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HomeMy WebLinkAbout05/11/20 - Updates COVID-19 St. Lucie County Business AssistanceStephanie Bush From:Economic Development Council of St. Lucie County <jdubey@YourEDC.com> Sent:Monday, May 11, 2020 7:46 AM To:Stephanie Bush Subject:St. Lucie County Business Assistance #31 SECURITY WARNING: This email originated from outside the County systems. Please show caution when clicking links or opening attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe. Questions, call Customer Service at 772-462-2146. View this email in your browser 1 Dear Investors and Partners: As we seek new and innovative solutions to serve our existing targeted industry businesses in COVID-19 response and recovery efforts, we will continue to provide you with business assistance updates and we hope that you find the information valuable. In much awaited anticipation, Governor DeSantis announced the re-opening of barbershops, hair salons and nail salons beginning Monday, May 11th as part of the Phase One "Safe. Smart. Step-by-Step Plan". Click here for Governor DeSantis' announcement Tweet: 114https://twitter.com/GovRonDeSantis/status/1258834765903429633?s=20 Last week, we were busy exploring two new initiatives that we are excited to share with you...  TALKING POINTS "VIRTUAL HAPPY HOUR" Our new "Talking Points Virtual Happy Hour" is slated as a virtual connection solely for targeted businesses in the manufacturing, marine, aviation, warehouse/distribution, professional services, agriculture and life sciences industries. These small group virtual connections will be focused on topics of interest to you as we navigate through and post COVID-19 with peer-to-peer communications and subject matter experts to identify best practices and solutions in the current challenging business environment. Please kindly take one minute to complete our 3-point survey for us to best meet your needs in offering value-added "Talking Points" programming: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/VIRTUALHH2020 2  "READY TO WORK" BOOT CAMP Our second initiative is a pivot to our annual "Ready to Work Boot Camp" which has been a successful partnership with the St. Lucie County School District, the Treasure Coast Manufacturers Association and local industry partners. This initiative is focused on identifying graduating high school seniors who are remaining local and, in lieu of college, are seeking a career pathway here in their community. This year we are seeking to host a "Virtual Boot Camp" offering the same program structure in a virtual format. The program will provide participants with virtual work readiness learning, industry exploration through virtual facility tours and company representation Q&A, and conclude the week- long program with a virtual career fair connecting employers and participants from the program with career pathway employment opportunities. If you are interested in participating as an industry partner providing a virtual facility tour, virtual discussion on your industry skill sets and available employment opportunities, and participation in the virtual job fair with the opportunity for at least one new hire, please email jmarasa@youredc.com. We would love your participation and continue our initiatives in building our talent pipeline! Want to learn more? Check out Jon Shainman and WPTV5 media coverage from last season's June 2019 program: https://www.wptv.com/news/region-st-lucie-county/keeping-new-jobseekers-close-to-home-in-st-lucie-county WORKFORCE INITIATIVES  NOW HIRING! CONGRESSMAN MAST "VIRTUAL JOB FAIR" Let's Get Back to Work is the theme for a new online platform to connect employers with job seekers as Congressman Brian Mast rolls out his new "Virtual Job Fair" web portal. If you have any available employment opportunities, please visit https://mast.house.gov/JOBFAIR or email bjm@mail.house.gov and provide information on your talent needs. ACCESS TO CAPITAL UPDATES  ECONOMIC INJURY DISASTER LOAN AND ADVANCED GRANT PROGRAM (EIDL and EIDL Advanced) The SBA Economic Injury Disaster Loan and Advanced Grant program is now only accepting applications from AGRICULTURAL BUSINESSES. Apply online at the SBA at: https://covid19relief.sba.gov/#/ 3 For more information on the EIDL and EIDL Advanced loan program, please visit: https://www.sba.gov/funding-programs/loans/coronavirus-relief-options/economic-injury-disaster-loan-emergency-advance  PAYROLL PROTECTION PROGRAM (PPP) Applications are still being accepted by the Small Business Administration (SBA) for the PPP program. If you are seeking a local lender, please visit the SBA Lender Portal at: https://www.sba.gov/paycheckprotection/find?address=34986&pageNumber=1 For alternative Fintech lenders, please visit: https://medium.com/@journey_finance/list-of-fintech-companies-helping-with-sba-ppp-paycheck-protection-program-ec14f80f60ec  PAYROLL PROTECTION PROGRAM REPORTING ASSISTANCE The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) has prepared some great information for businesses seeking information on PPP reporting preparation: AICPA PPP reporting Loan Forgiveness Infographic: https://www.aicpa.org/content/dam/aicpa/interestareas/privatecompaniespracticesection/qualityservicesdelivery/ussba/downloadabledocuments/coronavirus- ppp-loan-forgiveness-calculation-steps.pdf AICPA Loan Calculator Reporting Spreadsheets: Click here to view and download the loan calculator for your business: (please scroll halfway down to the "Calculator" section) https://www.aicpa.org/interestareas/privatecompaniespracticesection/qualityservicesdelivery/sba-paycheck-protection-program-resources-for-cpas.html EMPLOYER TAX CREDITS  EMPLOYEE RETENTION CREDIT 4 Are you familiar with the Employee Retention Credit? If your business has been impacted by COVID-19 and you have retained your employees, but did not apply or receive loans or grants through the CARES program or other small business loans, the Employee Retention Credit may assist you with a refundable payroll tax deposit. Learn more at: https://www.irs.gov/coronavirus/employee-retention-credit?fbclid=IwAR1Ea4U1KkYqEiVhMuy8V-GfcOdmTQeX33IWtlHbUks-khNDcq-O83sZ5A4 The Bureau of Labor Statistics announced that nationwide unemployment is at 14.7% - by far the most sudden and largest decline since the government began tracking data in 1939. As many of our residents continue to await unemployment compensation to assist them during the COVID-19 crisis, please note the following information for local resources to assist with food and financial insecurity if you know someone in need:  Mustard Seed Ministries - Food and Financial Assistance https://www.mustardseedslc.org/  Treasure Coast Food Bank - Emergency Food Assistance https://stophunger.org/cvprep/covid19-emergency-food-assistance-registration/  St. Lucie Public Schools - Free meals for Children https://www.stlucie.k12.fl.us/blog/free-meals-for-children-starting-on-march-23rd/  211 - Financial and Mental Health Services https://211palmbeach.org/emergency-stlucie For information at your fingertips regarding federal, state and local assistance, please visit our Business Assistance Web Portal at https://youredc.com/grow_your_business/wr for updated information on programs and services to assist your business and employees. If you have any questions or need any assistance for your business or employees, please do not hesitate to contact us. To ensure that you receive our emails, please mark us as a "safe sender" so that you can continue to receive important information relating to COVID-19 business assistance. 5 Copyright © 2020 Economic Development Council of St. Lucie County, Inc., All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because your company supports the Economic Development Council of St. Lucie County. Our mailing address is: Economic Development Council of St. Lucie County, Inc. PO Box 881358 Port St. Lucie, FL 34988 Add us to your address book Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list. Please Note: Florida has very broad public records laws. Most written communications to or from County officials regarding County business are public records available to the public and media upon request. 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