drive at least 20 minutes farther if their local hospitals close, with half adding at least 30 minutes, said Harold Miller, the center’s chief executive and author of the report. Many of the facilities are in sparsely populated but important farming, mining or ranching communities. Fifteen states have more than half of their rural hospitals at risk of closing because of persistent losses, including Texas and a large swath of the South and Midwest such as Kansas and Mississippi, the study shows. But rural hospitals in New York, Connecticut and Washington State are also in trouble.

The House passed a sweeping $1.5 trillion omnibus spending package on Wednesday night to fund the government, hours after lawmakers scrapped billions in funding to combat the COVID-19 pandemic amid resistance from Democrats upset about plans to yank already allocated relief from states, The Hill reported. The last-minute revolt over the COVID-19 funding from Democrats angered over a GOP-demanded offset upended a delicately negotiated package between congressional leaders of both parties. As part of those bipartisan negotiations, the House passage of the omnibus package, which funds the federal government through September, was split in two votes so that lawmakers could register specific support for the defense spending portions. The House first voted 361-69 to back funding for the Pentagon, Department of Homeland Security and other national security priorities and then 260-171, with one Democrat voting "present," to adopt the provisions largely related to domestic programs. Congress faces a time crunch to get the legislation to President Biden for his signature since current federal funding expires this Friday. Lawmakers also passed a stopgap measure by voice vote that lasts until Tuesday to ensure that the Senate has enough time to clear the omnibus package without risking a government shutdown. The omnibus package includes about $14 billion in emergency funding to boost humanitarian, security and economic assistance for Ukraine and central European allies in response to the Russian invasion — as lawmakers on both sides of the push for more support to Ukraine.

Total bankruptcy filings for February increased 3 percent over January, according to data provided by Epiq. Total filings in February were 26,985, up slightly from the January filing total of 26,200. The total noncommercial filings of 25,565 for February increased 4 percent from the January noncommercial filing total of 24,695. Conversely, February’s commercial filing total of 1,420 represented a 6 percent decrease from the January commercial filing total of 1,505. Commercial chapter 11 filings totaled 203 in February 2022, a 10 percent decrease from the 225 filings recorded the previous month. “With government stabilization programs and lender deferments tapering off, consumers and businesses are navigating an economic landscape that includes rising inflation, worker shortages and growing supply chain challenges,” said ABI Executive Director Amy Quackenboss. “Congressional consideration of extending or permanently making the expanded eligibility limit of small businesses electing to file for subchapter V under chapter 11 before it expires on March 27 would provide a reliable path for small businesses to successfully restructure, reduce liquidations and save jobs.”