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Dear Clients and Friends,

Below please find the twelfth 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 June 5, 2020 and June 11, 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.

Please email our team with questions.


RECENT FEDERAL GOVERNMENT ACTIONS
  • Main Street Lending Program Expanded : The Federal Reserve Board expanded its Main Street Lending Program to allow for more small and medium-sized businesses to receive support. The changes, which will provide borrowers with greater flexibility in repaying the loans, included reducing the minimum loan size for certain loans from $500,000 to $250,000, raising the maximum loan size for all facilities, extending the repayment period for loans by delaying principal payments for two years (rather than one), and increasing the term of each loan option from four years to five. The Federal Reserve Board expects the program to be open for registration soon and to be actively buying loans shortly after.
  • Interim Rule Implementing Changes to Payment Protection Program ("PPP") : On June 5, 2020, the President signed the Payment Protection Program Flexibility Act of 2020 into law. On June 11, 2020, the SBA presented an interim final rule, to be codified at 13 C.F.R. ยง 120. This interim final rule, which supplements the previously posted interim final rules, helps PPP borrowers prepare and submit loan forgiveness applications as provided for in the CARES Act, assists PPP lenders making loan forgiveness decisions, informs borrowers and lenders of SBA's process for reviewing PPP loan and loan forgiveness applications, and requests public comment.
View a comprehensive listing of Federal Government Actions that we have collected to date.

RECENT STATE OF FLORIDA GOVERNMENT ACTIONS
  • Plan for Reopening K-12 Schools: Governor DeSantis announced a plan with recommendations to assist Florida K-12 schools with campus reopening in the fall.  Click for more.
  • Distribution of Federal Funds: Governor DeSantis plans to disburse up to $1.275 billion of CARES Act funds to counties with populations below 500,000.  Click for more.
View a comprehensive listing of State of Florida Government Actions that we have collected to date.

View an easy-to-read matrix of the Florida government agency orders that we have collected to date.  Highlighted actions are new (June 5-11) since last issue.

FLORIDA COVID-19 MAPS





Our in-house Geographic Information System (GIS) team has created state-of-the-art, proprietary work products using data from the Florida Department of Health website.  These high-definition maps are extremely detailed, searchable, and are created to help easily visualize Florida's progress in regards to the pandemic.
  • Change in Number of Cases from June 4 to June 11, by Zip Code. Click for map.
  • Change in Number of Hospitalizations from June 4 to June 11, by County. Click for map.

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.

LOCAL GOVERNMENTS OFFER ASSISTANCE TO SMALL BUSINESSES

Many local governments have developed programs to assist local small businesses. While each local government's program is unique, these programs generally offer loans or grants to small businesses located within that local government's jurisdiction. For example, Miami-Dade has developed the RISE Miami-Dade Fund to allow for a maximum $30,000 loan fixed at the prime interest rate for small businesses. Pinellas County is also offering a one-time grant of $5,000 to qualifying businesses through the Pinellas CARES Small Business Grant program. Lee County is similarly offering individual and small business grants through the LeeCares program.

In addition to providing local emergency orders, our comprehensive listing includes links to 59 local governments, making it easy for you check with your local government to see if you or your business qualifies for a loan or grant. If you have questions regarding the terms of the loan or grant or your eligibility, email us! 
RECENT STEARNS WEAVER MILLER COVID-19 UPDATES

About Stearns Weaver Miller
  
Stearns Weaver Miller Weissler Alhadeff & Sitterson is a full service law firm with offices in Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Tampa, Tallahassee, and Coral Gables, Florida. We offer multidisciplinary solutions with a focus on Litigation & Dispute Resolution, Business Restructuring, Corporate & Securities, Government & Administrative, Labor & Employment, Real Estate, Land Development, Zoning & Environmental and Tax. For more information, please visit stearnsweaver.com.

  

The information provided in this update email does not, and is not intended to, constitute legal advice; it is for general informational purposes only. Information in this email may quickly become outdated. Readers of this email should contact their attorney to obtain advice with respect to any particular matter. No one should act or refrain from acting on the basis of information in this email without first seeking legal advice from counsel. Only your attorney can provide assurance that the information contained in this email, as well as the reader's interpretation of that information, is appropriate to any particular situation.