COVID-19 Update: Sick leave, loans, & more

Yesterday’s announcement that the social distancing guidelines will extend until April 30 confirms what we already suspected, that the “new abnormal” is here for a while—no gatherings, no school, remote work, and economic hardship.

We continue to curate the news to help you know what is available. Recent legislation provides some relief for both individuals and employers so here is what we know at the moment:

Families First

The initial legislation passed was to assist those who have to take off work either because they are sick or a loved one is sick that they have to care for and/or children home from school to care for. There are two pieces: Extended Sick Leave and an extension of the Family Medical Leave Act. The following articles provide good overviews:

• What you need to know about the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (Intuit / QuickBooks)

• Families First Coronavirus Response Act: Questions and Answers (U.S. Department of Labor)

CARES

This is the $2 trillion stimulus package signed last Thursday. There is relief for churches and nonprofits available. The two articles below provide good summaries as we wait for further clarification this week.

• How the stimulus package benefits small businesses and self-employed (Intuit / QuickBooks)See portion of article related to “Small Business Payroll Loans”

• How the COVID-19 Economic Stimulus Bill Affects Churches and Nonprofits (ECFA)

There are several webinars scheduled this week to explore what are assumed to be forthcoming details. 

SBA

It appears that the SBA will administer the CARES payroll loans and that the following site is the official starting point: Coronavirus (COVID-19): Small Business Guidance & Loan Resources

As of early this morning [3/30], there does not yet appear to be an official application for the SB Payroll Loans but there does appear to be an economic injury disaster loan advance of $10K available: SBA - Disaster Loan Assistance

A couple key items to note if you choose to apply:

• Need gross revenues, cost of ops and cost of ops for “secular social services” [if faith-based] activities for 12 months prior to 1/31/20

• For faith-based organizations: you must promise to use any funds received only for the purposes of “secular social services” [see checkbox at end of authorization]