COVID-19 Weekly Update: May, 8 2020
A Message from Virginia Chamber President & CEO, Barry DuVal
On Monday, Governor Northam announced Executive Order 53 will be extended through May 14. EO 53 outlines the current restrictions in place on business operations and gatherings of more than 10 people. The Governor has also outlined his three-phase plan to ease restrictions on businesses and gatherings and expressed the timing of these phases will be based on when health data supports doing so. Phase I of this plan is expected to begin on Friday May 15, and each phase will likely last between two and four weeks.
Businesses around the Commonwealth are anxiously awaiting the specific guidelines for Phase I. Right now, we only know that Phase I will continue to encourage social distancing, teleworking, and the ban on social gatherings of more than 10 people. Additionally, this phase will strongly recommend the use of face coverings in public, transition the stay at home directive to a “safer at home” guideline, especially for vulnerable populations, and is expected to ease restrictions on businesses and faith communities. Specifically, the Governor mentioned that salons will likely be able to reopen under appointment-only and restaurants will be able to offer dine-in seating if they adhere to additional safety measures that will be outlined in this phase. More information can be found below.
In March, the Virginia Chamber released its COVID-19 Resource Center to serve as a central resource for Virginia’s business community. The Virginia Chamber COVID-19 Resource Center is updated daily and provides a comprehensive overview of resources developed by the Commonwealth of Virginia, Virginia Department of Health, Treasury Department, Small Business Administration, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and other organizations and government partners to ensure your business and your employees have the necessary information to help prevent the spread of COVID-19.
Last week, the Virginia Chamber announced the launch of the “Blueprint for Getting Virginians Back to Work” initiative. As our government and business leaders consider how to best recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, the Virginia Chamber of Commerce has announced the launch of this initiative, which will provide recommendations on operating in the current economic climate caused by COVID-19 and how to return stronger than before.
To achieve the goal of getting Virginians back to work as soon as safely possible, the Virginia Chamber is launching a series of surveys and engagement opportunities for the business community. We are engaging our full network of support to build a coalition of input from more than 26,000 Virginia Chamber member companies, more than 100 local chambers of commerce, industry trade associations and non-profits, and other key thought leaders from across the Commonwealth.
You can read the official press release for this announcement here. Members of the business community are encouraged to participate in the survey by May 15. You can find the survey here. Learn more about the Blueprint for Getting Virginians Back to Work initiative here.
During these unprecedented times, we will continue to recognize members of the Virginia Chamber who are stepping up to support our communities in many ways. Each week, we will highlight one member of the Virginia Chamber for their efforts to give back during the COVID-19 pandemic in the “Member Spotlight” section included below.
This week, the Virginia Chamber is pleased to recognize Transurban for their participation in #GivingTuesdayNow. #GivingTuesdayNow is a global day of giving and unity as an emergency response to the unprecedented need caused by COVID-19. Transurban participated by announcing that every contribution made to Northern Virginia Family Service, on #GivingTuesdayNow, would be matched fully by Transurban, up to $10,000. More information on this week’s “Member Spotlight” can be found below.
Member Spotlight: Transurban
This new section in the Virginia Chamber’s Weekly COVID-19 update will highlight a Chamber member who is giving back to the COVID-19 pandemic efforts. This week on our Member Spotlight, we are highlighting Transurban for being part of the #GivingTuesdayNow Fundraiser!
Transurban chooses Northern Virginia Family Services as the beneficiary for the #GivingTuesdayNow Fundraiser!
In response to the COVID-19 crisis, Transurban participated in Giving Tuesday Now on May 5th. GTN is a global day of giving and action sponsored by Giving Tuesday. Transurban contributed $25K to Northern Virginia Family Services and matched contributions from customer, employees, and stakeholders up to another $10K.
NVFS is a Northern Virginia non-profit that has been around for almost 100 years and is on the front lines of the response to the Covid-19 crisis, helping those in need with food, shelter, and health care.
Follow this link to learn more
Virginia Chamber 2020 Event Updates
Due to the COVID-19 crisis and ever-evolving situation, the Virginia Chamber made the decision last week to postpone all of our scheduled events for the spring. We have secured new dates for each of these events later in the year.
Please find below an updated tentative event calendar for the fall months. Additional details on each event with be released in the coming weeks.
SAVE THE DATE
August 19 – Virginia Veterans & Military Affairs Conference
September 17 – Virginia Conference on Energy Diversity & Corporate Sustainability
October 7 – Virginia Health Care Conference
October 27 – Virginia Education & Workforce Conference
November 5 – Virginia Chamber Annual Dinner
December 4 – Virginia Economic Summit
Governor Northam Outlines Three Phase Plan to Gradually Ease Restrictions on Business
On Monday, Governor Northam outlined his three-phase plan to ease restrictions on businesses and gatherings and expressed the timing of these phases will be based on when health data supports doing so. Phase I of this plan is expected to begin on Friday May 15, and each phase will likely last between two and four weeks.
Phase 1 is expected to consist of:
- “Safer at home” – especially if you are vulnerable
- No social gatherings of more than 10
- Continued social distancing and teleworking
- Face coverings recommended while in public
- Easing limits on business and faith communities
Specific guidelines are expected to be released in the coming days and the Virginia Chamber will highlight these guidelines on our resource center when they become available.
View the outline of the three-phase plan, Forward Virginia Blueprint, here.
View the data briefing presented here.
Upcoming COVID-19 Webinars
Visit the Virginia Chamber COVID-19 Resource Center for a weekly overview of the available webinars for the business community.
Virginia Chamber members are encouraged to share any additional webinar resources and opportunities that should be highlighted in this section by contacting our team at policy@vachamber.com
SBA Resources: Sustaining Business and Nonprofits
Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) — use the Lender Match tool to find lender where can apply. Entities can obtain zero-fee loans up to $10 million running from February 15, 2020 through June 30, 2020. Up to 8 weeks of average payroll will be forgiven if the business retains its employees and their salary levels.
Emergency Economic Injury Grant — use the Economic Injury Disaster Loan application. It includes $10 billion to provide an advance of up to $10,000 for businesses and nonprofits that apply through SBA within 3 days.
Small Business Debt Relief Program — use the Economic Injury Disaster Loan application. Once an entity applies for EIDL, the SBA has three weeks to respond. EIDLs are loans up to $2 million with interest rates of 3.75% for businesses and 2.75% for nonprofits. If an entity receives the loan January 31 to June 30, 2020, it can apply for a PPP loan or refinance for PPP.
Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) Information Sheet
The U.S. Department of Treasury shared new information regarding the Paycheck Protection Program. Please review the resources provided by the U.S. Department of Treasury below and visit their webpage for additional information.
- A top-line overview of the program can be found here.
- If you’re a lender, more information can be found here.
- If you’re a borrower, more information can be found here.
JLARC to Conduct Study on Programs Offered by Virginia Department of Small Business and Supplier Diversity (SBSD)
The Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission (JLARC) is conducting a study of the certification, financing, and business advisory programs offered by the Virginia Department of Small Business and Supplier Diversity (SBSD), including the Virginia Small Business Financing Authority. (JLARC conducts independent, non-partisan research: see http://jlarc.virginia.gov). As part of this study, JLARC is sending an online survey to small businesses in Virginia that have participated in SBSD programs. If you receive a survey from JLARC in the upcoming days, please consider responding to it. Your feedback about Virginia’s small business programs will be used to improve them as needed.
