CARES ACT H H H H H H H H H H H H H H H H H H Businesses Relief for Small Because commercial pavement sweeping operators may be considered essential workers in most states, your power sweeping company is probably less likely to be required to shut down than other types of businesses in your local area. Still, many small pavement sweeping business owners may be concerned about the COVID-19 virus’s potential impacts on your long-term cash flow and growth from new customer acquisitions. Fortunately, there is economic help available through the federal CARES Act that can help you keep your employees on your payroll through federal grants and loans that can be forgiven, for businesses that qualify. What is the CARES Act? Congress has just passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act), to assist the business owner’s necessary aid to help them keep people employed and lessen the financial impact of the virus and its consequences to the national economy. As the CARES Act programs are rolled out by the SBA, numerous new resources will become available to small business owners. For detailed information about the CARES Act benefits for your business, see The Small Business Owner’s Guide to the CARES Act, published by the US Senate Committee on Small Business & Entrepreneurship. The 11-page guide lays out a good comprehensive overview of the provisions of each of the financial relief programs that the Small Business Administration (SBA) will soon make available to help business owners overcome the economic effects of the national COVID-19 emergency.
What Kinds of Help for Small Businesses Does the CARES Act Provide? The CARES Act programs may provide your business with financial aid in the form of income replacement during and after the COVID-19 crisis. (Additional help from tax savings through the IRS may also be available to you.) Contact your local SBA District Office for updates on when the CARES Act program funds will become available. Here are some of the key CARES Act programs that the SBA will administrate:
Emergency Economic Injury Grant The grant provides small businesses affected by COVID-19 with a small emergency cash infusion of up to $10,000. The grant is issued within three days from the time of application for an
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SBA Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL). You must apply for an EIDL first, to then request the advance grant. The grant does not need to be repaid, regardless of future circumstances. The grant funds can be used for any needs of the business, such as keeping workers on your payroll, covering increased operational costs resulting from disruptions to your supply chain, paying for employees’ sick leave, paying mortgage payments and other debts, paying rent, and meeting other business obligations.
EIDL funds can be used... to cover expenses that the borrower could have paid if the COVID-19 emergency conditions had not interfered. Economic Injury Disaster Loans An EIDL loan and other forms of financial relief are available through the CARES Act emergency economic relief program options administrated by the SBA. EIDLs are business loans up to $2 million. The interest rate on EIDLs is 3.75%. The start of payments can be deferred for up to 6 months, and the repayment term can be as long as 30 years. EIDL funds can be used, per the loan administrator’s discretion, to cover expenses that the borrower could have paid if the COVID-19 emergency conditions had not interfered. Operating costs, including payroll, can be paid with EIDL proceeds. Businesses with 500 or fewer workers are eligible to apply for an EIDL.
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