SLS 20RS-1587 ENGROSSED
2020 Regular Session
SENATE CONCURRENT RESOL UTION NO. 65
BY SENATORS CLOUD, ABRAHAM, ALLAIN, BARROW, BOUIE, CARTER,
CATHEY, CONNICK, CORTEZ, FESI, FOIL, HARRIS, HENRY,
HENSGENS, HEWITT, MCMATH, MILLIGAN, FRED MILLS,
ROBERT MILLS, MIZELL, PRICE, REESE, SMITH, TARVER,
WARD, WHITE AND WOMACK
FUNDS/FUNDING. Expresses the intent of the legislature to allocate $100,000,000 of the
local government allocation and $100,000,000 from the state allocation from the CARES
Act to small businesses, of which $12,500,000 from the local government allocation and
$12,500,000 from the state allocation shall be used for minority and women owned
businesses.
1 A CONCURRENT RESOL UTION
2 To express the intent of the legislature to appropriate $100,000,000 of the local government
3 portion and $100,000,000 of the state portion of the CARES Act funding for small
4 businesses in Louisiana, of which $12,500,000 of the local government portion and
5 $12,500,000 of the state portion shall be used for minority and women owned
6 businesses.
7 WHEREAS, the Congress of the United States passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief,
8 and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) which was signed into law on March 27, 2020,
9 and which established the Coronavirus Relief Fund (Fund); and
10 WHEREAS, the CARES Act provides monetary assistance to state and local
11 governments and includes an allocation to the state of Louisiana from the Fund of over $1.8
12 billion; and
13 WHEREAS, the CARES Act provides that, of the amount allocated to each state, an
14 amount not to exceed forty-five percent may be directed to local governments; and
15 WHEREAS, it is anticipated that the CARES Act funding directed to local
16 governments will be appropriated according to a plan implemented by the legislature and
17 that local governments may submit evidence that they are due reimbursement for
18 Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)-related expenses; and
Page 1 of 3 SCR NO. 65
SLS 20RS-1587 ENGROSSED
1 WHEREAS, the CARES Act allows state and local governments to make payments
2 for programs that:
3 (1) Are necessary expenditures incurred due to the public health emergency with
4 respect to COVID-19.
5 (2) Were not accounted for in the budget most recently approved as of March 27,
6 2020, for the state or local government.
7 (3) Were expenses incurred during the period beginning March 1, 2020, and ending
8 December 30, 2020; and
9 WHEREAS, the Guidance for State, Territorial, Local, and Tribal Governments
10 dated April 22, 2020 (Guidance), states that the requirement that expenditures be incurred
11 "due to" the public health emergency may include expenditures incurred to respond to
12 second-order effects of the emergency, such as providing economic support to those
13 suffering from employment or business interruptions due to COVID-19-related business
14 closures; and
15 WHEREAS, the Guidance states that eligible expenses include payment for expenses
16 associated with the provision of economic support in connection with the COVID-19 public
17 health emergency, such as expenditures related to the provision of grants to small businesses
18 to reimburse the costs of business interruption caused by required closures; and
19 WHEREAS, due to COVID-19, many small businesses were required to close and
20 were not able to conduct business during the approximately two-month period the state was
21 under quarantine, and thus suffered financially from business interruptions.
22 THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of Louisiana does hereby
23 express its intent to include, as part of the plan for the appropriation of a portion of the
24 CARES Act funding for local governments, that $100,000,000 be used for small business
25 grants, of which $12,500,000 shall be used for minority and women owned small businesses.
26 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature of Louisiana does hereby express
27 its intent to include, as part of the plan for the appropriation of a portion of the CARES Act
28 funding for the state, that $100,000,000 be used for small business grants, of which
29 $12,500,000 shall be used for minority and women owned small businesses.
30 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to the
Page 2 of 3 SCR NO. 65
SLS 20RS-1587 ENGROSSED
1 president of the Senate, the speaker of the House of Representatives, the chairman of the
2 Senate Committee on Finance, and the chairman of the House Committee on Appropriations.
The original instrument and the following digest, which constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument, were prepared by Martha S. Hess.
DIGEST
SCR 65 Engrossed 2020 Regular Session Cloud
Expresses the intent of the legislature to allocate $100,000,000 of the local government
portion and $100,000,000 of the state portion of the CARES Act funding for small
businesses in Louisiana, of which $12,500,000 from the local government portion and
$12,500,000 from the state portion shall be used for minority and women owned small
businesses.
Summary of Amendments Adopted by Senate
Committee Amendments Proposed by Senate Committee on Finance to the original
bill
1. Changes amount of allocation from $200,000,000 from the local government
allocation to $100,000,000 from the local allocation and $100,000,000 from
the state allocation
2. Changes amount for minority and women owned businesses from
$25,000,000 from the state allocation to $12,500,000 from the state
allocation and $12,500,000 from the local allocation.
Page 3 of 3