“With the outbreak of COVID-19, we are not just in a health crisis, we are also on the brink of a financial crisis,” said Manktelow. “With most entertainment businesses, such as movie theaters, restaurants and bars, forced to close their doors and others required to operate with half their normal occupancy limit, employees and business owners will soon feel the effects financially across the state. While essential measures are to contain the spread of the virus, we must think ahead as to how we can help New Yorkers continue to survive in such difficult times. For this reason, we are proposing the Small Business Emergency Recovery Act of 2020 in an effort to provide the necessary help to both business owners and employees to tide them over until this crisis is over. Seeing as small businesses make up 99 percent of businesses in New York which also employee almost half of New York’s workforce, this is something I plan to continually push hard over these next few days to see that it is taken care of.”

Over the course of the next few days, the governor’s office and state legislators will be negotiating the budget for the 2020-21 fiscal year. The Small Business Emergency Recovery Act of 2020 will provide the following:

• Immediately direct the state’s settlement reserve fund of $890 million to small businesses;
• Create a zero-percent interest loan program dedicated to helping small businesses meet their payroll commitments;
• Re-purpose available tax credits to help the needs of the state’s existing small businesses;
• Use all economic development discretionary funding for existing small businesses within New York State;
• Move tax deadlines for remittance, business tax, and personal income tax ahead 180 days;
• Suspend all regulatory fees on small businesses for 180 days; and
• Suspend the plastic bag ban for grocery stores for 180 days.

“As we move forward into uncharted waters, having never fully experienced anything like this crisis before, it is important that we as legislators focus on helping provide relief for New Yorkers,” said Manktelow.