On Friday, March 27, 2020, President Donald Trump signed into law H.R. 748, the “Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act” or the “CARES Act,” which provides emergency assistance and health care response for individuals, families and businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, and provide emergency appropriations to support Executive Branch agency operations during the COVID-19 pandemic.
A portion of the $2.2 trillion CARES Act is for strengthening the economy by providing needed financial assistance to America’s small businesses and workers.
It provides small businesses and nonprofits comprised of 500 or fewer employees with almost $350 billion in partially forgivable loans among other help to small businesses.
On Friday, the Tampa Bay Times announced received a loan of $8.5 million under the federal government’s CARES Act.
The paper said: The crisis hit local businesses hard, and advertising revenues at the Times have fallen by 50 percent. In response, the company reduced newspaper printing and delivery to Wednesday and Sunday and furloughed dozens of employees, mostly in production, delivery and sales.
“This loan gives us more time to ride out the crisis before we have to make even more changes,” said Times chairman and CEO Paul C. Tash. “It makes a big difference, and we are grateful for it.”
