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RESOLUTION DIRECTING THE COUNTY MAYOR OR COUNTY MAYOR�S DESIGNEE TO DEVELOP AND IMPLEMENT A GRANT PROGRAM FOR VETERAN HOMEOWNERS AND VETERAN-OWNED BUSINESSES USING $20,000,000.00 IN FUNDS MADE AVAILABLE THROUGH THE 2020 CORONAVIRUS AID, RELIEF, AND ECONOMIC SECURITY ACT (CARES ACT) TO ALLEVIATE FINANCIAL HARDSHIPS CAUSED BY CORONAVIRUS DISEASE 2019 (COVID-19); DIRECTING THE COUNTY MAYOR OR COUNTY MAYOR�S DESIGNEE TO ADMINISTER THE PROGRAM WITH THE ASSISTANCE OF THE COUNTY�S MILITARY AFFAIRS BOARD AND SMALL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT DIVISION; AUTHORIZING THE COUNTY MAYOR OR COUNTY MAYOR�S DESIGNEE TO NEGOTIATE AND EXECUTE ANY DOCUMENTS NECESSARY TO CARRY OUT THE PURPOSES OF THE PROGRAM; AND REQUIRING A REPORT

BODY
WHEREAS, coronavirus disease 2019 (�COVID-19�) is an infectious disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, a novel coronavirus that was first identified in December 2019; and implement
WHEREAS, the disease has spread globally, and on March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization officially declared COVID-19 a pandemic; and
WHEREAS, on March 9, 2020, Governor Ron DeSantis issued Executive Order No. 20-52 declaring a state of emergency for the entire State of Florida as a result of COVID-19; and
WHEREAS, on March 11, 2020, Mayor Carlos A. Gimenez declared a state of emergency for Miami-Dade County as a result of COVID-19; and
WHEREAS, these orders have since been extended; and
WHEREAS, as of July 14, 2020, the total number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 worldwide is over 13 million, with more than 3.4 million of those in the United States; and
WHEREAS, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, public health officials and the CDC encouraged �social distancing� to reduce the spread of the virus; and
WHEREAS, to enforce social distancing, Governor DeSantis and Mayor Gimenez have issued executive and emergency orders restricting businesses� and residents� activities in order to prevent the spread of COVID-19; and
WHEREAS, while these precautions were established to keep people safe, they have a negative financial impact on many County businesses and residents; and
WHEREAS, indeed, more than 44.2 million Americans have filed for unemployment since March 2020; and
WHEREAS, to help blunt the impact of the economic downturn set in motion by the COVID-19 pandemic, the United States Congress passed, and on March 27, 2020 President Donald Trump signed into law, H.R. 748, the �Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act� (the �CARES Act�); and
WHEREAS, the CARES Act is a $2 trillion stimulus package which provided, among other things:
* one-time checks of $1,200 to Americans earning a certain income;
* $349 billion in loans to small businesses;
* $17 billion of assistance to companies deemed crucial to national security;
* grants of $25 billion for passenger air carriers, $4 billion for air-cargo carriers, and $3 billion for certain contractors; and
* a $150 billion Coronavirus Relief Fund for local governments; and

WHEREAS, the CARES Act requires that the payments to local governments from the Coronavirus Relief Fund only be used to cover expenses that:
* are necessary expenditures incurred due to the public health emergency with respect to COVID-19;
* were not included in the budget most recently approved as of March 27, 2020 for the state or local government; and
* were incurred during the period that begins on March 1, 2020, and ends on December 30, 2020; and
WHEREAS, the State of Florida was allocated $8.328 billion from the Coronavirus Relief Fund, of which the County received $474 million; and
WHEREAS, the Coronavirus Relief Fund monies must be used by December 30, 2020, and any residual returned to the federal government; and
WHEREAS, this Board has recently approved legislation providing financial assistance to various individuals, organizations, and small businesses impacted by COVID-19; and
WHEREAS, for example, Resolution No. R-557-20 authorized the County Mayor or County Mayor�s designee to negotiate and execute a $25 million grant agreement with the Dade County Federal Credit Union using 2020 Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) funds to develop and implement a revolving loan program to provide micro-businesses throughout the County impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic with low interest rate loans; and
WHEREAS, in Resolution No. R-583-20, this Board also provided $5 million for a small business forgivable loan program using Community Development Block Grant funding specifically allocated through the CARES Act; and
WHEREAS, the public health emergency caused by COVID-19 has had and will continue to have a serious economic impact in the County, particularly on veterans, who generally are at higher risk from COVID-19 due to age and underlying health conditions; and
WHEREAS, indeed, the combination of job losses, social isolation and mounting anxiety connected to the COVID-19 pandemic could hit veterans especially hard; and
WHEREAS, about one in every seven veterans employed in America today works in an industry that has been severely impacted by COVID-19, including transportation, employment services, travel arrangements, and leisure and hospitality; and
WHEREAS, additionally, about 500,000 veterans live across the 15 major U.S. cities where economic impacts from COVID-19 have been most pronounced; and
WHEREAS, in addition to the financial worries, veterans already facing mental health difficulties could see those problems aggravated by public health efforts to stop the outbreak; and
WHEREAS, social distancing and self-quarantining are necessary to help control the spread of COVID-19, but they can also increase the sense of loneliness of veterans, many of whom reported often feeling lonely even before COVID-19; and
WHEREAS, this Board is concerned about the short-term and long-term economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic to veteran homeowners and veteran-owned businesses in the County; and
WHEREAS, accordingly, this Board desires to direct the County Mayor or County Mayor�s designee to use funding made available through the CARES Act to assist veteran homeowners and veteran-owned businesses impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic,
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, FLORIDA, that:
Section 1. The foregoing recitals are adopted as if fully set forth herein.
Section 2. This Board directs the County Mayor or County Mayor�s designee to develop and implement a grant program for veteran homeowners and veteran-owned businesses impacted by COVID-19 using $20,000,000.00 in funds made available through the CARES Act. In developing the program, the County Mayor or County Mayor�s designee shall provide for a uniform maximum grant amount per individual and per business, and also establish minimum eligibility criteria for the program, including but not limited to requiring that applicants demonstrate past or imminent financial loss due to COVID-19 and requiring that applicants present proof of a valid Veteran�s Affairs identification card or a copy of Department of Defense Form 214.
Section 3. The County Mayor or County Mayor's designee is directed to administer the program with the assistance of the County�s Military Affairs Board and the County�s Small Business Development Division, and to appoint staff as necessary to administer and monitor the program. In administering the program, the County Mayor or County Mayor�s designee shall give preference to those applicants who demonstrate that they have not received financial assistance from other emergency county, city, state, or federal forgivable loan or grant programs established in response to COVID-19. Funding for the program shall be equally distributed among the 13 county commission districts to the extent feasible.
Section 4. This Board further authorizes the County Mayor or the County Mayor�s designee to negotiate and execute any documents necessary to carry out the purposes of the program, following approval of such documents by the County Attorney�s office for legal form and sufficiency.

Section 5. This Board directs the County Mayor or County Mayor�s designee to provide a written report within 30 days of the effective date of this resolution detailing the status of the development and implementation of the program or explaining why it has not been developed or implemented. Upon implementation, the County Mayor or County Mayor�s designee shall provide a written report to this Board every 60 days thereafter, detailing the status of the veteran homeowners and veteran-owned businesses that have received financial assistance from the program, until funding for the program is exhausted. The completed reports shall be placed on agendas of the Board pursuant to Ordinance No. 14-65.