Sen. Chenette: Legislature passes COVID-19 relief

With a void of leadership in Washington, the state is stepping up to provide relief.
Government has a core responsibility to help provide relief related to this public health crisis; to those being impacted financially, assist those in need of care, coordinate emergency response, and support our front-line health professionals. The Legislature passed a sweeping package in direct emergency response.
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We expanded unemployment insurance benefits for workers impacted by COVID-19. We need the Feds to grant the ability for folks who previously weren’t paying into the system or didn’t qualify for benefits to be able to expand it to that population like self-employed, nonprofits etc. We are communicating with our Congressional delegation on that piece. Apply for unemployment using this link: http://reemployme.maine.gov.

We established a consumer loan guarantee program to help eligible Mainers access no-interest loans. This program will be administered by FAME and the loans will be given by banks and credit unions. The State guarantees the loans. The loans do not need to be repaid during a specified period of time. Maximum loan amount is $5,000. This can be used by anyone including self-employed individuals and others not covered under the unemployment system. Details can be found at FAMEMAINE.com.

The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) approved Governor Mills’ application for SBA Economic Injury Disaster Loans to help Maine businesses overcome any temporary loss of revenue due to COVID-19. The COVID-19 Relief Business Direct Loan Program provides FAME Direct Loans of up to $50,000 with special terms available to Maine-based businesses experiencing interruption or hardship due to COVID-19. Details also found at FAMEMAINE.com.
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We created a COVID-19 response fund (with $11 million to start) to address unanticipated needs as they arise through January 15, 2021. Governor can tap these funds at anytime and can add additional funds as needed

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