The Utah Economic Response Task Force hosted yet another Facts and FAQ’s session on Tuesday afternoon. This time, they focused on how businesses can access new available resources.
There is a new forgivable loan program that is part of the CARES Act and it went into law last week. This program will assist those that are affected by COVID-19 to protect pay. It was also reported that unemployment insurance claims are up to 6.6 million.
$349 billion has been approved for the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). This program was previously described by Senator Mitt Romney and is available for businesses that have under 500 employees. Payroll averages are taken from the year before and multiplied by 2.5, finding the funds available. In addition, $10 billion has been granted to expand eligibility for small businesses.
Those that qualify have to choose between the PPP and the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL), which is a loan that was originally created for major disaster areas that are prone to hurricanes and tornadoes. However, Utah has been approved to qualify for this loan because it was granted a disaster declaration. Both programs cannot be applied for by a single business.
Support for all, forgiveness and the current healthcare system plans were then briefly discussed before the session closed.