Friends:

On May 1, 2020, Gov. Jay Inslee and the state Department of Health announced an extension of the Stay Home order through May 31. The governor also revealed his four-phase plan for reopening involving group gatherings, travel, shopping and recreation. The focus is on reopening safely and protecting the health of workers and the general public.

This is a phased, data-driven approach. All reopening activities depend on continued success in slowing the spread of COVID-19. The governor will be looking at various factors to determine our next steps, including health care system readiness, testing capacity, ability to do contact tracing investigations, and ability to protect high-risk populations.

Every phase will still require physical distancing and appropriate health precautions including the use of personal protective equipment (PPE) in a number of industries.

Washington has done a great job so far of limiting the spread of COVID-19, but the pandemic is not over. The only certain way to stop the spread and keep ourselves and our loved ones safe and healthy is to continue to stay home.

We need wide testing capacity and contact tracing in place before we can ease up on the Stay Home restrictions. The governor recently unveiled a plan to ramp up these efforts, and we now have nearly 1,400 contract tracers in place.

What Washingtonians are doing is working, and we need everyone to keep up the good work, be consistent, and stay home. These responsible practices are saving lives.

This pandemic is difficult on everyone. But steady science-based approach is the right way to reopen our economy and social activities.

Help for small businesses

Here is some information to help small businesses get assistance to survive the economic slowdown.

Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) funds still available

Congress approved another round of PPP loan funding to help small businesses retain their employees during the public health crisis. The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) will forgive loans if all employees are kept on the payroll for eight weeks and the money is used for payroll, rent, mortgage interest, or utilities.

In contrast to the first round of PPP funds that were exhausted quickly, there’s still over $100 million available in this new round of funding.

Click here for more information about the PPP loan program.

Economic Injury Disaster Loans

The SBA recently announced that Economic Injury Disaster Loans will now be available for agricultural businesses. Small business owners and agricultural businesses can apply for an advance of up to $10,000. This advance is designed to provide economic relief to businesses that are currently experiencing a temporary loss of revenue and the advance does not have to be repaid.

Safe Start plans and guidance for reopening

Governor Inslee recently announced his plan to begin allowing certain sectors of the economy and social activities to reopen in phases. It’s important for each business to understand when they’ll be able to safely reopen, and how to protect themselves, their employees, and their customers when they do reopen.

For example certain construction projects were allowed to resume a few weeks ago as long as new safety precautions are followed. Similarly, outdoor activities like fishing and golf have resumed, but also with new safety precautions in place.

Please refer to this FAQ page for answers to questions about reopening, and reach out to my office if you need further assistance.

I’ll keep you posted as I learn more about progress on reopening the state. As always, coronavirus.wa.gov is a great consolidated website with a lot of helpful information. The Business & Workers page is continuously updated with new information and can help answer questions you may have.

Please contact me if you have any questions or need assistance during this crisis, and stay tuned for future messages as new resources become available.

 

 

 

Jesse Salomon
State Senator
32nd Legislative District