Small Businesses Face Hard Choices
Keep workers on, or lay them off? The $349 billion Paycheck Protection Program is intended to help small employers weather the pandemic. But whether it does isn’t clear. Some economists are warning that program loans in the stimulus package, known as the CARES Act, may not be a great fit for all businesses — even if they can get them.
Payroll Protection Loan
Funds are running low. The SBA had approved more than 661,000 applications from about 4,300 institutions as of 3:30 p.m. Friday. Those loans totaled more than $168 billion. There was never much doubt that the program’s initial funding levels were not enough to meet the scale of demand from borrowers, or that Congress would eventually approve more; the only question was how quickly that would happen.
Restaurants Tell Congress
Programs not providing desperately needed relief. The National Restaurant Association told Congressional leaders that COVID-19 relief funds were envisioned as a vital tool to help restaurants bridge the crisis, but there are increasing warning signs that more relief will be needed to help restaurants and employees. The Association praised Congressional leaders who have pledged to provide PPP funds beyond the $349 billion authorized by Congress and called for expanding the program to the maximum possible level. It noted that operational and staffing issues unique to the industry have hindered restaurants’ access to PPP funding.
Did You Know?
IRS extends 1031 exchange deadlines due to Covid-19. The IRS has given 1031 investors some breathing room, extending deadlines for like-kind exchange deals during the corona virus outbreak. In a guidance notice issued April 9, 2020, the IRS said it would provide “additional time to perform certain time-sensitive actions” that includes granting deadline relief for both 1031 like-kind exchanges and opportunity zone investments that are already underway.
Employee Tip
Americans could start receiving relief money next week. Checks to arrive by April 15 for millions of taxpayers. A new portal where some can supply direct deposit information could be out next week. Millions of taxpayers will begin receiving the extra money to pay rent, groceries and other bills next week, or possibly as early as Thursday or Friday.
Restaurant Industry Daily Alerts
A voice for our industry. If you are finding these daily bulletins informative and beneficial during this pandemic, we kindly ask that you write a brief Google review providing us with a vote of your appreciation. Simply Google “Bielat Santore & Company” and when the company name appears click the button on the right to write your review.
You don’t need a Google mail account to leave your review. However, you do need some kind of Google account. So, that could be YouTube, Google Play, Google Drive, Gmail, or Google Maps, which is quite easy to use. Upon typing “Bielat Santore & Company” – Allenhurst, NJ into Google Maps, scroll down and you will see an option to leave a review. Hopefully this will help all who have wanted to write a review but did not have a Gmail account.
Thank you and remember all of the “Restaurant Industry Alerts” can be found at www.123bsc.com/news/. We intend to continue to keep you informed as we all look for an end to this crisis.
