The legislative Emergency Board will convene today, April 23rd, at 10 a.m. to allocate more than $30 million in emergency funding to support Oregonians in need of relief due to the coronavirus pandemic. They are taking action on a plan that has been crafted to help fill gaps not covered by federal assistance and you can read more about it here.

The legislative Joint Emergency Board’s agenda can be found here and the supporting materials here. The same committee met in March and dedicated money to respond to the coronavirus pandemic, but this is the first opportunity since Stay Home, Save Lives went into effect for legislators to take budget actions. The meeting will be held remotely, and you can stream it by going to the committee’s page. 

Here are some of the highlights of the budget actions that will be considered:

• Housing – safe shelter and rental assistance - $12 million

  • Rental assistance and safe shelter alternatives for individuals who have lost income due to COVID-19 and shelter for individuals at risk of infection or health problems due to inadequate shelter or housing.

• Small Business Assistance - $10 million

  • Establishes an assistance program for small businesses with no more than 25 employees impacted by COVID-19 economic restrictions that have not received support from the federal CARES Act. *The $10 million small business assistance program will include $5 million from the Emergency Fund matched with $5 million from existing funds in the executive branch’s Business, Innovation and Trade Division.

• Domestic and Sexual Violence Resources - $2 million

  • Emergency housing for victims of domestic and sexual violence.

• Oregon Worker Relief Fund - $10 million

  • Payments to workers ineligible for wage replacement payments from traditional unemployment insurance programs or unable to qualify for unemployment benefits due to immigration status.

Additionally, the board will be allocating funds to address: 

• Long Term Care Worker Testing and Training - $3.35 million

• Rural Hospital Stabilization Loans - $50 million federal funds authorization

• Coronavirus Relief Fund - $300 million federal funds authorization

• Release of funds for fire season, public defense and care workers.

These items complement the federal relief assistance coming to Oregon and are a good first step to help Oregonians. 

Sincerely,

Rachel Prusak