NYSRA Update: COVID-19 Outbreak | May 12, 2020

Good News
  • With the COVID-19 crisis shutting down schools and restaurants, dairy producers have been left with a large surplus of milk which was being thrown out. Last week, more than 4,000 gallons of milk from local dairy farms were handed out at a drive through event held at the University of Rochester. This program cut down on the amount of milk being dumped, and also helped many families in need. Read more: https://13wham.com/news/local/farmers-to-bring-4000-gallons-of-free-milk-to-u-of-r-campus

Federal
  • The U.S. House of Representatives released the text here of its next COVID-19 bill today. The small business section starts on page 821. It contains many of the changes to the Payroll Protection Program (PPP) shared by Senate Minority Leader Schumer on our call with him last night including:
  • Changes the deadline for rehiring employees for loan forgiveness from June 30 to December 31.
  • Extends PPP loan terms from the current 2 years to 5 years.
  • Clarifies that PPP loans cannot be calculated on a compound basis.
  • Provides a carve out of 25% of the existing funds on the date of enactment to be used specifically for small businesses with 10 or fewer employees to guarantee they are fully able to access PPP assistance.
  • Establishes an additional set aside of existing funds of the lesser of 25% or $10 billion specifically for community financial institutions, such as Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs), Minority Development Institutions (MDIs), SBA microlenders, and SBA Certified Development Companies (CDCs); and
  • Extends the covered loan period from 8 weeks to 24 weeks
  • Creates a safe harbor for borrowers who cannot rehire due to the inability to rehire in the prescribed timeframe.
  • Eliminates the 75/25 rule on use of loan proceeds for non-payroll expenses 
  • The National Restaurant Association has announced its support for new bipartisan legislation sponsored by Rep. Dwight Evans (D-PA) and “G.T.” Thompson (R-PA) to provide an exclusion from gross income taxes and temporary payroll tax relief for essential food and agricultural workers. The bill is known as the “Assistance and Gratitude for Coronavirus Heroes in Agribusiness who are Invaluable to the Nation” or the AG CHAIN Act.
  • Here is a loan report from the Small Business Administration on the second round of PPP funding thus far: https://home.treasury.gov/system/files/136/SBA-Paycheck-Protection-Program-Loan-Report-Round2.pdf

State
  • The status of each region in the State will be updated daily with their standing made public here regarding eligibility for reopening. Currently the Finger Lakes, Mohawk Valley and Southern Tier Regions are set to begin Phase 1 of reopening on Friday, May 15th. These regions include the following counties:
  • Finger Lakes: Monroe, Orleans, Genesee, Wyoming, Livingston, Ontario, Wayne, Seneca and Yates Counties.
  • Mohawk Valley: Oneida, Herkimer, Otsego, Schoharie, Fulton, and Montgomery Counties.
  • Southern Tier: Delaware, Chenango, Broom, Tioga, Tompkins, Chemung, Schuyler and Steuben Counties. 

NYC
  • Today, Mayor de Blasio announced his support for the proposed emergency fee cap on third-party delivery platforms. 
  • Department of Transportation Commissioner Trottenberg suggested that DOT will be working with other agencies to consider how parts of streets or sidewalks could potentially be turned over to restaurants for outdoor seating.
  • The phone-to-action campaign to oppose premium pay and "just cause" mandates has seen good early engagement, but the fight to reject these proposals has just begun! If you have not yet had the chance, please take part here. 

Communications