Assemblymember Sabrina Cervantes, who chairs the Assembly Committee on Jobs, asked committee staff to develop and maintain a webpage to provide small businesses, entrepreneurs, workers, and economic and workforce development professionals with the resources they may need in responding to COVID-19 challenges.
Federal and State Government Resources
- California's main launch pages for COVID-19 updates: California Coronavirus Web Page and California Dept of Public Health (both webpages translate to over 70 languages)
- State issued COVID-19 Guidance Documents, including guidance on public gatherings, entertainment venues, bars, restaurants, and nursing homes: Guidance Documents
- Governor Newsom's Executive Orders regarding the state's response to COVID-19: Executive Orders
- Federal government's main launch page for COVID-19 updated: Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) | CDC
- Federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Federal CDC
- Federal Emergency Management Agency: FEMA
Guidelines for Re-Opening
- Updated Industry Guidance: https://covid19.ca.gov/industry-guidance/
- Options for Showing Proof of Vaccines: Vaccine Record Guidelines & Standards (ca.gov)
- Most Current Data: COVID Data and Tools (ca.gov)
Resources to Help Businesses Re-Open and Recover
- California has launched a new Small Business and Employer page for the main state COVID-19-disaster page. On this page, there are links to a wide range of resources including information on accessing capital and updates on tax requirements.
- The California Office of the Small Business Advocate is available to help businesses identify resources and obtain answers to key questions (to the extent known). Their new website includes information on grants, loans, government contracting, permitting, and other resources to assist small businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond.
- Need help identifying and accessing resources and want to talk with someone directly? The state and federal government support over 90 local technical assistance centers where small businesses and nonprofit organizations can access free one-on-one counseling, workshops, and up-to-date information on resources available. Checkout this California TA Providers Guide to connect to over 70 state- and federally-funded business assistance centers.
- California Small Business Development Centers have a resource page, which includes both state and federal information for small businesses: https://www.californiasbdc.org/covid19
- There is also a California Resource Guide, which include detailed information about federal programs serving California, including the SBA Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program and the Paycheck Protection Program.
- GO-Biz is maintaining a COVID-19 resource webpage with links to the IBank, Labor and Workforce Agency, Franchise Tax Board, and Department of Tax and Fee Management: https://business.ca.gov/coronavirus-2019
- USDA Rural Development has launched a COVID-19 resource page, provides a broad range of resources from affordable housing, business development, to utilities. This document summarizes USDA Rural Development program changes to help rural businesses during the pandemic.
- The US Small Business Administration has a resource page, which includes information about small business funding options. Small businesses interested in federal contracting will find SBA resources accessed through this webpage.
- COVID-19 Medical Supply Donations: Individuals, businesses, and nonprofits who are interested in producing medical supplies can connect with the state through this site: https://covid19supplies.ca.gov/
Special State and Federal Tax Filing and Other Provisions
- State Income Taxes: The Franchise Tax Board’s COVID-19 webpage has important information about filing state income taxes, including a FAQ, and can be found at: https://www.ftb.ca.gov/about-ftb/newsroom/covid-19/index.html
- Federal Income Taxes: The IRS has established a special section to assist taxpayers, businesses, and individuals impacted by coronavirus. Updates will be shared on the their webpage: Coronavirus Tax Relief and Economic Impact Payments | Internal Revenue Service (irs.gov).
- Federal Coronavirus tax relief for businesses and nonprofits.
- Advanced Childcare Tax Credit webpage: Advance Child Tax Credit Payments in 2021 | Internal Revenue Service (irs.gov)
- Net Operating Loss:
- IRS guidance for taxpayers who are interested in filing net operating losses under the special CARES Act provisions: https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-drop/rp-20-24.pdf
- FAQ on the CARES Act net operating loss provisions.
- IRS Guidance on the treatment of PPP loan proceeds and loan forgiveness, Employee Retention Credit, Paid Leave Credit, and business expenses on federal tax returns.
- State Sales and Use Tax: The California Department of Tax and Fees maintains a list of COVID-19 relief provisions. COVID-19 State of Emergency (ca.gov)
- Property Taxes: Property taxes are paid through the county in which the business owns land. Individual counties have adopted their own COVID-19 property tax measures.
Accessing Capital - Public and Private Financial Resources
State Programs: California’s Small Business Finance Center provides small businesses access to a range of financial products, including the Small Business Loan Guarantee (guarantee through private lenders) and the Farm Loans (direct loans to businesses). California also offers a loss reserve-style credit enhancement program, the California Capital Access Program, to encourage private lenders to provide small business loans. In November 2020, the state launched the California Rebuilding Fund, which offers blended loans through a statewide network of community development financial institutions.
Federal Programs: The federal Small Business Administration activated its Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program (EIDL) which offers low interest loans with a deferred initial repayment date of next year, as well as a range of other disaster and non-disaster loan programs. The EIDL program is closed to new applications but is still accepting requests for increases, reconsideration, and appeals. The Paycheck Protection Program is closed to new applications, but the program is still processing applications for loan forgiveness.
Businesses located in rural communities may also be assisted by USDA Rural Development. For a searchable database of programs available in California, use this link: California | Rural Development (usda.gov)
Local and Other Financial Resources: The California State Treasurer is tracking small business financial resources offered by local governments, foundations and other nonprofits, and corporations on this Google Document. It is updated regularly.
Employer Guidance from California Labor Agency and Related Departments
- Guidance on how to protect workers from exposure to COVID-19: https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CID/DCDC/Pages/COVID-19/EmployeesAndWorkplaces.aspx
- Guidance on reduced work hours, potential closures, and layoffs: https://www.edd.ca.gov/about_edd/coronavirus-2019.ht
- Background on the California Work Share Program: https://www.edd.ca.gov/Unemployment/Work_Sharing_Program.htm
- Flow Chart on the California Work Share Program: https://cdn2.hubspot.net/hubfs/103829/CA-EDD%20Workshare%20Information.pdf
Employer Guidance from the Federal Government
- The Whitehouse released new COVID-19 guidance for employers. New Guidance on COVID-19 Workplace Safety for Federal Contractors | The White House
- The federal Center for Disease Control and Prevention provides guidance for businesses and employers here.
- The US Department of Labor is providing guidance and resource updates for employers here.
Resources Available to Employees
- Labor and Workforce Development Agency's primary website for COVID-19, including information on support services for workers and interim guidelines for protecting workers: https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CID/DCDC/Pages/COVID-19/EmployeesAndWorkplaces.aspx
- Worker benefits chart for employees who are impacted by COVID-19, including unemployment, disability, and paid sick leave: https://saferatwork.covid19.ca.gov/covid19-worker-benefits-and-leave-navigator/