GEORGIA TO RESTART ECONOMY ON FRIDAY
ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia's governor has announced plans to restart the state's economy before the end of the week, saying many businesses that closed to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus could reopen as early as Friday.
The governor in neighboring Tennessee planned to let businesses in most of his state begin reopening as soon as next week.
Georgia's timetable, one of the most aggressive in the nation, would allow gyms, hair salons, bowling alleys and tattoo parlors to reopen — if owners follow strict social-distancing and hygiene requirements. Elective medical procedures could also resume. By Monday, movie theaters may resume selling tickets, and restaurants limited to takeout orders could return to limited dine-in service.
Such a swift reopening runs counter to the advice of many experts, including Dr. Anthony Fauci, the government’s top authority on infectious diseases, who warned again yesterday that resuming business too soon risked a fresh spike in infections.
CORONAVIRUS - MEAT PLANTS
IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Governors in the Midwest are working to keep large meatpacking plants operating despite coronavirus outbreaks that have sickened hundreds of workers and threaten to disrupt the nation’s supply of pork and beef.
In Kansas, Gov. Laura Kelly sent personal protective equipment and testing supplies to counties with meat processing plants. Gov. Kristi Noem said she didn't think it would be difficult to fulfill federal requirements to reopen a shuttered facility in South Dakota. And Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds warned of the dire cost of closing plants, even as she acknowledged the certainty of more COVID-19 cases.
SOME RESTAURANT CHAINS GET HELP FROM SMALL-BUSINESS AID PKG
UNDATED (AP) — Some big restaurant chains have obtained loans from the government under a small-business relief program, leading business groups to call for changes to the program before Congress provides it with new funding.
The Paycheck Protection Program exhausted its $350 billion in funding last week and many small businesses were unable to obtain loans they desperately need to stay afloat. Congress and the White House say they're close to an agreement on a new package that would give the program about $300 billion in fresh funds.
Restaurant chains Shake Shack, Ruth’s Hospitality Group and Potbelly’s each announced last week they’d obtained loans worth a combined $40 million under the program. Although the loans are within the guidelines of the PPP, Shake Shack says it will return its loan to give smaller restaurants a chance to get government money. The New York burger chain, which employs nearly 8,000 workers across 189 outlets, said it secured alternate funding.