Recovery Resources: PPP 3, vaccination strategies and $600 payments

New round of PPP loans available again next week
Community financial institutions will be able to again make loans under the Paycheck Protection Program starting next week, according to the Journal of Accountancy. The Journal said the Small Business Administration has committed “to make at least the first two days of the PPP application window open exclusively to applications from community financial institutions that serve minority- and women-owned businesses.” The PPP received $284.45 billion in additional funding from the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, which was signed by President Trump last month. The law firm Troutman Pepper has posted a summary of the act, which, among other things, allows businesses that have not received PPP loans to apply for and receive them by March 31; creates a framework under which certain small businesses that have received a PPP loan can receive another and expands the scope of expenses for which PPP loans can be used. It also simplifies the forgiveness methods for PPP loans of $150,000 or less. The SBA has released PPP guidance for minority, underserved, veteran and women-owned businesses and an interim final rule for so-called second draw loans, which are PPP loans made to businesses that have received PPP loans before.

Businesses should start devising vaccination strategies
With COVID-19 vaccination programs ramping up, Main Line Chamber of Commerce member Stradley Ronon says businesses can start laying the foundation for vaccination strategies flexible enough to evolve over time. Among other things, the law firm says businesses can foster trust by setting up vaccine task forces, distributing targeted communications and leading by example; and removing obstacles to vaccination by establishing strategies to deal with costs and providing employees time to get vaccinated. Stradley Ronon also has advice for businesses on what they should not do and gives some potential legal minefields for employers to be aware of.

State includes hybrid learning in recommended instructional models for elementary schools
The Pennsylvania Departments of Health and Education said Thursday they will include a blend of in-person and online learning in their recommended instructional models for elementary schools in counties with substantial community transmission levels of COVID-19 starting Jan. 25. Previously, the only recommended instructional model for elementary schools in counties with substantial transmission rates was remote learning. The departments will continue to recommend fully remote learning for middle and high schools in counties with substantial transmission levels. As of Jan. 1, all counties had substantial transmission levels.

COVID-19 hospitalizations in PA nearly twice springtime peak
Pennsylvania has 5,491 individuals hospitalized with COVID-19, nearly twice the number of people hospitalized with the disease during the spring peak. The Department of Health confirmed 10,718 new cases on Thursday, bringing the statewide total to 703,625. The state had administered nearly 200,000 doses of vaccine for the novel coronavirus as of Thursday. Also on Thursday, a COVID-19 patient in Dauphin County was confirmed to have the more aggressive variant of the virus that caused excessive spread resulting in a lockdown in the U.K. He was the first person confirmed to have the variant in the state.

IRS has page for checking stimulus payment status
Those eligible for a $600 stimulus payment can check its status on the Internal Revenue Service’s “Get My Payment” webpage. Roughly 13 million people didn’t get their payments because the agency mistakenly deposited them into temporary bank accounts that were created when the people filed their 2019 tax returns with tax preparation companies such as H&R Block and TurboTax, among others. The companies have been working with the IRS to get the payments to their proper destinations, according to CNBC. Some people will have their payments mailed to them in the form of a paper check or prepaid debit card. Others who don’t receive a payment soon will need to claim a Recovery Rebate Credit on their 2020 tax return. Payments go to individuals who gross less than $75,000 and couples making less than $150,000.