Client Alerts

On Wednesday evening (June 3), the U.S. Senate passed the Paycheck Protection Program Flexibility Act. This act was originally passed by the House on May 28 and was described in our earlier Client Alert. It is expected to be signed into law quickly.

On Monday, June 1, Governor Whitmer issued Executive Order 2020-110 (the “Order”), finding that it was now “reasonable and necessary” to move all eight regions of the State of Michigan to the next stage in the Michigan Safe Start Plan. Specifically, the order says, “Michiganders are no longer required to stay home.”

On Thursday afternoon, May 28, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Paycheck Protection Program Flexibility Act, H.R. 7010. Approved by an overwhelming bipartisan vote of 417-1, the Flexibility Act would make notable changes to provisions governing Payroll Protection Program loans under the CARES Act. 

In light of a whirlwind week on Twitter where President Donald Trump has been challenged for sharing a debunked allegation regarding Former Congressman and current MSNBC Morning Joe host Joe Scarborough and was fact-checked by Twitter itself based on two voter fraud statements labeled as “potentially misleading,” the President responded with a strong rebuke, issuing an Executive Order on Preventing Online Censorship (the “EO”). 

Earlier this month, in Sodexo Inc. v. Melissa Jordan, a federal court in Massachusetts refused to enforce a non-competition agreement. 

On Wednesday, May 27, the State of Michigan moved a step closer to adopting name, image, and likeness (“NIL”) legislation for post-secondary athletes. The bill had broad bipartisan support, passing the House by a vote of 92-15.  The bill now moves to the Michigan State Senate. If passed by the Senate it would need to be signed by the governor to become law.

We recently reported a significant decision by the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals, which hears federal appeals in the circuit that includes Michigan. In the case of Gary B. et al v. Gretchen Whitmer, (No. 18-1855/1871, 6th Cir. 4/23/2020), the Court of Appeals held for the first time that a basic minimum education is a fundamental right entitling students to due process protection. The court defined a “basic minimal education” as one that provides “a chance at foundational literacy.” 

On the eve of Memorial Day Weekend, the Governor extended Michigan’s current “Stay Home, Stay Safe” requirements until June 12, 2020.

On May 19, 2020, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) announced that it is rescinding its April 10, 2020 memorandum concerning an employer’s obligation to document an employee’s confirmed case of COVID-19.

The rollout of the CARES Act’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) has been fraught with confusion and frustration. Indeed, the “rules” of the PPP game seem to be ever-changing, leaving borrowers, lenders, lawyers, and accountants (among others) in a constant state of uncertainty as to how to properly comply with the intricacies of the CARES Act and related guidance. 

On May 21, 2020, Governor Whitmer issued two new Executive Orders (“EO”) geared towards reopening Michigan’s businesses, including orders repealing Executive Orders 2020-17 and 2020-34 that require healthcare providers to delay all non-essential dental, medical and veterinary services. Effective May 29, 2020, healthcare providers may resume routine services and elective procedures, subject to continued adherence to strict safety measures designed to protect employees, customers, clients, and patients.

Mexico’s Secretary of Health published a document called Technical Guidelines for Sanitary Security in the Workplace. Within those guidelines, the Secretary also published a “Sanitary Safety Protocol Self-evaluation” (“SSP”). The SSP comprises around 70 questions. 

Michigan property owners should have received their real property tax Notice of Assessment earlier this year.  Property owners may find that they are being assessed using inflated taxable values, especially if they have not recently appealed their property tax assessments.

There is much in the news in the past month or so concerning so-called "Compassionate Release" of inmates who are serving their sentences in U.S. Bureau of Prisons (BOP) institutions, largely due to concerns over COVID -19 spread among the prisoner population and staff at those institutions.  

On May 16, 2020, the SBA released its long-awaited forgiveness application that includes detailed guidance on calculating how much of a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan may be forgiven. 

On May 18, 2020, the SBA issued a new “Interim Final Rule” (Docket Number SBA-2020-0030) providing a safe harbor for certain borrowers who may have misunderstood the SBA’s foreign affiliation rules under the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP)

Updates to the Michigan COVID-19 Response Include Creation of Regions Allowing More “Resumed Activities” and a Separate Order Defining “Safeguards to Protect Michigan’s Workers from COVID-19”

This morning, after two previous publications, Mexico’s Secretary of Health published in Mexico’s Official Gazette another resolution amending the May 14th resolution, which designated companies performing mining, construction, and transportation equipment manufacturing activities as essential. Unfortunately, the text of today’s resolution is still ambiguous and raises several questions.

With Executive Order 2020-77, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer permitted manufacturing to reopen as of May 11th, though many plants announced that they would not be prepared to do so until May 18th. Prior to this latest iteration of the “Stay Home, Stay Safe” Orders, other industries—such as lawn care, construction, real estate, and other select industries—have also been permitted to reopen. But, there are certain requirements for those who do.   

Employers now have an additional method to help their employees who have been financially impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.