U.S. Department of Commerce Announces Availability of $1.5 Billion in CARES Act Funds to Aid Communities Impacted by the Coronavirus Pandemic
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Thursday, May 7, 2020
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U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross today announced that the Department’s Economic Development Administration (EDA) is now accepting applications from eligible grantees for  Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) supplemental funds (EDA CARES Act Recovery Assistance) intended to help communities prevent, prepare for, and respond to coronavirus.
“President Trump is working tirelessly to make sure Americans stay safe during this crisis and that our economy is loaded to spring back when this global scourge recedes,” said Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross. “EDA CARES Act Recovery Assistance funds will support the long-term recovery of communities across the nation that have been impacted by the coronavirus pandemic.”
“EDA’s CARES Act Recovery Assistance is designed to provide a wide range of financial assistance to communities and regions as they respond to and recover from the impacts of this pandemic,” said Dana Gartzke, Performing the Delegated Duties of the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Economic Development. “We intend to deploy our CARES Act funding as quickly, effectively, and efficiently as possible, and in a manner that meets the needs of our  communities.”

On March 27, 2020, President Donald J. Trump signed the $2 trillion CARES Act into law. The CARES Act provides EDA with $1.5 billion of which $1.467 billion is available for grantmaking. The remaining funds will be transferred to cover salaries and expenses and oversight activities.
The Secretary’s announcement comes as EDA has published an Addendum to its Fiscal Year 2020 Public Works and Economic Adjustment Assistance Notice of Funding Opportunity (FY20 PWEAA NOFO) making the funds available.

Under this announcement, EDA will make CARES Act Recovery Assistance grants under the authority of its Economic Adjustment Assistance (EAA) program, which is intended to be flexible and responsive to the economic development needs and priorities of local and regional stakeholders.
EDA CARES Act Recovery Assistance investments will support a wide range of non-construction and construction activities, including Revolving Loan Funds, in regions across the country experiencing severe economic dislocations brought about by the coronavirus pandemic.
Examples of projects that EDA may fund through its CARES Act Recovery Assistance include economic recovery planning and preparing technical assistance strategies to address economic dislocations caused by the coronavirus pandemic, preparing or updating resiliency plans to respond to future pandemics, implementing entrepreneurial support programs to diversify economies, and constructing public works and facilities that will support economic recovery, including the deployment of broadband for purposes including supporting telehealth and remote learning for job skills.

From: US Chamber of Commerce website
How to Access Stimulus Funding for Your Small Business
In March Congress passed the $2 trillion-dollar Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, a stimulus package that includes several programs aimed at small businesses impacted by the COVID-19 outbreak.

Demand for the popular Paycheck Protection Program (PPP)< https://www.sba.gov/funding-programs/loans/coronavirus-relief-options/ >paycheck-protection-program has been massive since the application window opened on April 3. The original $349 billion allocated for the PPP ran out in mid-April. On April 24, Congress passed legislation to replenish funds for small business loan programs.

What’s New: The newest legislation will allocate another $310 billion to the PPP and an additional $10 billion to the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) grant program. The bill also includes $60 billion for other economic disaster loans for small businesses, with half of that amount reserved for community financial institutions and smaller banks and credit unions.

Wondering what new programs you should apply for? Unsure how to apply? Read on.

What Loan Program Should I Use?
Although the PPP has been the most popular loan program for small businesses, it may not be the right solution for every business. Be sure to check out other loan options from the Small Business Administration (SBA), other federal loan programs, and organizations and companies providing grant money.
Here are some new federal programs aimed at helping businesses impacted by coronavirus:

Paycheck Protection Program (PPP): This has been the most popular option for small business owners. It’s a loan, that can become a grant if certain requirements are met. It was designed to help businesses keep their employees on the payroll.

Details: Interest is to be no more than 4% and the amount applicants receive is based on a calculation of average monthly payroll cost multiplied by 2.5, to cover two and a half months of payroll (including healthcare costs and paid sick leave) with a maximum loan amount of $10 million.
Who is Eligible? Small businesses, 501 c3 nonprofits with fewer than 500 employees, certain veterans organizations, sole proprietors, the self-employed, individual contractors.

Ready to Apply? If you are a small business owner this step-by-step guide < https://www.uschamber.com/report/guide-small-business-covid-19-emergency-loans > will walk you through the process. If you are an independent contractor or sole proprietor use this guide < https://www.uschamber.com/report/independent-contractors-guide-cares-act-relief >. If you are a nonprofit use this guide <https://www.uschamberfoundation.org/reports/coronavirus-emergency-loans-guide-and-checklist-small-businesses-and-nonprofits >.
Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL): The CARES Act expanded the SBA’s long-standing EIDL program, which assists businesses, renters, and homeowners in regions affected by declared disasters.
Details: The SBA will provide initial EIDL loan disbursements of up to $15,000, in addition to a grant of up to $10,000 that does not have to be paid back if used on certain expenses. However, if a small business owner gets both an EIDL grant and a PPP loan, the forgiveness of the PPP loan would be reduced by the amount of the grant.
Who is Eligible? Businesses with fewer than 500 employees; cooperatives, ESOPs, and tribal small businesses with fewer than 500 employees; sole proprietors; independent contractors; and most private nonprofits.
Ready to Apply? If you are a small business owner contact the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and will walk you through the process. If you are an independent contractor or sole proprietor  < https://www.uschamber.com/report/independent-contractors-guide-cares-act-relief >.
Other New Federal Programs: In addition to loan programs, the CARES Act also expanded paid sick and family leave requirements and enacted a tax credit to provide further assistance to businesses.
Temporary Paid Leave and Family Medical Leave: The Families First Coronavirus Response Act created new temporary paid sick leave and paid Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) programs that are 100% reimbursable by the federal government. Check requirements, eligibility, and exemptions using this guide < https://www.uschamber.com/report/guide-coronavirus-paid-leave-programs >.
Employee Retention Tax Credit: A 50% tax credit for the first $10,000 of compensation, including the employer portion of health benefits, for each eligible employee. Check eligibility and calculate your tax credit using this guide < https://www.uschamber.com/report/guide-the-employee-retention-tax-credit >.

By: US Chamber of Commerce

Will Coronavirus Drive Permanent Shifts in Shopping Behavior?
More online grocery orders, more buying in bulk, and more virtual store experiences are some of the likely changes.
By: Joan Verdon, Contributor

Grocery delivery platforms like Instacart are seeing dramatic spikes in sales from customers, many of whom are trying online grocery shopping for the first time. — Instacart
Retailers will be feeling the impact of the coronavirus crisis long after the quarantines, store closings, and social distancing rules have ended.
It is likely to create permanent shifts in consumer behavior that retailers need to start preparing for, experts told CO—.
Americans will change how and where they shop, and retailers will change how they interact with customers and how they plan for future pandemics. Here’s what retailers can expect:

An accelerated shift from stores to e-commerce, particularly in grocery
E-commerce sales, in general, are expected to surge, as shoppers stay home during the crisis, but grocery sales are where the biggest long-term impact could occur.
Grocery delivery platforms such as Instacart, Walmart Grocery, and Shipt are seeing dramatic spikes in sales, much of which likely is driven by new customers who are trying online grocery shopping for the first time, Keith Anderson, senior vice president of strategy and insights for e-commerce performance analytics company Profitero, told CO—.
“It could be a new population is being incentivized or encouraged to try shopping this way,” Anderson said.
Those first-time online grocery buyers have a high probability of converting to that way of shopping permanently.
“If you go to the trouble of loading your 20 or 30 items on any online grocery site, the likelihood that in a couple of weeks you’ll come back and order most of those things again is pretty high,” Anderson said. “So, when you look at the shift in consumption for that household, it really moves a lot of volume from brick and mortar to ordering online.”
“This really should be a strong signal for many to be better prepared should something similar happen [in the future].”
Ronen Lazar, CEO, and co-founder of INTURN

Coronavirus is introducing a new generation of shoppers to stock-up and buy-in-bulk shopping
Before, Gen Z and millennial consumers, who came of age with online shopping, were accustomed to getting anything they needed delivering to their homes within a day or two. They never needed to stock up in advance because they could get everything they needed, on-demand.
Now, even Amazon is telling them it could take two weeks or more to get a roll of toilet paper delivered, and, like their older generational cohorts who recall the brick-and-mortar-only shopping era, they are spending entire days searching sold out stores for it and other supplies.
Warehouse club Costco has already seen a coronavirus-related surge. Sales were up 13.8% year-over-year in February, the company reported in its second-quarter earnings release.

Retailers also will move away from on-demand buying
A surge in consumer demand isn’t the only reason shoppers are seeing so many empty shelves in the toilet paper and disinfectant aisles. Retailers, like millennial shoppers, have also grown accustomed to getting inventory they need on-demand from manufacturers.
Retailers have moved to keep far less inventory in stock, and manufacturers, who also are afraid of ending up with too much excess inventory on hand, are producing goods on more of an as-needed schedule, Ronen Lazar, CEO, and co-founder of INTURN, told CO—. INTURN is a New York-based enterprise solutions platform that lets manufacturers track and sell excess inventory.
The current crisis, Lazar said, highlights the need for retailers and manufacturers to improve their digital supply chain operations to better balance the desire for lean inventories with the need to be ready for surges in demand. “This really should be a strong signal for many to be better prepared should something similar happen [in the future],” he said.

Retailers will rethink in-store experiences
Joe Pine, author of “The Experience Economy,” told CO— he believes consumers will return to stores, malls, and social gathering places after the crisis passes. However, the crisis will make retailers look for more ways to deliver virtual experiences, and to interact with shoppers online, rather than focusing primarily on drawing crowds to their stores.
He expects stores will invest in virtual experiences like in-store demonstrations that can be viewed online or virtual salespeople who can engage with shoppers.
“Even if it dies down more quickly than expected, they’re going to recognize we have to be ready for the next thing,” Pine said.