Dear Clients and Friends,
Below please find the eleventh edition of Stearns Weaver Miller's COVID-19 Legal Compass, highlighting government updates, alerts on critical topics, and resources to help you navigate and adapt to this rapidly changing environment.
All actions described below have been ordered or updated between May 29, 2020 and June 4, 2020. We have done our best to include significant, timely information, although new orders and actions are being introduced continuously.
View a comprehensive listing of the government actions pertaining to COVID-19 that we have collected to date.
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RECENT FEDERAL GOVERNMENT ACTIONS
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Changes to Payment Protection Program ("PPP")
: The Senate passed HR 7010, the Payment Protection Program Flexibility Act of 2020. The President has signed the bill into law today. T
he legislation will influence how money from the PPP is used by small businesses. Specifically, the bill would reduce the share of PPP funds small businesses are required to spend on payroll from 75% to 60%, extend the window to use the funds and receive debt forgiveness from eight weeks to 24 weeks, prolong the deadline to rehire workers from June 30 to December 31, 2020, push back the timeline for repaying PPP loans, and allow companies that get loan forgiveness to defer payroll taxes.
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CDC Offers Guidance for Agricultural Workers and Employers
: The CDC and the Department of Labor published
interim guidance for agricultural workers and employers in reopening, which may be adapted by state and local health departments.
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RECENT STATE OF FLORIDA GOVERNMENT ACTIONS
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Phase 2 Recovery: The Phase 2 Recovery extends allowed Phase 1 business activities; expands allowed business activities for restaurant, bar, entertainment, and personal service businesses in all but Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties; and allows groups of up to 50 to meet. The Order also exempts travel restrictions for those traveling to Florida for commercial or student purposes. Click for more.
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Foreclosure and Eviction Tolling: The suspension and tolling of all foreclosure and residential evictions in effect since Executive Order 20-94 has been extended until July 1, 2020. Click for more.
View an easy-to-read matrix of the Florida government agency orders that we have collected to date. Highlighted actions are new (May 29 - June 4) since last issue.
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RECENT COUNTY AND CITY GOVERNMENT ACTIONS
Our
comprehensive listing
includes the latest updates on the actions of 59 local governments throughout the state of Florida, as well as permitting information and a virtual meetings database. Grouped by region and with an easy-to-navigate table of contents, the listing is filled with links to each government's orders, organized by date.
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| Photo Source - Florida's COVID-19 Data and Surveillance Dashboard, Florida Department of Health, Division of Disease Control and Health Protection, June 4, 2020 |
LOCAL GOVERNMENT REOPENING PROCESS CONTINUES INTO PHASE 2
Local governments are continuing to follow the State's lead into Phase 2 with the issuance of Executive Order 20-139 (Phase 2: Safe. Smart. Step-by-Step. Plan for Florida's Recovery). Local governments are trending towards loosening restrictions to be consistent with State's plan.
Local governments continue to meet virtually and are finding ways to host virtual quasi-judicial meetings as well. Our
comprehensive listing
includes a virtual meeting database, as well as the latest update on Local Government Actions.
On April 22nd, our team presented a webinar wherein we discussed the practical and legal challenges presented in a virtual land use public hearing and the best practices to proceed in these virtual times. You can view the webinar here!
If you have questions about a local government order or an upcoming virtual public hearing,
email
us.
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