Mark Delaney, Mayor of Village of the Branch, a village in the Town of Smithtown in Suffolk County, stands outside Village Hall, Thursday, June 2, 2022, in Smithtown, N.Y. From small towns to big cities, every government across the U.S. was offered a slice of $350 billion of federal coronavirus relief funds intended to help shore up their finances, fight the virus and invest in community projects. Nearly 1,500 local government said "no," turning down a total of about $60 million of aid, according to an Associated Press analysis. At least few later regretted the decision, wishing with hindsight that they had taken the money. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
