Briese: Listen to recommendations from medical professionals

In the last two weeks, it feels, in some ways, as though nothing has really changed, but in some ways, things seem to be changing by the minute. I reached out to some friends in the agribusiness and small business communities and compiled some information for small business owners relating to resources available to you.

Businesses, including farms, with less than 500 employees, qualify for Paycheck Protection Program Loans, to keep employees on payroll, under the $349 billion small business administration loan program.

Most farms would be excluded from Economic Injury Disaster Loans, according to analysis by the American Farm Bureau Federation, if SBA doesn’t expand annual receipts but lawmakers and farm groups stress Congress intended to make the 3% loans available to farmers.

Any change to EIDL eligibility could be part of a Phase 4 aid package, though that will take time to be enacted.

Furthermore, the Paycheck Protection Program appears to also apply to wages or income of an owner-operator, including the self-employed.

While I serve you in the Nebraska legislature, my office and I are keeping up with news about the economic recovery actions at the federal level, but details are still coming out about some of the aspects of the act. I will keep you updated as I learn more, but your local banker may be the best resource to start with. Don't hesitate to reach out to my office with questions on any topic. If my staff or I can't help you, we will likely be able to put you in touch with someone who can.

We also should focus on the good things we’re hearing from the hard-hit areas. In Washington state, efforts to practice social distancing and reduce the spread meant that an overflow hospital set up by the Army to handle patients was not needed, because hospitals in the area were able to handle patient flow.

Hopefully, by the time this column goes to print, the news of a slowing curve in New York will also continue. These are good reminders that, by following recommendations of medical professionals, we can get through this sooner, as infection rates stabilize. By staying home, we are reducing hospital admissions by reducing car accidents and other traumatic injuries, and not catching or spreading other conditions, like the cold and flu, which would otherwise require hospitalization for some.

The sooner Nebraska is free of new COVID-19 cases, the sooner we can begin to return to the ‘Good Life’ as we all know and love it.

I want to recognize the sacrifices everyone is making and to thank you all. This time is hard on everyone, but few more so than those who are still out there working to keep things moving. We owe a lot to our first responders, doctors, nurses and other medical staff, truck drivers, warehouse workers, grocery store employees, roads maintenance crews, utility workers, bankers, farmers and ranchers and many more. Some things cannot be stopped or slowed no matter what, and we owe the deepest gratitude to those risking their health, and that of their loved ones, to keep us all safe, fed and healthy.

Lastly, there is still unfinished business in the legislature, although we do not yet know when we will reconvene. As soon as it is prudent to do so, the Speaker plans to call the legislature to meet once more and I very much look forward to again fighting for the interests of each and every one of you.

As always, you can reach me at [email protected] or by leaving a message at 402-471-2631.