GNO, INC Update – 4/9/2020

Regional Stakeholders,

During a crisis, timely, accurate, and actionable information is important.  In order to help you get this information, GNO, Inc. is sending out regular updates.  Please see below, and feel free to forward.

April 9, 2020 Update

News

• Federal Reserve Loans  – The Federal Reserve announced additional measures to provide up to $2.3 trillion in loans to support the economy. Several of the measures announced today include:
  • Provisions for the Main Street Lending Program, which will finance four-year loans to businesses with up to 10,000 employees, or with revenues less than $2.5 billion. The loans will be issued through regular banks, which will retain a 5 percent share of the loans while the central bank buys the remainder. Principal and interest payments will be deferred for a year. Businesses that are planning to use a Paycheck Protection Program loan may also take out a Main Street loan. The public comment period for the program is open through April 16.
  • Establishing a Municipal Liquidity Facility that will offer up to $500 billion in lending to states and municipalities. The Treasury will provide $35 billion of credit protection to the Federal Reserve for the Municipal Liquidity Facility using funds appropriated by the CARES Act.
  • Supplying liquidity to participating financial institutions through term financing backed by PPP loans to small businesses. The Paycheck Protection Program Liquidity Facility (PPPLF) will extend credit to eligible financial institutions that originate PPP loans, taking the loans as collateral at face value.
• Grants under Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) Program — Through the EIDL, businesses can apply for an emergency grant advance of up to $10,000; the exact amount of the loan depends on the size of the business. As a business owner, you don’t have to pay back the advance even if you’re ultimately denied for the rest of the EIDL loan. The advance can also be rolled into a Paycheck Protection Program loan and subtracted from the amount that gets forgiven. Click here to learn more.
• Drive-Thru Testing ­­– According to the City of New Orleans, drive-thru testing will no longer be available in Orleans Parish after April 10^th.  Testing will still be available for Orleans Parish residents through hospitals, clinics and mobile testing sites currently being set up. Previously announced drive thru testing centers across Greater New Orleans, remain open.
• More Car Insurance Refunds – Additional car insurers are following Allstate and issuing refunds to drivers. The latest insurer to announce refunds for drivers is USAA. You can find a listing of all current and planned auto insurance refunds here.

Information

• Paycheck Protection Program – The forgivable loan program is in its first full week of applications.
  • GNO, Inc.’s overview of the program is here.
  • You can find the latest guidance on the U.S. Department of Treasury website here.
  • Finally, there is a GNO, Inc. webinar, with questions and answers, here.

The SBA has also released a tool to help find a nearby lender eligible to issue a loan under the Paycheck Protection Program.

• Business Mentorship – Tulane University’s Lepage Center announced a new mentorship program in an effort to connect Tulane alumni, investors, and mentors with small businesses to offer pro bono services. Businesses will be matched with an advisor based on the needs of each individual business.  Businesses interested in participating in the program can complete their request here.

Resources

Are you looking for:

• Online Training? – A catalogue of opportunities for online training from the region’s higher education partners and private training providers can be found here.
• Work? – If you want a job in a sector that is surging right now, new openings are on WorkNOLA.com.
• Employees? – A database of local talent looking for new job opportunities, including quick employment history and skills summary, is on the WorkNOLA Workforce Directory.
• COVID-19 Customers/Purchasers? – If you have pivoted your business to make a new, coronavirus-related product, register onGNOpivot.
• COVID-19 Supplies/Services? – If you are looking for PPE, sanitizer, food providers, and other related products and services, search the GNOpivot Resource Tool.

As always, general information is on the GNO, Inc. Coronavirus Business Resource Page.

Please feel free to contact me [email protected] or VP Policy Ileana Ledet at [email protected] with any questions or suggestions.

Take care,

Michael

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