COVID-19 Resources

COVID-19 Economic Recovery Small Business Program

Overview

In response to COVID-19 (Coronavirus), the Floresville Economic Development Corporation (FEDC) authorized the COVID-19 Economic Recovery Small Business Program authorized under Chapter 380 of the Texas Local Government Code to help reduce the resulting economic strain on local businesses. On March 19, the Floresville City Council declared a local state of disaster. As a result, the pandemic caused closures and limitations on local businesses in Floresville. The Floresville Economic Development Corporation researched ways to assist businesses during their time of need. On April 30, the FEDC approved Funding the COVID-19 Economic Recovery Small Business Program.

Phase 1

On May 11, 2020, the FEDC affirmed the committed funds to the program. The contributions by the Floresville Economic Development Corporation amounted to $60,000. Deadline to submit Phase 1 applications was May 29, 2020, 5:00 p.m. Awards were announced during the week of June 1, 2020.

Phase 2

On November 10, 2020, the FEDC approved commitment of additional funds to the program. The amount will be 25 percent of the CARES Act funds received by the City of Floresville. Deadline to submit your application ended at December 10, 2020, 5:00 p.m. PLEASE NOTE: PHASE 1 APPLICANTS WILL NOT NEED TO REAPPLY. Awards will be announced when the funds become available from the State of Texas.

The COVID-19 FEDC Committee

The committee is composed of the Board of Directors for the Floresville Economic Development Corporation.

Eligibility & Qualifications

To keep businesses running through a time of social distancing, the COVID-19 FEDC Committee developed this program to assist small Floresville businesses that are independently owned and operated with a minimum of 1 and a maximum of 25 employees. Eligible businesses may include retail (storefront), food and beverage, auto parts sales, education training, health/wellness and small manufacturing businesses. National chains, financial institutions, RV parks, apartment complexes, home-based businesses, permanently closed businesses and non-profit organizations are not eligible for the grant. The applicant must provide a copy of a W-9. (If necessary, you may download and complete a new W-9 form here.) The grant will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis. All applications will be time stamped upon receipt of the completed application. Qualified applicants are eligible for grants up to $2,000. The FEDC committee will issue a certificate to the Business outlining the award amount given.

Small businesses wishing to apply for the grant must meet the following criteria:

• Physical and publicly accessible location within the city limits of Floresville (no home-based businesses).
• Experienced or projected a decline in revenue and/or employment starting April 1, 2020 and ending at which time the government has allowed citizens to return to normal activity.
• In good standing with the City of Floresville regarding licensing and permits.
• Engaged in activities that are legal under city and state law.

Eligible expenses allowed under the COVID-19 Economic Recovery Small Business Program include:

• Rent/Mortgage
• Employee support (salaries, insurance, paid leave, etc.)
• Utilities (electricity, phone, internet, etc.)
• Purchase of supplies to offer alternative business access (curbside pickup, delivery, shipping)
• Purchase of COVID-19 supplies for business/customer protection/cleaning
• Additional expenses as a result of increased cost form suppliers or alternate suppliers
• Other business needs as approved by the COVID-19 FEDC Committee

Non-Qualifying Business: Businesses that do not qualify for this program are considered essential businesses and are the following:

• Grocery stores, big box stores, farmer’s and food markets, national chain eateries
• Liquor, wine and beer stores
• Construction and real estate development and sales
• New or used automotive sales
• Banks, lending and financial institutions
• Daycares
• Gas stations and convenience stores
• Non-profit entities, organizations or associations, 501c3
• Medical and health providers and related service companies and vendors
• Auto mechanics and auto repair shops
• Plumbers, HVAC technicians and electricians

CARES Act

On March 27, the federal CARES Act was signed into law, providing over $2.2 trillion in federal stimulus spending to aid the U.S. economy.

Expanded Unemployment Insurance, Tax Rebates, and Business Tax Provisions for Individuals

• The CARES Act created a temporary Pandemic Unemployment Assistance Program.
• All U.S. residents with adjusted gross income up to $75,000 ($150,000 married), who are not a dependent of another taxpayer and have a work-eligible social security number, are eligible for the full $1,200 ($2,400 married) check, plus an additional $500 per child. For example, a family of 4 could receive up to $3,400.
  
• Direct cash assistance
  • $1,200 direct cash payments for individuals (i.e. $2,400 for a married couple) who earn up to $75,000 per year.
    • The amount of the cash assistance scales down for individuals earning more than $75,000, and phases out completely at $99,000.
    • Individuals or couples get an additional $500 paid per child.
    • The $1,200 benefit does not count as taxable income.
    • People filing as “head of household” on their taxes will receive the benefit if they earn $112,500 or less.
  • The IRS will use a taxpayer’s adjusted gross income (gross income, minus deductions) from their 2018 return or their 2019 return (current tax year) to determine the size of the check.

• Enhanced unemployment insurance benefits
  • CARES added thirteen more weeks of UI benefits, and a $600 weekly enhancement of benefit for four months.
  • The UI funding is being released to state agencies for administration. In Texas, the agency is the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC).
  • The “work search” requirement and “waiting week” have been waived, but it can still take two weeks for a person to receive their benefits at this time. The use of direct deposit is highly recommended.
• Contract/freelance/gig economy/part-time workers will be eligible for unemployment insurance benefits for the first time.

Large employers (more than 500 employees): Additional Market Loan Program (Coronavirus Economic Stabilization Act of 2020)

While the Paycheck Protection Program summarized above is the primary loan program for small businesses with less than 500 employees, the Coronavirus Economic Stabilization Act of 2020 under the CARES Act would provide the largest potential impact with up to $454 billion available to provide liquidity to covered businesses, including in the hospitality sector (an additional $46 billion are earmarked for specific industries).  The program provides $454 billion in financing to banks and other lenders that make direct loans or guarantees to certain eligible businesses on market terms.

If your businesses was forced to close by state or local government: 50% Employee Retention Tax Credit (ERTC)

The CARES Act provides eligible employers with a refundable payroll tax credit equal to 50% of certain “qualified wages” (including certain health plan expenses) paid to its employees beginning March 13, 2020 through December 31, 2020, if the employer is engaged in an active trade or business in 2020, and the wages are paid while the operation of that trade or business is fully or partially suspended due to a governmental order related to COVID-19; or, during the period beginning in the first quarter in which gross receipts for that trade or business are less than 50% of gross receipts for the same calendar quarter of 2019 and ending at the end of the first subsequent quarter in which gross receipts are more than 80% for the same calendar quarter of 2019.

• The credit is equal to 50 percent of qualified wages (including health expenses) paid to an employee after March 12, 2020 in each calendar quarter, up to a total of $10,000 per employee for all quarters.
• The credit is taken against employment taxes, with any excess refunded to the employer.
• For employers with 100 or fewer employees (measured by average employment in 2019), the credit applies if the employer had to fully or partially suspend operations due to an order from a governmental authority, or had a decline in revenue for any calendar quarter in 2020 of 50% compared to the same quarter in 2019.
• For employers with over 100 employees, the same conditions apply, but the credit applies only to wages paid to employees who are on the payroll but not working.
• The credit covers qualified wages paid after March 12, 2020 to December 31, 2020. The credit expires when (1) the full $10,000 per employee maximum is reached, or (2) when revenue for a quarter in 2020 is above 80% of gross receipts for the same quarter in 2019.

Other Tax Provisions

Payroll Tax Payment Extensions – The CARES Act will postpone the deadline for payment of the employer portion of the 6.2% employer share of the Social Security tax (but not the 1.45% employer share of the Medicare tax) from the date of the bill’s enactment through the end of 2020.  The deferred amounts would be payable over the following two years, with 50% payable by December 31, 2021 and the remaining 50% by December 31, 2022.

• Delay of estimated tax payments for corporations until October 15, 2020.
• Defers Payroll Tax payment; half paid on Dec 31, 2021 and other half on Dec 31, 2022.
• 5-year carryback for Net Operating Losses (Includes special treatment for REITS)
• Increases Section 163j business expensing from 30% limitation to 50% of taxable income for 2019 and 2020.

Forgivable loans: The Paycheck Protection Program (PPP)

The PPP is perhaps the most valuable program in the CARES Act for businesses with fewer than 500 employees. This SBA loan provides assistance to businesses affected by the COVID-19 crisis to help keep employees working. If the business meets the necessary conditions of the loan, a portion of it will be forgivable. Here are the basics of what you need to know about the PPP.

Loan periods:  

PPP loans can be made between February 15, 2020, and June 30, 2020. For PPP loan forgiveness purposes, the “covered period” is the eight-week period beginning on the date of the loan.

Loan eligibility:  

A hotel business must have less than 500 employees and have been operating on February 15, 2020. In addition to a corporation, the “business” can also be a sole proprietor or a self-employed individual to be eligible for a PPP loan.

Loan size, term, rate, and where to get a loan:

The maximum loan size is equal to 250 percent of the hotel’s average monthly payroll costs during the February 15, 2019 – June 30, 2019 time period.  If you were not in business during that time, the maximum loan is equal to 250 percent of your average monthly payroll costs between January 1, 2020 and February 29, 2020.

The absolute cap is $10 million per loan.

The loan will mature within 10 years of issue.

The interest rate for a PPP loan will not exceed 4 percent.

Lenders include banks and credit unions, so businesses do not have to deal exclusively with the SBA if they would prefer to use a private party broker.

Loan forgiveness.

The best benefit of a PPP loan is that a portion of the loan may be forgivable within a year from the loan date.

The amount of forgiveness on a covered loan is equal to the sum of the following payroll costs incurred during the covered 8-week period (8 weeks starting from the loan date) compared to the previous year’s time period, proportionate to maintaining employees and wages (excluding compensation over $100,000 per employee).  These costs include payroll costs, plus any payment of interest on any covered mortgage obligation (not including any prepayment or payment of principal on a covered mortgage obligation), plus any payment on any covered rent obligation, plus any covered utility payment. See the calculation information below.

“Payroll costs” include the sum of payments of any compensation with respect to employees, including:

• salary, wage, commission or similar compensation
• payment of cash tips or equivalent
• payment for vacation, parental, family, medical or sick leave
• allowance for dismissal or separation
• payment required for the provision of group health care benefits, including insurance premiums
• payment of any retirement benefit, or
• payment of state or local tax assessed on the compensation of employees.

“Payroll costs” do not include the following:

• the compensation of an individual employee in excess of an annual salary of $100,000, as prorated for the covered period (i.e. compensation above the $100,000 threshold),
• taxes imposed or withheld under Chapters 21 (Social Security and Medicare taxes, employee and employer portion), or 24 (withholding obligations from employees) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986
• any compensation of an employee whose principal place of residence is outside of the United States
• qualified sick leave wages and qualified family leave wages, in each case, for which a credit is allowed under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act.

How to calculate loan forgiveness eligibility:

The forgivable amount is the sum of the following costs incurred during the eight-week period after the loan’s origination date, subject to certain exclusions.

1)  Add the following costs for the eight-week covered period:

• payroll costs (as previously described)
• payments of interest on any liability of the borrower that is a mortgage on real or personal property and that were incurred before February 15, 2020 (covered mortgage obligation)
• payments on any rent obligated under a leasing agreement in force before February 15, 2020 (covered rent obligations)
• payments for a service for the distribution of electricity, gas, water, transportation, telephone or internet access for which service began before February 15, 2020 (covered utility payments).

2) Divide the average number of full-time equivalent (FTE) employees per month during the eight-week covered period by either of the following (chosen by the borrower):

(a) The average number of FTE employees per month employed by the borrower during the same eight-week period in 2019, or

(b) The average number of FTE employees per month employed by the borrower during the period beginning on January 1, 220 and ending on February 29, 2020.

3) Multiply the added costs from in Step 1) by the FTE calculation completed in Step 2) above. The result is the maximum loan forgiveness available, but note that if your total payroll expenses on workers making less than $100,000 annually decreases by more than 25 percent in the eight-week covered period, the maximum loan forgiveness will be decreased by the same amount of payroll tax reductions. If you have already laid off some employees, you can still be forgiven for the full amount of your payroll cost if you rehire your employees by June 30, 2020.

Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) and the PPP

If you took out an Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) between February 15, 2020 and June 30, 2020 and you want to refinance that loan into a PPP loan, you will add the outstanding EIDL loan amount to the payroll sum.

FAQ:  Below is some common questions hoteliers are asking regarding the PPP.

Can a hotel use the PPP loan proceeds to pay other expenses like insurance premiums, franchise fees, or property taxes?

If you use the PPP loan proceeds for other hotel operating expenses aside from what is eligible above, this portion of the loan will not be forgiven. The eligible items for forgiveness are noted above. When you apply through your lender for forgiveness on your loan, the application must include:

• Documentation verifying the number of employees on payroll and pay rates, including IRS payroll tax filings and State income, payroll and unemployment insurance filings;
• Documentation verifying payments on covered mortgage obligations, lease obligations, and utilities; and
• Certification from a representative of your business or organization that is authorized to certify that the documentation provided is true and that the amount that is being forgiven was used in accordance with the program’s guidelines for use.

If we are not obligated to pay back the loan for 12 months, does the loan accrue interest during those 12 months?  Or does interest start to accrue after the 12-month period?

If the full principal of the PPP loan is forgiven, the borrower is not responsible for the interest accrued in the 8-week covered period. The remainder of the loan that is not forgiven will operate according to the loan terms agreed upon by you and the lender, at a 4% max interest.

Can I receive multiple loans under the CARES ACT? (Economic Injury Disaster Loan, Emergency Grant, and PPP)?

It appears that the Emergency Economic Injury Grant recipients and those who receive loan payment relief through the Small Business Debt Relief Program may apply for and take out a PPP loan. Meaning, you could possibly obtain both if approved. Notably, the SBA lender you choose to obtain your loans through will be able to answer the specifics on what you can loan and what you cannot.

If I received money under the Emergency Injury Disaster Loan, do I have to refinance that into my potential PPP loan?

Refinancing your EIDL loan is an option and is not a requirement for the forgiveness portion. However, you would want to talk with your lender about what would make the most sense for you.

Who can show me what the terms of the loan would look like on each loan?

We highly recommend that you find a lender who will be able to offer these types of loans when they soon become available. The lender will be able to discuss the terms on each loan and what that would look like specifically for you.

Thanks to the Texas Hotel & Lodging Association for this helpful information.

Small Business Association Emergency Disaster Loan

SBA provides low-interest disaster loans to businesses of all sizes, private non-profit organizations, homeowners, and renters.

Businesses that plan on seeking an SBA emergency loan should fill out the form and turn it into TDEMPARecovery@tdem.texas.gov. This form is not required, but is a convenience in clarifying the supporting documentation the state is required to submit to the U.S. Small Business Administration when requesting an Economic Injury Disaster Loan Declaration. This information in any other format would also be acceptable.

When SBA Disaster Loans are available, small businesses will need to apply directly to the SBA Disaster Assistance Page.