*NEW Relief Grant – SMALL BUSINESSES / NON PROFITS

Application closing on january 13th, 2021.

Amount you can receive

Applications not accepted during maintenance hours 12:00am-4:00am.

Necessary Documents Needed to Apply:

1.  Application Certification: Signed certification used to certify your business

2.  Business Financial Information:

a. Most recent tax return filed (2019 or 2018) – provided in an electronic form for online upload, such as PDF/JPEG or other approved upload format.

b. Copy of official filing with the California Secretary of State, if applicable, or local municipality for the business such as one of the following: Articles of Incorporation, Certificate of Organization, Fictitious Name of Registration or Government-Issued Business License.

3. Government Issued Photo ID: Such as a Driver’s License or Passport

One complete application will qualify you to be considered for both rounds, please only apply once.

Applying through multiple organizations will delay your application from being processed.

Owners of multiple businesses, franchises, locations, etc. will be considered for only one grant and are required to apply for the business with the highest revenue.

GUIDES AND TIPS TO HELP YOU APPLY!

These are VERY informative guides that have step-by-step instructions on how you can submit all your documents and applications! MUST READ!

TIPS FOR – ALL Businesses Download
TIPS FOR -Non-ProfitsDownload

For Bartender’s who have been effected by COVID-19 : FUND FOR YOU

FULL BARTENDER EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE PROGRAM  ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

In order to qualify for grant assistance from the Bartender Emergency Assistance Program, the recipient must satisfy all of the following requirements:

  1. Be a Bartender or the spouse or child of a Bartender. The Bartender Emergency Assistance Program defines a “Bartender” as an individual employed in serving beverages or otherwise engaged in the production, promotion or distribution of alcoholic beverages. An individual is considered “employed” as a Bartender if, for not less than one year prior to the application, the individual performed services as a Bartender on a regular full- or part-time basis or, if the catastrophic event or emergency hardship giving rise to the application prevents the individual from performing such services, for not less than one year prior to the event or hardship the individual performed services as a Bartender on a regular full- or part-time basis.

   2. Experience a catastrophic event or emergency hardship that is:

  • Identifiable and described in detail in the application;
  • Damaging to the person or property (e.g., loss of life, health, or property);
  • Sudden and precipitous rather than gradual or progressive;
  • Unexpected, unanticipated, unforeseen, unintended, or unplanned; and
  • Unusual and not normally occurring in the ordinary course of day-to-day living.

   3. Lack the necessities of life, including financial, physical, mental, or emotional well being as a result of the catastrophic event or emergency                hardship. 

   4.  Provide tangible documentation of the catastrophic event or emergency hardship.

​CREATE YOUR ACCOUNT HERE AND START PROCESS :

https://usbgnationalcharityfoundation.submittable.com/submit/dd9f8446-8a81-4a3d-a423-6c1e28d8e604/bartender-emergency-assistance-program

COVID-19 FUND FOR UC BERKELEY STUDENTS!

For phone service, contact them at 510-664-9181 weekdays from 9 am to 12 pm and 1 pm to 4 pm.  

Students are encouraged to apply for this fund by visiting the Financial Aid/Scholarships office website to submit a case for the funds in the link below :

https://financialaid.berkeley.edu/contact-us

ABOUT THE FUND

The campus has secured a $15.2 million in direct-to-student aid through the CARES Act (the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security federal relief bill).

These cash grants will help undergraduate and graduate students pay for course materials, technology, food, housing, healthcare and child care expenses they incur as a result of social distancing and remote instruction.

The campus has awarded $9.6 million of the $11.2 million set aside for eligible undergraduates.

The Financial Aid and Scholarships Office, the Graduate Division, and the Graduate Assembly are working closely on awarding CARES Act funding to graduate students and anticipate that $4 million in awards will be distributed to graduate students beginning at the end of May. 

Although undocumented students are not eligible to receive CARES Act funding, UC Berkeley is committed to providing equivalent awards to undocumented students who qualify for in-state tuition under AB540. We have awarded over $327,000 in CARES-equivalent funding to undergraduates who filed a California Dream Act Application.

IRS introduced a new Form 7200.

f7200Download

IRS introduced a new Form 7200.

  1. This new form is for immediate tax deferment. 
  2. Small businesses and accountants should look into this new form and take advantage of it.
  3. Small businesses may receive $5k per employee with Employee Retention Credit.

Prior tax years can be used for the losses of this year, 2020.

CARES Act – Employee Retention Credit 

  1. Employers can file the new IRS form 7200 to get a credit of up to 50% of wages, maxed at $5,000 per employee. 
  2. Who Qualifies?
    1. From a period of 03/12/20 to 12/31/20:
      • Any small business who is fully or partially shut down because of a COVID-19 government order 
      • Any small business with a drop in receipts or receipts of less than 50% of gross receipts.
      • There are two rules, one is for businesses with less than or equal to 100 full time employees, and the credit applies to all qualified wages of up to 50%, including health insurance. 
  3. When To Apply:
    1. When a business files their 941, 943, 944 or CT-1 quarterly reports at the end of the quarter, they would file the 7200 at the same time to apply for this credit. 
    2. Small businesses who do not qualify for PPP loan can still apply for and receive tax relief.

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Are you a Restaurant worker who had hours cut / laid off?

The Restaurant Opportunities Centers Unites is has a relief fund to provide financial assistance to restaurant workers impacted by the coronavirus.

The application process is on a temporary pause due to high volume of applications that have been submitted, but you can check in everyday for an update to apply. The link –> https://rocunited.org/relief/application/

PPD will be checking in everyday so you can check back here as well for the status:

Managing Anxiety and Stress during COVID-19

Recommendations from City of Berkeley Mental Health Division Manager, Steven GronlicMcClurg

Things You can Do to Support Yourself

  • Be Informed

Make sure you are understanding facts about COVID-19 and the risk to you and others can make it less stressful. Listen to only trusted sources for information such as CDC, WHO, or the City of Berkeley for accurate information.

  • Take Breaks

Watching, reading or listening to news stories, including social media can be upsetting. Take a break and engage in relaxing and enjoying activities.

  • Take care of your body

Take deep breaths, stretch or meditate. Eat healthy, well-balanced meals and get plenty of sleep and try to avoid alcohol and drugs. Exercise regularly at home. Enjoy open spaces in large parks and read about the park openings.

  • Connect with others

Talk with people you trust about concerns and how you are feeling. Stay in touch with members outside your household through phone / video.

Berkeley Mutual Aid – for people at high risk

The Berkeley Mutual Aid Network

The Berkeley Mutual Aid connects neighbors during the Coronavirus pandemic so that no one in our community has to face this crisis alone. If you are at high risk this is a way to have access to basic needs, with the help of your community.

This is a program that is matching service between individuals who are higher-risk and those who are low-risk. The form you will be able to fill out (link below) are for individuals who are considered high-risk include: those who are 60 years or older, who are immunocompromised and/or people who are experiencing homelessness or economic hardship.

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSe5MXDzg9TDF91Ck00DvVHjgmQgulNdHBM1EjEWTANlAqaf_Q/viewform

For more information –> https://www.berkeleymutualaid.org

Do you have these auto insurances listed?

These companies are issuing credits back into your bill due to lack of transportation from the “shelter-in-place” . Please keep an eye out or contact your provider for any questions. I have posted statements/news below for each

StateFarm Insurance

On average, State Farm Mutual auto customers can expect to receive a credit of about 25 percent of premium for the time period March 20 through May 31; exact percentages will vary by state. Every State Farm Mutual auto insurance customer will receive credits applied against bills beginning as early as June. We’ll continue to monitor our loss experience and respond appropriately. See commercial below

AllState Insurance

SHELTER-IN-PLACE PAYBACK

  • On average, personal auto insurance customers will receive 15 percent money back based on their monthly premium in April and May.*
  • Allstate will automatically deposit money back to the bank or credit card account used for payment, or apply credits to accounts, depending on customer preferences. Please check your payment information to make sure it is up to date.
  • Customers can get payment faster through the Allstate Mobile App. And, since our lives have become more digital, we are providing free identity protection for the rest of the year, also through the App. Payments for the Shelter-in-Place Payback will occur during the months of April and May for our auto insurance customers.
  • More info –> https://www.allstate.com/covid.aspx

Farmers Insurance

A message from Farmers Insurance CEO. They will be reduce auto insurance premiums by 25% for the month of April. They may do the same for May and June if conditions are still the same.

Geico Insurance

The GEICO Giveback Credit

GEICO is providing a 15 percent credit to our auto and motorcycle policyholders as your policy comes up for renewal between April 8 and October 7, 2020. The credit will also apply to any new policies purchased during this period. The credit is part of our ongoing efforts to assist policyholders during this unprecedented time.

The average auto policy has a semi-annual premium of about $1,000 and generally covers more than one vehicle. This means we expect credits to average about $150 per auto policy and $30 per motorcycle policy. We estimate the benefit to our 18 million auto and one million motorcycle policyholders to be approximately $2.5 billion.

Current policyholders can expect to see the credit when your policy renews. You do not need to take any action to receive this credit.

Liberty Mutual Insurance

Personal Auto Customer Relief Refund

Fewer drivers are on the road, which means fewer accidents. With this in mind, we are announcing our Personal Auto Customer Relief Refund, which will return approximately $250 million to our customers. Here’s how it works:

  • Personal auto insurance customers will receive a 15% refund on two months of their auto premium, based on your premium amount as of April 7, 2020.
  • We are planning to issue the refund in the manner you made your most recent payment or by check.
  • We will begin issuing refunds in the coming weeks, after we have approval from state insurance regulators.
  • Your refund will happen automatically, and you do not need to call us to get your refund.

Engagement Opportunities

While being stuck at home it’s definitely hard on people to feel like there’s nothing to do. We hope that people can resort to the many opportunities that we have online especially with the amount of technology that we have.

It might be frustrating to just be at home all the time right now, but if you lean into some of the things on this list, you’ll find that the time passes in a meaningful way, leaving you feeling as though this period wasn’t just a few lost weeks.

A great list for you to look at if you are wanting some great interactions you can still have online! Check our .PDF’s below!

Online OpportunitiesDownload

A list of recommended and inspiring books to read at home to get us through the days being at home

Book-ListDownload

Platform for Local Businesses to share fundraising campaigns!

If you are a SMALL BUSINESS OWNER you can be on this platform for everyone to see and help donate!

To help small businesses who have been strongly hit with the COVID-19 pandemic, the BerkeleySide has set up a platform called “Pitch in For Local Workers” with fundraising for local businesses! Such a GREAT service to have for our Berkeley Small Businesses!

PITCH IN FOR LOCAL WORKERS!

https://www.berkeleyside.com/pitch-in-for-local-workers

To SUBMIT your business CLICK HERE!

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdIFSukN-xe4LvlvBmRNHTftupbFe34AV7UZTR9L10gMPMfRQ/viewform