As thousands of small businesses from around the United States await funding through the CARES Act, the U.S. Small Business Administration announced on Thursday that it had run out of funding for the Paycheck Protection Program and Economic Injury Disaster Loan programs.
The PPP is a first-come, first-serve $349 billion program established two weeks ago.
The SBA announced its plight on its website.
“The SBA is currently unable to accept new applications for the Paycheck Protection Program based on available appropriations funding. Similarly, we are unable to enroll new PPP lenders at this time.”
Also, the SBA indicated that they could not host a queue for any potential further funds, stating:
“Once the authorization limit is reached, SBA will not be able to accept any new applications for the Paycheck Protection Program. SBA is unable to maintain a queue for PPP applications.”
Rep. Salud Carbajal was quick to respond, releasing the following statement:
“Congress must immediately appropriate more funding for Small Business Administration loan programs to help small businesses on the Central Coast and across our nation. We also still need to do more for our local governments and health workers who need resources and support as they work on the front lines each day. These priorities go hand-in-hand—we can do both at once,” Rep. Carbajal said.
“This is a pandemic and we cannot waste any more time on partisan politics. In this time of crisis, Congress must come together and continue to support our local businesses, our hospitals, our communities, local governments and our frontline workers. We need action now.”
According to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, negotiations with Democrats continued Thursday, something that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi reiterated.
“Right now we’re in those negotiations. My staff and the staff of (Senate Minority Leader Chuck) Schumer spoke with Secretary Mnuchin yesterday and will do so again today,” Ms. Pelosi said. “We want to support what we did with the (Paycheck Protection Program) but we want to make sure that as it gets more money, many more people get more access to the credit.”
Barring any special session, the next opportunity to approve any new funds for the PPP is April 20.
Santa Barbara County, by the numbers
The Santa Barbara County Public Health Department announced the county’s third death due to COVID-19 complications, with a person over 70 that was previously under hospice care dying in the South County.
In addition, there were 20 new confirmed COVID-19 cases revealed Thursday, running the county’s total to 354.
The outbreak at the Lompoc federal prison continued to be a major factor in new cases, with six more added on Thursday. Lompoc had an additional six in its community, while there were four in Santa Maria, two in Santa Barbara and one apiece in Orcutt and the Montecito/Summerland/Carpinteria area.
For the second consecutive day, a new case was announced for someone between 0-17, the county’s ninth such case. There were eight between 50-69, six between 30-49 and five in the 18-29 group.
Of the 354 cases, 159 are recovering at home, 137 have fully recovered, 39 are in the hospital, with 14 in the intensive care unit.
COVID-19, by the numbers
Here is a look at statewide, nationwide and worldwide updates through Thursday:
- In California, there are now 27,863 confirmed cases, with 973 deaths. Los Angeles County is still top in the state with 10,895 confirmed cases, while there are now eight counties with more than 1,000 cases.
- Santa Barbara County ranks ninth in confirmed cases per 100,000 residents at 79.8. There are 58 counties in California.
- In the United States, there are now 671,331 confirmed cases, with 28,998 deaths and 54,703 that have fully recovered.
- Worldwide, there are 2,158,250 confirmed cases, with 144,243 deaths and 543,999 have fully recovered.
Trump unveils plan to “open America again”
In an about-face from comments made last week, President Donald Trump on Thursday indicated that it would be up to governors to decide when their respective states were ready to begin to lift restrictions due to the coronavirus pandemic.
President Trump also introduced his three-phase plan that would “open America again,” including prerequisite gating criteria for each state, which includes the following:
- Symptoms: Downward trajectory of influenza-like illnesses (ILI) reported within a 14-day period; and downward trajectory of covid-like syndromic cases reported within a 14-day period
- Cases: Downward trajectory of documented cases within a 14-day period or downward trajectory of positive tests as a percent of total tests within a 14-day period (flat or increasing volume of tests)
- Hospitals: Treat all patients without crisis care and robust testing program in place for at-risk healthcare workers, including emerging antibody testing
With this gating criteria, here is a look at Phase 1 (Editor’s note: Vulnerable Individuals are defined as elderly individuals, as well as individuals with serious underlying health conditions, including high blood pressure, chronic lung disease, diabetes, obesity, asthma, and those whose immune system is compromised such as by chemotherapy for cancer and other conditions requiring such therapy.):
PHASE 1
For states and regions that satisfy the gating criteria
- Individuals
• All vulnerable individuals should continue to shelter in place. Members of households with vulnerable residents should be aware that by returning to work or other environments where distancing is not practical, they could carry the virus back home. Precautions should be taken to isolate from vulnerable residents.
• All individuals, when in public (e.g., parks, outdoor recreation areas, shopping areas), should maximize physical distance from others. Social settings of more than 10 people, where appropriate distancing may not be practical, should be avoided unless precautionary measures are observed.
• Avoid socializing in groups of more than 10 people in circumstances that do not readily allow for appropriate physical distancing (e.g., receptions, trade shows)
• Minimize non-essential travel and adhere to CDC guidelines regarding isolation following travel.
- Employers
• Continue to encourage telework, whenever possible and feasible with business operations.
• If possible, return to work in phases.
• Close common areas where personnel are likely to congregate and interact, or enforce strict social distancing protocols.
• Minimize non-essential travel and adhere to CDC guidelines regarding isolation following travel.
• Strongly consider special accommodations for personnel who are members of a vulnerable population.
- Specific types of employers
• Schools and organized youth activities (e.g., daycare, camp) that are currently closed should remain closed.
• Visits to senior living facilities and hospitals should be prohibited. Those who do interact with residents and patients must adhere to strict protocols regarding hygiene.
• Large venues (e.g., sit-down dining, movie theaters, sporting venues, places of worship) can operate under strict physical distancing protocols.
• Elective surgeries can resume, as clinically appropriate, on an outpatient basis at facilities that adhere to CMS guidelines.
• Gyms can open if they adhere to strict physical distancing and sanitation protocols.
• Bars should remain closed.
PHASE 2
For states and regions with no evidence of a rebound and that satisfy the gating criteria a second time.
- Individuals
• All vulnerable individuals should continue to shelter in place. Members of households with vulnerable residents should be aware that by returning to work or other environments where distancing is not practical, they could carry the virus back home. Precautions should be taken to isolate from vulnerable residents.
• All individuals, when in public (e.g., parks, outdoor recreation areas, shopping areas), should maximize physical distance from others. Social settings of more than 50 people, where appropriate distancing may not be practical, should be avoided unless precautionary measures are observed.
• Non-essential travel can resume.
- Employers
• Continue to encourage telework, whenever possible and feasible with business operations.
• Close common areas where personnel are likely to congregate and interact, or enforce moderate social distancing protocols.
• Strongly consider special accommodations for personnel who are members of a vulnerable population.
- Specific types of employers
• Schools and organized youth activities (e.g., daycare, camp) can reopen.
• Visits to senior care facilities and hospitals should be prohibited. Those who do interact with residents and patients must adhere to strict protocols regarding hygiene.
• Large venues (e.g., sit-down dining, movie theaters, sporting venues, places of worship) can operate under moderate physical distancing protocols.
• Elective surgeries can resume, as clinically appropriate, on an outpatient and in-patient basis at facilities that adhere to CMS guidelines.
• Gyms can remain open if they adhere to strict physical distancing and sanitation protocols.
• Bars may operate with diminished standing-room occupancy, where applicable and appropriate.
PHASE 3
For states and regions with no evidence of a rebound and that satisfy the gating criteria a third time.
- Individuals
• Vulnerable individuals can resume public interactions, but should practice physical distancing, minimizing exposure to social settings where distancing may not be practical, unless precautionary measures are observed.
• Low-risk populations should consider minimizing time spent in crowded environments.
- Employers
• Resume unrestricted staffing of worksites.
- Specific types of employers
• Visits to senior care facilities and hospitals can resume. Those who interact with residents and patients must be diligent regarding hygiene.
• Large venues (e.g., sit-down dining, movie theaters, sporting venues, places of worship) can operate under limited physical distancing protocols.
• Gyms can remain open if they adhere to standard sanitation protocols.
• Bars may operate with increased standing room occupancy, where applicable.
City of Santa Barbara has laid off 465 hourly staff members
Much like other cities in Santa Barbara County, the city of Santa Barbara is feeling the effects of the pandemic, receiving just $559,268 in TOT revenue for the month of March, with another $482,061 deferred by 45 hotels. Those payments will come due on June 10.
In comparison, the TOT revenue in March 2019 was $1,438,434.
In related moves, the city has laid off a total of 465 hourly staff members across all departments, with the average wage of $16 per hour. These employees are seasonal and work varied schedules, so no estimated savings are available as of yet.
The city’s proposed budget for the upcoming fiscal year is slated to be presented to the City Council on April 21.
First UCSB summer session will go online
Indicating that it would help faculty prepare properly, UCSB Chancellor Henry Yang announced on Thursday that “all Summer Sessions courses scheduled to begin in June and July (sessions A, C, D and E) will be delivered by remote instruction.”
Dr. Yang also said that the school anticipated that the second Summer Session, slated for August, is likely to also be remote due to ongoing social distancing mandates from the state and county.
“While we know there are still challenges ahead and that we must continue to protect our community and those we love by practicing physical distancing, we are uplifted by hope and the prospect of welcoming everyone back to campus when it is safe to do so,” Dr. Yang said.
UCSB is in the midst of its first-ever remote quarter, with students currently in the spring quarter.
email: nmasuda@newspress.com
