Dear Friends and Neighbors,

Businesses have been hit hard by COVID 19 and the public health restrictions that followed. I have been particularly concerned about the post COVID economic recovery and protecting our businesses, so I’ve made a point to stay in touch with our local chambers and local small businesses during this difficult time. Listening to them, I have brought their questions and their solutions to the Governor's office. If you know of a business that needs support please encourage them to contact my office. 

During the Special Session we passed laws to protect both business renters and mortgage holders. These laws will help businesses get through the COVID outbreak and return to normal as soon as possible - ensuring that small businesses who have had to close their doors temporarily don’t have to close their doors permanently. We must make sure that there is still a mainstreet for people to visit after this pandemic is over. 

• Business Rent Protection: To allow time for reopening and re-establishing businesses, we extended the ban on evictions from commercial properties to September 30, 2020. At that time, if the landlord does nothing, the tenant must 1) stay current on the rent as it comes due thereafter, and 2) pay off any past-due rent from March-September by March 31, 2021 (but NOT any late fees, since those were prohibited). If the landlord wishes, they may provide a notice (with or without a proposed alternative payment plan) informing the tenant that they must assure their intent to use the grace period. If the tenant does not respond to such a notice, the tenant still gets the six-month grace period, but must pay back the past due rent plus one-half month’s additional rent by March 31, 2021. In a nutshell, all past due rent must be paid by March 31, 2021, unless the tenant and landlord come to a different agreement.

• Business Mortgages Protection: Since landlords also often have mortgages, we passed a law providing a similar kind of relief to them. These provisions do not apply to federally-backed mortgages, which have their own relief program. For state-regulated mortgage loans, foreclosures are prohibited until September 30, 2020, at which time payments must resume. However, unlike the grace period of six months in the lease context, the ‘catch up’ period for mortgages is the remaining term on the loan. At the end of the loan, the borrower owes any missed payments to the lender. These provisions apply to both traditional mortgages from lenders and owner-carry contracts. However, this relief is only available if, before September 30, 2020 the borrower attests (and, for properties over four units, provides financial statements) that the failure to pay is due to the COVID-19 crisis.

Time Sensitive Small Business Help For Washington County

Washington County Small Business Loans: Applications Open Today! Small business economic assistance grants will be $3,000 each. The application period will open at 8 a.m. Wednesday, July 8. Applications will be accepted until 5 p.m. Friday, July 10, or until 10,000 applications are received, whichever comes first. Links to the applications will be available on the County’s Business Recovery website: co.washington.or.us/bizrecovery  

Who Got Paycheck Protection Program Loans?

The federal Small Business Administration and the U.S. Treasury Department released data on which businesses across the country received loans from the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), which was designed by Congress to help small to midsize businesses keep their workers employed after the pandemic started.

The Oregonian has information here on which Oregon businesses received loans. You also might want to check out this blog post here from the Oregon Office of Economic Analysis, which analyzed the loan data by county and industry.

State economist Josh Lehner writes: ”No real surprises here that leisure and hospitality and other services are receiving the most PPP loans, given these sectors were the tip of the spear of the recession and those most impacted by shelter in place style policies. They needed the most assistance, and got it. Whether it will be enough to truly weather the storm, only time will tell.”

Infections among Younger Adults on the Rise

As coronavirus cases have been on the rise in Oregon and around the nation, there has been an alarming increase in younger adults contracting the virus. The Oregonian has more details on this statewide trend here, and USA Today has more information here on the nationwide wave of new cases in younger Americans. The cause? Most likely increased socializing and complacency.

Education Update

• Healthy Schools Reopening Council: Governor Kate Brown’s Healthy Schools Reopening Council convened for its first remote meeting. The council is charged with advising the Governor and the Oregon Department of Education as school districts develop their plans for a safe return to school for Oregon’s students under the Ready Schools, Safe Learners K-12 schools reopening process. Districts will develop plans for in-person instruction, remote instruction, or a combination of the two.  In order to ensure all community voices are represented, the council includes state and local officials, public health experts, public members from a diverse range of backgrounds, and members from the education community, including representatives of students, parents, support staff, school administrators, school board members, teachers, counselors, and school nurses.  The full membership of the Healthy Schools Reopening Council is available here and you can read the Governor’s Press Release on the Healthy Schools Reopening Council here. 

• Healthy Early Learners Council: Governor Brown announced she will be convening a Healthy Early Learners Council to advise her and the Early Learning Division (ELD) on guidance for the reopening and ongoing operation of early learning and child care programs during the COVID-19 pandemic. The work of this Council will align with the work of the Early Learning System strategic plan, Raise Up Oregon, the Governor’s Early Learning Council, and the Joint Task Force on Access to Quality Affordable Child Care.  The early childhood education sector, including early learning and child care programs, faces unique challenges in the midst of COVID-19, given the limited ability for children and staff to maintain physical distancing, the potential child development implications of staff wearing face coverings in this environment, and the increased cleaning protocols that programs must implement without professional support.  The Council, which will meet over the next several months, will be charged with: 

  • Aligning reopening guidance for children birth through age 8 – including child care, preschool/pre-kindergarten, and Early Intervention / Early Childhood Special Education programs – grounded in equity and the science of child development;

  • Informing revised guidance issued by the Early Learning Division and the Oregon Health Authority to support early childhood program operations with health and safety in mind;

  • Advising on policies to support providers’ and children’s developmental, physical, and mental health needs, including addressing challenging behaviors when returning to care and preventing increases in suspension and expulsion, particularly for young children of color; and

  • Recommendations for the health and well-being of young children and their families during COVID-19, in collaboration with the Early Learning Council. 

• The Council will include elected officials, child care providers, early learning providers, public health experts, and parents, with a focus on ensuring that a wide and diverse range of community voices are represented. A full roster of members will be available prior to the Council’s first meeting in July. 

How to reopen schools should not be political. As we plan for reopening, our greatest responsibility is to care for the physical, mental and academic health and wellbeing of both children and adults.

Answers to Unemployment Questions

My office continues to receive emails from Oregonians who are experiencing delays in receiving the unemployment benefits they are owed and need. I know these delays mean people are choosing between food and medicine. They are afraid they can’t feed their families. They are spending savings. None of this is okay. 

I believe it is my responsibility to hold agencies accountable and that is exactly what I am doing with OED. I continue to personally push the agency for answers on when people will receive their checks. I’ve inquired about the discrepancy in PUA reporting of gross vs net income. I’ve reached out to our US Senators and asked that they request clarification from the US Department of Labor. Read the letter below that Senator Ron Wyden and Representative Richard Neal sent to the Department of Labor.

My office hears you, we’re doing everything we can to move this process forward, and we won’t be satisfied until every Oregonian gets the benefits they are owed.

The Oregon Employment Department occasionally sends out some answers to frequently asked questions. You may find these select ones helpful: 
 

How do I file a weekly PUA claim? I heard I have to do it online and over the phone - is that true?

That is not correct - you do not have to file your weekly claim over the phone. You only have to file your weekly claim one time each week. You should file your weekly claim online through the Online Claim System. Unless you need language or other help, you do not need to call the agency to file a weekly claim.
 

How long will PUA last? And how far back can I get PUA benefits?

PUA benefits may last for up to 39 weeks if you are eligible and out of work due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The program started the week of February 2, 2020, and goes through the week ending December 26, 2020. This does not mean you will automatically get PUA for every week from February through December. You still need to apply and file weekly claims, and be eligible.

You can get retroactive PUA benefits. This means that you can get benefits all the way back to the week you first lost work (but not farther back than February 2, 2020), even if you didn’t apply for PUA until later. To get benefits for past weeks, just list on your initial claim all the weeks you have been affected, and how much (if anything) you earned for each of those weeks. When we process your PUA claim, you will get benefits for all eligible weeks. You will also get the extra $600 per week in FPUC benefits for each week you were eligible for PUA (this only applies from March 29 through July 25).
 

I started to receive PUA checks, then they stopped, what should I do?

This is a result of the backlog OED is working through. If you have not received payment, check the common errors first. Also, ensure you are filling out the weekly certification application and uploading it via secure email, through OED’s website, by fax or via US mail. Saving the application on your desktop is highly recommended.

The three most common errors with PUA applications are:

1. Failure to sign the application
2. Not saving the fillable application on your desktop before filling it out
3. Sending in a blank application (which can happen if you haven’t saved the document before filling out and sending).

These issues should be resolved once the Google solution is available. OED is expecting to have this implemented mid-July.

If the application is successfully processed customers will get a confirmation number and OED just needs to key in the certification manually. If a confirmation number is not received, you should re-submit your PUA claim or weekly certification until a PUA confirmation number is received. If you have a status that says ‘week claimed, not processed yet’, your claim is being processed and needs to be manually entered and there is no need for further action. Continue to file weekly.
 

For school employees - what does “reasonable assurance” mean?

This means a school employee has been given written, verbal, or implied assurance that they will be performing services for a school after the break period. This is a legally required, technical analysis the Employment Department must do to determine if someone is able to receive unemployment benefits during school recess periods.
 

Can school employees who are not eligible to get regular UI access PUA this summer even though they have “reasonable assurance”?

No. If a school employee is found to have reasonable assurance, they would not be eligible for PUA. Current federal guidance requires us to review for reasonable assurance on PUA claims just as we would on a regular claim.
 

Could we bypass or waive doing a reasonable assurance assessment due to COVID-19?

No. These are guidelines set forth by the federal government. At this time, there is no change to the process of determining eligibility during the break periods for a school employee. This process could change if new guidance is provided by the federal government that relates to school employees.

Face Coverings

During these uncertain times, it is important that we all do our part to minimize the spread of this highly infectious, highly dangerous disease. While I understand that may come at the price of some minor discomforts, it is far more important to me that we do what we can to minimize the spread of this illness.  One thing, however, that greatly concerns me is the spread of misleading or factually inaccurate information around best practices. So when I received an email that is being sent to state legislators from constituents using “one click politics” I read the research included in the email. 

The email states “emergency orders that are being issued to help protect public health are actually hurting individuals’ physical and emotional well being — and violating their basic human rights, constitutional rights and religious rights.” It also states It is “unethical and unconstitutional to subject healthy, law-abiding citizens to measures that can result in physical and emotional harm and that impinge on their ability to move freely throughout society.” The problem is the studies included are not internally or externally valid, and are not pertinent to the biology and epidemiology of the current COVID-19 epidemic.

The first study, Face masks to prevent community transmission of viral respiratory infections: A rapid evidence review using Bayesian analysis - Article (Preprint v1)) has multiple limitations and inconsistencies. Also Qeios is not a reputable journal - it isn't indexed in any of the academic databases - it's basically what's called a "pay to play" journal without rigorous peer review standards.  Citing this article while ignoring the hundreds of articles on this topic published in rigorous, indexed, peer-reviewed journals is highly suspect.  

Here are just a few of  the issues:

• The behavior of the participants could not be controlled. Some studies reported data contamination when participants in “no mask” control groups wore face masks of their own accord. Also adherence to face mask use was poorly recorded.

• Only one of the studies actually assessed viral transmission in the wider community. The others only assessed viral spread within households, even though a key concern during respiratory virus pandemics is transmission outside the household.

• Studies also commonly used self-reported (as opposed to laboratory-confirmed) symptoms or illness. 

The second study (A cluster randomised trial of cloth masks compared with medical masks in healthcare workers) is a set of randomized trials of cloth masks compared with medical masks in healthcare workers (HCW) done at hospitals in Hanoi, Vietnam.  The researchers in this study found that continuous wear of cloth masks inside crowded, high acuity hospital wards with extremely high humidity, no air circulation, and frequent close contact with high density viral particles for 12 hours straight lead to these masks becoming damp, reducing their efficacy.  There was no comparison with not wearing masks - the control arm wore masks.  Even though the efficacy of cloth masks in preventing the penetration  of viral particles onto the faces of wearers was only 3%, that is still more than not wearing masks at all, in which case penetration would be 100%.  So, under the very worst possible circumstances which no lay person out in the community would ever experience, cloth masks still had some benefit. The conclusion of the study was that compared to N95 masks, cloth masks are not as effective for healthcare workers in the hospital. 

I understand that, especially in uncertain times like these, it can be tempting to look exclusively at information that supports one perspective, but it is important that we all continue to listen to the experts in the scientific community, and the consensus here is clear: wearing a mask can greatly limit the spread of this virus. If the past few months have shown us anything, it’s that we should listen to the expertise of those who are guided by scientific facts, and we should place their guidance above the noise of partisan politics.

Let’s Stay Connected

We’re all feeling the strain of the pandemic. While ‘Zoom fatigue’ is all too real, it’s important that we don’t lose sight of the need to connect during this time of isolation.

Reopening has meant we can get back to some of our usual daily activities, but that isn’t the same for everyone, particularly people who have existing medical conditions. As much as you can, I’d encourage us all to continue to stay connected with loved ones and friends.

Also, if you or others are struggling and need someone to talk to, remember that there are resources available. Here are a few: 

National Suicide Prevention Hotline | 1-800-273-TALK (8255)

Crisis Text Line | Text HOME to 741741

Oregon Youthline | Call 877-968-8491 or text teen2teen to 839863 between 4pm - 10pm to text with another teen.

National Youth Crisis Hotline | 1-800-442-HOPE (4673)

Oregon Partnership 24 Hour Youth Helpline | 1-877-553-TEEN (8336)

NAMI Oregon | 503-230-8009 or 800-343-6264, email [email protected] - Live support from 9am - 5pm, M-F.

The Trevor Project | 1-866-488-7386 - 24/7 suicide prevention for LGBTQ.

Senior Loneliness Line | 503-200-1633 or 800-282-7035 - For Oregonians 55+ years old. Get ongoing support, resources, and listening sessions.

Veteran Crisis Line | 1-800-273-8255 - Call, chat, or text options, with deaf and hard of hearing support available.

Please email me if you have specific concerns. Our office will do all we can to help and protect all Oregonians. 

For up-to-date Covid 19 information from the Oregon Health Authority, please check this link 

Governor Brown’s COVID-19 Resource page. 

If you want to follow up-to-date statistics from the Oregon Health Authority for case counts, testing counts, breakdowns by geography, demographic, and hospitalization information go here. Under the first dropdown, “COVID-19 Cases in Oregon” there is a daily update with more information, linked just below the total test results:

Thank you for reading! We will get through this together.       

Sincerely,

 Rachel Prusak