The Standardbred Breeders and Owners Association of New Jersey issued a pair of releases on Friday (April 3) pertaining to the current state of racing amid the COVID-19 outbreak.

The SBOANJ would like to remind our members that staff is continuing to work diligently during these difficult times.

Recent state and federal assistance programs that have become available are currently listed on our website. We will continue to locate and post the latest information regarding these programs as it becomes available.

The SBOANJ office remains open for regular hours during the week but is closed to visitors. Our staff has been working to make sure all businesses, including insurance claims, continue to be handled in a timely manner. Please continue to mail or deposit any payments or paperwork in the drop box located at the office front door.

At this time we are all aware of the statewide stay-at-home order given by the governor, the order states that he will evaluate the Coronavirus outbreak mid-April. This means that racing will not resume until he lifts the stay-at-home order. That being said the SBOANJ, the NJ Racing Commission, other state officials, and the racetracks are working on a proposal to return to racing. With the implementation of screening programs at the training centers and racetracks and practicing safe distancing guidelines, we hope to persuade the governor to allow us to get back to racing as soon as possible. This plan would require coordinated efforts at multiple levels, especially the horsemen, but the final decision will rest with the governor.

We will continue to update our members with the most important information we have. We urge you to continue to visit our website, sboanj.com, for pertinent information when it becomes available.

There are currently two SBA programs that we feel are important to our members and you should consider applying for within the next few days.

The first one is The Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) - for an explanation and overview: https://www.sba.gov/funding-programs/loans/paycheck-protection-program-…

Small business and sole proprietorship - Accepting applications as of Friday, April 3, 2020. Application available here: https://home.treasury.gov/system/sites/default/files/136/Paycheck-Prote…

Independent contractors and self-employed individuals - Accepting applications as of Friday, April 10, 2020.

• Up to $10 million

• Up to 8 weeks of payroll (2.5x monthly)

• Employee Benefits

• State and Local taxes on compensation

• No Personal Guarantees

• Loan maybe forgiven

• PPP Fact Sheet - https://home.treasury.gov/system/sites/default/files/136/PPP--Fact-Shee…

The second one is the Emergency Injury Disaster Loan Program (EIDL) - https://www.sba.gov/page/disaster-loan-applications

• Applications Link - https://covid19relief.sba.gov/#/

• Directly through the SBA

• Up to $2 million

• CARES Act also includes up to $10,000 immediate grant

• Use for Working capital

• Requires personal Guarantee

In addition, the Federal Assistance programs individual state programs have been established. These additional stimulus programs fall under State Economic Development Grants. The scope of businesses covered by these programs is limited so they will not apply to all businesses. https://www.withum.com/resources/state-economic-development-grants/

Our recommendation:

Call your banker about PPP today and see if they process SBA loans. If so complete the application and submit it immediately. Some banks are not registered to handle SBA loans but contact us and we can help direct you to one that does.

Apply for EIDL today - It is easy takes 10 minutes. You can decide whether you want the funding based upon terms and amounts.

(SBOANJ)