Lawsuits have sprung up nationwide against state and local authorities who have imposed shutdown orders in an effort to thwart the COVID-19 pandemic. Here in Washington, two lawsuits challenging our state’s shutdown order have been filed. The first, by gubernatorial candidate Joshua Freed, was voluntarily dismissed after Mr. Freed was reassured that his backyard Bible […]
The SBA has released its loan forgiveness application: The application contains an “alternate payroll period” and instructions for calculation FTEs for forgiveness purposes. More guidance will be forthcoming.
COVID-19 has caused a complete economic shut down as social distancing, stay-at-home orders, and quarantines are now the norm. Many businesses had the foresight to purchase business interruption insurance to provide financial certainty during uncertain times. The question is whether business interruption insurance covers a pandemic such as COVID-19 and the answer depends on the […]
When the Paycheck Protection Program rolled out the morning of April 3, many faith-based nonprofits had legitimate concerns about their eligibility for such loans or the impact of receiving federal financial assistance. We explored those issues in this post and advised faith-based nonprofits that were otherwise interested to apply but watch for the SBA’s promised […]
In light of the unprecedented worldwide outbreak of COVID-19, the City of Seattle has imposed restrictions on commercial and nonprofit evictions in Seattle. This blog post is an FAQ meant to address some of the most pressing questions surrounding these new restrictions on small business and nonprofit evictions in Seattle. City of Seattle Small Business […]
In light of the unprecedented worldwide outbreak of COVID-19, state and local governments have imposed restrictions on residential evictions throughout Washington State. Specifically, Governor Inslee issued a statewide moratorium on residential evictions through at least April 17, 2020, and the City of Seattle has imposed an even more widespread ban on most residential evictions. […]
The Paycheck Protection Program of the CARES Act goes live today (though lenders are expressing concern about preparedness). This post is intended for religious nonprofits that have questions about the strings attached to governmental aid. What rights will they relinquish as a condition of accepting a government-guaranteed, forgivable loan? These concerns are rooted in the […]
The CARES Act allocates $349 billion for forgivable paycheck protection loans for small businesses, 501(c)(3) nonprofits, sole proprietors, self-employed (even gig economy) workers, and others. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has an excellent four-page summary here: Generally limited to employers with less than 500 employees, the maximum loan amount is 2.5 times the borrower’s average monthly payroll cost up to a maximum of $10 million. The loan can be completely forgiven to […]
On March 23, Governor Jay Inslee issued a “Stay Home, Stay Healthy” proclamation. It requires all residents to stay at home except to conduct or participate in essential activities or for employment in essential business services. The proclamation is clear that multi-person gatherings, including spiritual and faith-based activities, are prohibited. But what about churches livestreaming […]
Emergency Paid Sick Leave Act The recently enacted Families First Coronavirus Response Act includes the Emergency Paid Sick Leave Act (Act). Effective as of April 2, 2020, employers that employ less than 500 employees must provide additional paid sick leave to their employees for certain absences related to COVID-19 (C19 Paid Sick Leave). The Act provides full-time employees 80 hours of C19 Paid Sick Leave. Part-time employees have C19 Paid Sick Leave equal to the number of hours […]
