COVID-19 Update October 9, 2020

Today, the US Small Business Administration (SBA) in consultation with the Treasury Department released a new, simpler PPP loan application for any loans under $50k. The official application itself is just two pages accompanied by the interim final rules, and the official instructions are three pages.

Since we usually cover news from our home state of Louisiana, here is the Mississippi State Department of Health’s (MSDH’s) COVID-19 update on cases and restrictions. If anyone needs updates on any other states, please let us know. Our sources do provide information for every state, so we are happy to pass this along.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has published a fair amount of guidance to assist employers in their efforts to provide a safe work environment for their workers during the current COVID‐19 pandemic. We helped put together this thorough and informative compliance bulletin that goes into further detail about OSHA’s information. Please don’t hesitate to reach out if you have questions about this or any other COVID-19 related workplace guidelines.

The House Education and Labor Committee recently passed legislation reauthorizing the National Apprenticeship Act (NAA), which would invest billions of dollars in the work-based learning model, codify standards, and expand apprenticeship to new communities and industries. The legislation authorizes $3.5 billion in new spending over the next five years toward registered apprenticeships managed by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) and the states. According to the most recent data, only 0.3 percent of the overall U.S. workforce has participated in an apprenticeship with historic underrepresentation from the minority community. If executed successfully, these types of programs could improve our economy and benefit workers by streamlining accountability from educational institutions.

Lastly, it may sound like a broken record at this point, but once again we ask that you keep the people of Louisiana and Texas in Hurricane Delta’s (no relation) path in your thoughts and prayers as they battle yet another storm.