SACRAMENTO, California, May 8, 2020 /PRNewswire-HISPANIC PR WIRE/ — California Lawyers Association (CLA) and its team of volunteers and staff have created and compiled a wealth of resources to aid the public as the world experiences the incredible upheaval brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic. CLA’s COVID-19 Public Resources page is a steadily growing portal of information and guidance designed to help navigate this crisis.

CLA CEO and Executive Director Ona Alston Dosunmu emphasized the importance of supporting the public at large. “As attorneys, we are trusted advisors and community leaders and now, more than ever, it is important to support each other, our neighbors and our communities,” Dosumnu said. “When a crisis like this occurs, we must pull together to come out stronger on the other side.”

CLA and its volunteers have created several new resources to help guide individuals and businesses through these uncertain times. Expert attorneys from across the State have contributed articles and thought leadership in their specialties to the Resources Page, including articles on California evictions and co-parenting, as well as contributions to outside sources of information. CLA has also created a new public focus video series, “Navigating COVID-19 Issues” which addresses important issues faced by families, businesses, and employers. The series already has 28 installments online and on CLA’s YouTube Channel with more added weekly. Each video taps into the legal specialization of CLA’s experienced volunteers and covers a range of topics:

• Employee and Employer Concerns
• Employee Benefits
• Update: Employee Benefits
• Employee Benefits SPANISH
• Update: Employee Benefits SPANISH
• Employee Health and Safety
• Employee Health and Safety SPANISH
• Employee Leave Laws
• Employee Leave Laws SPANISH
• Employer Concerns
• Employer Concerns SPANISH
• Notify Your Employees About HR 6201 Rights
• Communicating with Your Workforce
• Family Law Concerns
• General Information about Custody and Spousal Support
• Child Support and Spousal Support
• Custody and Visitation
• Domestic Violence Protection During the Pandemic
• CARES Loan Program and Tax Concerns
• Loan Programs: What’s In It For Me?
• Loan Programs: Applying for C19 Loans
• Loan Programs: Increasing EIDL Loan Value
• Loan Programs: Loan Forgiveness
• Loan Programs: Building Success
• Tax Implications and Eligibility of Benefits Under the CARES Act
• Bankruptcy Issues
• Essential Insolvency Questions and Concerns for Business Owners
• Tenant and Real Property Concerns
• Overview of California’s Eviction Moratorium
• Hospital and Healthcare Concerns
• Healthcare Provider Employment Concerns
• Telehealth Updates
• Immediate Challenges Facing Hospitals
• Other Concerns
• Cyber Security Basics for the Work from Home Economy

All videos have English closed captions, and many are either available in Spanish or have Spanish closed captions. 

In addition, CLA has carefully curated a selection of other resources, including analyses and summaries of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, webinars on COVID-19, and free legal resources from Disaster Legal Assistance Collaborative. This is supplemented by a list of resources available through local government and agencies, banking institutions, industry groups, and mental health groups.

The COVID-19 Public Resource page and Video series are part of CLA’s Access to Justice Initiative. Find these resources and more at calawyers.org/covid-19-public-resources/. Please contact CLA or your local bar association if you need the assistance of an attorney.

ABOUT CALIFORNIA LAWYERS ASSOCIATION
Established in 2018, the California Lawyers Association is the bar association for all California attorneys. CLA’s mission is to promote excellence, diversity and inclusion in the legal profession and fairness in the administration of justice and the rule of law.

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SOURCE California Lawyers Association

LOS ANGELES, May 6, 2020 /PRNewswire-HISPANIC PR WIRE/ — A recent review by the Center for Responsible Lending has found that small businesses of color are being excluded from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARE) Act’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and in the absence of specific reforms this practice is likely to continue. The relief program passed by a bipartisan Congress and signed by the President can only be accessed through banks and other existing Small Business Administration (SBA) lenders.

The PPP is a first-come, first-served program, leaving those without existing bank relationships or lines of business credit at a major disadvantage. Minority owned businesses are less likely to be approved for a loan, and when they are approved, it is often for smaller amounts with higher interest rates than those offered to similarly situated white borrowers.

Latino American owned businesses already are bearing some of the harshest impacts of the COVID-19 crisis, with higher levels of job loss, illness, and losses of life. Those impacts are also being felt by other minority owned businesses as available funds in the initial CARE Act were exhausted in the first few days. The CARE Act originally allocated $350 billion to the Small Business Administration to issue loans of up to $10 million per business. In addition, the Cares Act also provided $10 billion for emergency grants of up to $10,000 for small businesses to cover operating expenses. These loans become grants if the businesses keep employees on the payroll through June.

The Center’s review found that 95% Blacks, 91% Latinos 91% Pacific Islander 75% Asian small businesses have all been excluded from the SBA’s Paycheck Protection Program.

“Congress authorized the Paycheck Protection Program to provide financial support and stability to small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Gil Vasquez, Board Chair of the Los Angeles Latino Chamber of Commerce. “Yet we continue to hear from Latino owned businesses that they face structural barriers to acquiring these loans. We at the Latino Chamber of Commerce are appalled at this practice and demand this pattern for exclusion cease immediately.” 

“This Covid-19 pandemic has shown that as a nation we have a moral imperative to distribute resources based on racial equity,” Vasquez continued. “If we really want a solid recovery in the short and long term, current and future spending bills must address the needs that still exist in the Latino and other communities. When the most vulnerable communities are economically healthy, then all communities are better off.”

The Los Angeles Latino Chamber of Commerce demands that the Small Business Administration and Department of Treasury modify the program’s policy to reassert the requirement for financial institutions to adhere to fair lending protections and report on applicant demographics. The Latino Chamber is also advocating for the Small Business Administration (SBA) to track the rate of applications and acceptance for small, minority-owned businesses which is critical because without stringent reporting, the SBA can neither confirm racial disparities nor correct any exclusionary lending practices under the Paycheck Protection Program.

Businesses of all sizes owned by people of color, including sole proprietorships, accounted for 30% of all U.S. businesses, contributing 7.2 million jobs and $1.38 trillion in revenue to the economy in 2012. And the sector is growing rapidly. By 2016, there were over 1.1 million employer businesses owned by people of color, accounting for 8.7 million jobs, $280 billion in payroll, and $1.3 trillion in total annual receipts—and this is on top of millions of sole proprietorships. Between 2014 and 2016, businesses owned by minorities grew 13% compared to just a 1% increase in white-owned employer businesses. These same minority owned businesses which contributed significantly to the nation’s growing economy prior to the pandemic are now bearing the harshest impacts of the COVID-19 crisis.

NOTE: Media Outlets can clink on this link to access graphics illustrations of projections of the estimated percentage of minority owned businesses likely to be denied by a mainstream bank. https://www.dropbox.com/sh/spuz61y3v9eed3e/AAB4WL8P1cYX98f5qfruqGLXa?dl=0

About the Los Angeles Latino Chamber of Commerce
Since 2009, the Los Angeles Latino Chamber of Commerce (LALCC) has advocated for and promoted the economic development of Greater Los Angeles’ Latino-owned businesses, which now number more than 300,000. The chamber’s economic development services include procurement, access to capital, certification, technical and other business assistance. Among other issues, its policy and advocacy efforts are focused on public and private minority procurement, community reinvestment and development, Latino public policy, international trade, and small business funding. LALCC is a 501(c)(3) and 501(c)(6) nonprofit organization. For additional information about the chamber, visit lalcc.org.

Contact: Robert Alaniz
Milagro Strategy Group
(626) 437-3354

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SOURCE Los Angeles Latino Chamber of Commerce