2020 SD Legislature: State, federal government takes action to assist businesses

Virus update: It is important to know that of the 135 hospitalizations as of Sunday, April 26, there were only 18 which required the use of a ventilator. There are about 525 ventilators in the state with most of them located in Sioux Falls.

Financial update: There are many businesses facing unprecedented challenges due to COVID-19 and due to the actions of our governing authorities at all levels. As a result, federal and state governments are trying to mitigate some of the financial challenges. As I have mentioned before, the government programs are hastily developed and are not necessarily providing a uniform means of getting us back on track. However, it is a work in progress and the state level is probably more suited to making reasonable corrections as the weeks go by. There are funds available for businesses through the Governor’s Office of Economic Development and the Federal Small Business Administration for those who need assistance in weathering this current economic storm. Those points of contact are:  

• South Dakota: https://sdgoed.com/covid-19/ and https://dlr.sd.gov/covid_19_resources.aspx

• Federal: https://www.sba.gov/disaster-assistance/coronavirus-covid-19

The SBA has resumed accepting applications as of April 27. There are a variety of federal programs including the  Paycheck Protection Program, SBA Debt Relief and Express Bridge Loans, Economic Injury Disaster Loans, as well as working through the IRS.

Although I am not a fan of government involvement in business, there has been a great business need created by the actions taken to combat the virus. Please contact me if there is any way that I can assist in getting you to the right source of information.  

You have probably seen reports as to how the shutdown is affecting our revenues as well as delivery of services statewide. At present we are developing projections of revenue loss and anticipating what cuts might need to be made. The idea of cuts continues to be a moving target as the use of the federal financial assistance remains unclear. What we need as a state is revenue replacement, not new federal programs. However, all branches of government continue to work on solving this need. We should know much more within the next few weeks.

Federal spending under the CARES Act, “the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security act” will be a central issue in what we as a state can do to address our revenue losses. As you know, the state balances our budget each year and we retain a reserve for emergencies. Those practices will help us to survive this challenge.  Please contact me for more information about the CARES Act as well as our current state revenues I do hope you will let me and the other legislators know your thoughts and concerns about the ongoing COVID-19 issues.  

Please review the recent proceedings of the Legislature on South Dakota Public Broadcasting or go to the Legislative Research Council’s website to listen to the recorded committees and floor debate. That’s found at  https://sdlegislature.gov/

As always, please feel free to contact me at steven.haugaard@sdlegislature.gov or (605) 334-1121.