Dear Neighbors,
Last week, I had a great conversation with Palm Beach County Tax Collector Anne Gannon talking about taxes and financial concerns related to COVID-19. If you missed it, you can watch it here.
We will be hosting our next COVID-19 Community Forum Facebook live stream tomorrow, May 12th at 4 pm, with Former Palm Beach County Commissioner and current Executive Director of the South Florida Regional Transportation Authority Steven Abrams.
Join us to hear about how COVID-19 has affected local traffic and mass transit and what to expect looking toward the future.
The conversation is better when you participate, so please submit questions during the program. If you cannot join in during the live portion, email me your questions in advance to athomson@myboca.us.
COMING RELIEF FOR BUSINESSES
Here’s some good news: Palm Beach County recently received $261 million in coronavirus relief funding from the federal government as part of the CARES Act.
Last Friday, the County Commission discussed preliminary plans on how to allocate those relief funds, including a portion – $50 million – for small business relief. I spoke at the County Commission meeting on Friday about the need to prioritize the planning and disbursement of this funding because every day that goes by, we see another business (or several) folding, never to reopen. These funds need to be made available to small businesses ASAP.
I also advocated for increasing the overall portion dedicated to small businesses to $80 million (roughly one-third of the amount received from Congress) and offered the assistance of Boca Raton and other municipalities who have been working on their own small business relief programs.
In putting together their own programs, these cities have developed playbooks on how to deploy relief funds quickly and responsibly, and that experience would be valuable as Palm Beach County develops its plans. I will continue to advocate for small businesses and work to ensure that the County’s relief funding gets into the hands of small businesses ASAP.
Please do not hesitate to reach out to me with other questions or concerns, at 561-334-6471 or athomson@myboca.us.
Stay well,
Andy Thomson
Boca Raton City Councilman
