CMRPC COVID-19 Response Resources and Information

SBA released a new Economic Injury (EIDL) processing platform yesterday which incorporates the ability to request an Economic Injury Disaster Loan Advance of up to $10,000.    The loan advance will provide economic relief to businesses that are currently experiencing temporary loss of revenue.   Funds will be made available within three days of a successful application, and this loan advance will not have to be repaid.     www.sba.gov/disaster SBA sent out the below message to everyone that had applied for an EIDL loan prior to the loan advance option becoming available through the Cares Act.      We know you are facing challenging times in this current health crisis. The U.S. Small Business Administration is committed to help bring relief to small businesses and nonprofit organizations suffering because of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.  On March 27, 2020, President Trump signed into law the CARES Act, which provided

Please find a list of resources for Massachusetts businesses in this email. We encourage you to read through this list of resources and share widely. Check out our Open for Business - Local Business Directory to support local businesses around. Please consider supporting fishermen and seafood-related businesses that you come across in this directory as well as in this newsletter. Seafood sales have been deeply impacted following the COVID-19 crisis, and we must do everything we can to support our fishermen! Be sure to fill out our survey if you would like us to promote your business via SBN newsletters and social media. Small Business Association The SBA’s Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program and Express Bridge Loan Program are now activated statewide in Massachusetts. Small businesses are urged to submit applications right away because decisions are made on a first-come, first served basis and there is no cost to apply.    MA Disaster and Emergency Relief

USDA Rural Development has launched a COVID-19 resource page to keep our customers, partners, and stakeholders continuously updated on actions taken by the Agency to help rural residents, businesses, and communities impacted by the COVID-19 outbreak.  Visit www.rd.usda.gov/coronavirus for information on Rural Development loan payment assistance, application deadline extensions, and more.

"Local boards of health shall disclose to the official with the responsibility for administering the response to emergency calls in their jurisdiction (receiving entity) the addresses of person living in their jurisdiction who the local board of health has been informed have tested positive for COVID-19.  The disclosure of information shall be limited to the address, and shall not include any other identifying information, including name." https://www.mass.gov/doc/order-of-the-commissioner-of-public-health-regarding-the-sharing-of-critical-information-with/download

he Worcester Together: COVID-19 Response & Relief Fund has been established by the Foundation, the United Way of Central Massachusetts , Greater Worcester Community Foundation , the City of Worcester and a coalition of generous donors to rapidly deploy flexible resources. The fund aims to support organizations in Worcester County that are working with communities disproportionately affected by the coronavirus pandemic. How the grant program works: Presently, the focus of this Fund is rapid response to support organizations on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic. Grants between $5,000 - $50,000 will be awarded to: * Provide resources for nonprofit organizations that are authentically connected and providing coronavirus related relief to Worcester County’s most vulnerable populations including seniors, children, residents without access to paid sick days, healthcare and gig economy workers, communities of color, immigrants and people with disabilities.

Important information from the COVID-19 Response Command Center. This update is from yesterday, March 26, 2020. https://www.dropbox.com/s/wv1rpyntyn08y3a/COVID-19%20Response%20Command%20Center%20sitrep_03.26.20.pdf?dl=0

Business Impact Survey If you are a business owner, community leader, or municipal economic development committee in Southern Worcester County and are looking for help navigating the many State, Federal or Local resources that have been rolled out in response to the Covid-19 outbreak, please contact Kerrie Salwa, ksalwa@cmrpc.org for direction to these resources. If you are a current business owner: Please fill out the survey so we have a better idea of the needs of our region. https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/DCBZRDM

Update: The Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development has produced FAQs around essential/non-essential businesses which will be updated regularly. The direct link to the FAQ is: https://www.mass.gov/info-details/covid-19-essential-services-faqs (it’s also linked off the other related mass.gov pages). Guidance if you get questions: Governor Baker has announced various orders and guidance which are all posted on www.mass.gov/covid19 . On March 23, 2020 Governor Baker announced closure of non-essential businesses effective at 12:00 PM on Tuesday March 24, 2020. Please refer to the language of the order itself, the essential services list , and assemblage guidance and FAQ for restrictions and information. The Commonwealth does not issue letters or certificates for essential businesses. The essential services list also includes a link to a form for companies to be added to the list of types of essential services if they are not already on the list . Any questio

The Worcester Education Collaborative has gathered a variety of educational resources for families. Click the link for the educational resources.

Today, Governor Charlie Baker issued an emergency order requiring all businesses and organizations that do not provide “COVID-19 Essential Services” to close their physical workplaces and facilities to workers, customers and the public as of Tuesday, March 24th at noon until Tuesday, April 7th at noon. These businesses are encouraged to continue operations remotely. For more information regarding what is deemed an Essential Service, click the link here.

The Governor's Office announced today that Emergency Child Care Centers will be in operation. "Priority must be given to people including but are not limited to health care workers, essential state and human service workers, COVID-19 health workers, grocery store employees, emergency response personnel, law enforcement, transportation and infrastructure workers, sanitation workers, DCF-involved families, and families living in shelters." "Emergency Child Care Programs are for when all other non-group-care settings have been exhausted and families have no other options." For more information, regarding Emergency Child Care Centers click here.

On March 13 Massachusetts received an Emergency Declaration (FEMA-3438-EM) in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.  FEMA grant assistance is provided to applicants for eligible costs associated with Category B, Emergency Protective Measures.  Your Emergency Management Directors have received notice of this funding from MEMA, and have been encouraged to log into their Grants Portal account and complete the Request for Public Assistance (RPA).  The Disaster Declaration Number is FEMA-3438-EM, which is now active in Grants Portal.  Your EMD’s email address is their portal username.  If your town is not a registered user, there is a registration form at https://frcog.org/covid-19-resources/ .  We encourage you to forward this information to any private non-profit entity in your community (especially the medical facilities) who may have eligible emergency protective measure costs and direct them to the same form to return to MEMA at disaster.recovery@mass.gov

        If you are a business owner, community leader, or municipal economic development committee in Southern Worcester County and are looking for help navigating the many State, Federal and Local resources that have been rolled out this week in response to the Covid-19 outbreak, please contact Kerrie Salwa, Principal Planner  ksalwa@cmrpc.org  for direction to these resources.

Good morning Boards of Health,   As part of a $15 million aid package allotted by the Legislature last week, the Department of Health and Human Services has informed us there is substantial funding dedicated to cities and towns to help with their response to this public health emergency.   CMRPC is the designated regional entity for distributing these funds In Health and Medical Coordinating Coalition (HMCC) Region 2, which covers central Massachusetts. We will be coordinating with the following “unaffiliated” communities to assess need and allocate funding:   Map of CMRPC Assisted communities  (also listed below)   Auburn Barre Blackstone Boylston Brookfield Charlton Douglas Dudley East Brookfield Hardwick Hopedale Mendon Millville New Braintree North Brookfield Northborough Northbridge Oakham Oxford Paxton Rutland Southbridge Spencer Sturbridge Sutton Upton Uxbridge Warren Webster West Brookfield We

Good morning partners and friends, The MA Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) and Baker-Polito Administration are working closely with the U.S. SBA to activate the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program which would provide assistance to eligible businesses and non-profits impacted by COVID-19. The 1st step in this process is to meet a minimum threshold of affected businesses within MA. Affected small businesses and non-profits should download, complete, and submit the SBA EIDL Worksheet (  https://lnkd.in/ewF7VBy  ) & Instructions to expedite activation of the EIDL program. Completed forms can be submitted by email to  Disaster.Recovery@mass.gov  or by fax to (508) 820-1401. If you do fax the form, please include your e mail.  Please note, this initial survey form is not a SBA loan application. When the EIDL program is activated, you will be contacted to apply directly to the SBA and this website will be updated with application details. For questions, ple

Patrick Marvin, A&F Patrick.L.Marvin@mass.gov Order will allow state, quasi and local governments to carry out essential functions during COVID-19 outbreak     BOSTON  – The Baker-Polito Administration today announced  an emergency order  temporarily modifying the state’s open meeting law in order to allow state, quasi and local governments to continue to carry out essential functions and operations during the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak. This emergency order suspends the requirement for public access to the physical location where a public meeting is taking place, provided there are other means of access available. This includes the use of a phone conference line for members of the public, social media or other internet streaming services, on-line meeting services, or methods of access. Both the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) have advised residents to take extra measures to put dista

MASSACHUSETTS Declaration of Emergency :  No. 591: Declaration of a State of Emergency to Respond to COVID-19