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Jo Ellen Diehl Yeary | Generosity rooted in pride, remembrance, dedication to home

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Additional Resources for Appalachian Ohio During the COVID-19 Pandemic

The Foundation for Appalachian Ohio created the Appalachian Ohio Emergency Response Fund to support Appalachian Ohio’s initial response to the COVID-19 pandemic and its social and economic impacts on our communities.

Below, we are compiling additional resources relevant to individuals, educators, small businesses, nonprofits, and other entities that are continuing to be impacted by the current crisis.

COVID-19 Additional Resources

The Ohio Development Services Agency - The U.S. Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program provides low-interest loans up to $2 million in order to help businesses overcome the temporary loss of revenue during the state of emergency. Nonprofit organizations in Ohio will also be eligible for low-interest loans through the SBA’s Economic Injury Disaster Loan program. In order to complete the state’s application, businesses impacted by the current public health crisis should immediately send their contact information to BusinessHelp@Development.Ohio.gov.

The State of Ohio has extended unemployment benefits to workers in quarantine and employees of businesses that temporarily shut down due to coronavirus.

Federal Student Aid – to provide relief to student loan borrowers during the COVID-19 national emergency, federal student loan borrowers can be placed in an administrative forbearance, which allows you to temporarily stop making your monthly loan payment.

Appalachian Growth Capital – small business lending.

Appalachian Partnership for Economic Growth – COVID-19 resources for economic development leaders, employers and our workforce in the OhioSE region.

The Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced special Federal income tax return filing and payment relief in response to the ongoing COVID-19 emergency, including a July 15, 2020 extension date.

Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank (Carroll, Holmes, Tuscarawas)

Freestore Foodbank (Adams, Clermont, Brown, Highland, Pike, Scioto)

Second Harvest Food Bank of the Mahoning Valley (Columbiana, Mahoning, Trumbull)

Southeast Ohio Regional Foodbank (Athens, Gallia, Hocking, Jackson, Lawrence, Meigs, Morgan, Perry, Vinton, Washington)

The Cleveland Foodbank (Ashtabula)

The Mid-Ohio Foodbank (Belmont, Coshocton, Guernsey, Harrison, Jefferson, Monroe, Muskingum, Noble, Ross)

On March 27 the CARES Act was passed to provide immediate relief for individuals, nonprofits, businesses, and state and local governments.

Learn more about how the CARES Act can support your nonprofit by viewing this free webinar hosted by the Ohio Association of Nonprofit Organizations and Schneider Downs. The webinar discusses a variety of CARES Act provisions that can make an impact for nonprofits. To follow along with the webinar, click here to download the slides used in the presentation.

A provision in the CARES Act, the Paycheck Protection Loan Program, will provide loans to help nonprofits cover eight weeks of payroll, benefits, rent or mortgage interest, and utilities. Qualifying nonprofits may receive up to eight weeks of loan forgiveness. To learn more about this program and whether your nonprofit can qualify for a PPP loan, click here.

The required minimum distribution (RMD) is waived for IRA and other qualified retirement plan owners for the year 2020. This provision will permit IRA and other qualified retirement plan owners to retain funds in their IRAs. Because the markets declined substantially after the current RMD was calculated based on the plan value on December 31, 2019, Congress determined that it was beneficial to waive the RMD for 2020. Loyal donors may still wish to use IRA funds to make a qualified charitable distribution (QCD). The QCD is available up to $100,000 for individuals who are over age 70½.

Ohio Secretary of State - On March 25, 2020, the Ohio General Assembly passed H.B. 197, legislation aimed at dealing with the state’s response to the Coronavirus/COVID-19 pandemic. Among other items, the bill sets April 28, 2020 as the final day of Ohio’s primary election. All votes prior to March 17 will count. If you have not yet voted, you must request an absentee ballot from your local board of elections.

The U.S. Census Bureau is monitoring the coronavirus situation and modifying its operations accordingly. Completing the census form online is highly encouraged and can help direct billions of dollars in federal funds to local communities, help your community prepare to meet emergency readiness needs, and determine the number of seats each state has in the U.S. House of Representatives.

First Book – First Book and the Foundation for Appalachian Ohio are partnering to grow resources for the citizens of Appalachian Ohio and connect educators and service providers to high quality educational materials.

WOUB and PBS have curated free, standards aligned videos, interactives, lesson plans and more for educators.

The Ohio Department of Education – updated information regarding Ohio’s ordered school-building closure.

Charter Communications - free access to Spectrum Broadband and Wi-Fi for new, student households.

The Keep America Connected Pledge asks U.S. telephone and broadband service providers to agree that, for the next 60 days, they will open Wi-Fi hotspots to all Americans who need them, not terminate any services to residential or small business customers who can’t pay their bills due to complications from the pandemic, and also waive any late fees those customers might incur due to economic disruptions prompted by the coronavirus. 

The Ohio Chamber of Commerce – providing regular updates to business owners regarding temporary restrictions, legislation, and available resources.

Southeastern Ohio Legal Services – resources and legal information relating to COVID-19.

The Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) extended its winter reconnect order through May 1, 2020.

The Paradox Prize is working to connect nonprofits on the frontlines facing a surge in mobility needs to available transportation resources. Nonprofits with COVID-related needs and public transit agencies/mobility providers equipped to assist can go to paradoxprize.com to fill out a short form and immediately access information related to their service area. Transit agencies are currently participating in a number of counties, including Mahoning, Trumbull, Washington, Perry, and Ashtabula counties in Appalachian Ohio.

If you know of other relevant resources that are not listed, please email them to info@ffao.org, and we will update this page on a rolling basis.