Thank you for taking the time to read this week's e-update. At this time, this will be my last e-update until after the November elections. Under normal circumstances, legislators who are seeking re-election are prohibited from sending out mass communications after April 15th of even-numbered years. However, 2019 Act 185 provided an exemption for communications related to the COVID-19 public health emergency through June 10th.
With that said, my office and I are still continuing to assisting constituents with unemployment and other state issues. If you have anything you'd like assistance with or would like to discuss, feel free to contact me. Below you will find some more updates on the state's response to COVID-19. I hope that this information is useful to you. Over the past several weeks, my office has seen a significant increase in the number of constituent contacts. For those of you who have reached out for assistance, my staff and I continue to do our very best to assist constituents of the 87th Assembly District as quickly as we can.
Small Business Grant Application Info Announced
The Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC) has recently announced information about the application process for the "We're All In" Small Business Grant program. This program works to assist small businesses throughout the state that are struggling due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The program uses funds from the federal CARES Act to provide $2,500 to 30,000 small businesses throughout the state. These funds can be used to help with the costs of business interruption or for health and safety improvements, wages and salaries, rent, mortgages, and inventory.
To be eligible, businesses must:
Be a Wisconsin-based, for-profit business
Employ 20 or fewer full-time equivalent (FTE) employees, including the owner
Earn greater than $0, but less than $1 million in annual revenues (gross sales and receipts)
Have started operating prior to January 1, 2020, and have been in business as of February 2020 (seasonal businesses should use the highest total FTE's employed during the season)
The application will only be available for one week, from 8 am Monday, June 15th, through 11:59 pm Sunday, June 21st. For more information regarding the application requirements and frequently asked questions, check out WEDC's website by clicking here.
Farm Support Program Details Announced
In a previous e-update, I discussed how my colleagues and I asked for some federal funds from the CARES Act be allocated to create this program, and that I was glad to see it was being done. Today, I am glad to see more details about this important Farm Support Program being released by the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection (DATCP). Click here to read the full press release by DATCP.
Wisconsin farmers with gross income between $35,000 - $5,000,000 in 2019 may be eligible for the program. The application will not be available until June 15th and will close on June 29th. Individual payments to farmers will range from $1,000 - $3,500. The Wisconsin Department of Revenue (DOR) will be administering the program. I encourage all the farmers in the 87th District to apply for this aid as soon as they can after June 15th, even if they aren't sure if they qualify.The link to apply for the aid will go live starting June 15th on DOR's website.
I also encourage any farms out there in the district that are struggling right now to contact the Wisconsin Farm Center, a division at DATCP specifically created for helping our state's farms. They provide programs including financial planning, veteran farmer assistance, herd-based diagnostic programs, and more. During this tough time, this could be an excellent resource for farmers to reach out to for assistance. Click here for more information on the Farm Center. Farm Center staff can be contacted by phone at 1-800-942-2474 or by email at farmcenter@wisconsin.gov.
UI Help Reminder
As I've mentioned in my e-updates over the past several weeks, my office is continuing to assist constituents with unemployment insurance (UI) claims. If you have an ongoing claim with the Department of Workforce Development (DWD) and it has been over 30 days since your initial filing date or you have been unable to contact anyone at the department, my office and I would be happy to try and help you. On my website, www.repedming.com, I have created a form for constituents who need help with their claim. The form can be found by clicking here. The information requested in this form is what is required to submit an inquiry on your behalf to DWD.
Once you click 'submit,' you should see a short confirmation message that your information has been submitted. Sometimes it may take a little while for the message to appear. Please note that the department has informed legislative offices that inquiries made on their behalf could take up to two weeks for them to respond to, but hopefully, it will not take them this long.
Also, in addition to my office placing an inquiry with DWD on your behalf, there is now a new resource for folks who have applied for Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA). Earlier this week, DWD went live with a dedicated PUA hotline to provide assistance with these claims. This hotline is available from 7:30 am to 4:30 pm, Monday through Friday at (608) 318-7100.
