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Coronavirus Government Response Update—ISSA Thanks Legislators for Introducing Clean Start Tax Credit

Welcome to the Coronavirus Government Response Update. This information is intended to keep ISSA members up to date on fast-moving government affairs related to the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as other public policy issues important to the cleaning industry. Today’s update touches on the Clean Start: Back to Work Tax Credit Act being introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives, methods to urge elected officials to support this tax credit, a decline in the number of Americans on jobless benefits, and more.

ISSA Thanks Legislators for Introducing Clean Start Tax Credit
ISSA thanks Representative Darin LaHood (IL-18-R) and Representative Stephanie Murphy (FL-7-D) for introducing the bipartisan Clean Start: Back to Work Tax Credit Act in the U.S. House of Representatives. This important legislation would provide a tax credit to businesses to help ensure they are properly cleaned and disinfected as stay-at-home restrictions are lifted, helping to prevent further infections. The bill would create a US$25,000 tax credit capped at $250,000 per business entity to help defray the unforeseen and increased cleaning costs associated with fighting the coronavirus.

Take Action Now – Urge Your Elected Officials to Support the Clean Start Tax Credit
ISSA needs your help to continue to build momentum for the Clean Start: Back to Work Tax Credit Act. Please take a moment to contact your federal elected officials using ISSA’s Action Center to request their support for the Clean Start: Back to Work Tax Credit as part of the next stimulus package. Your action now is critical to continuing to build support for this important proposal.

Americans on Jobless Benefits Post First Drop of Pandemic
The country’s jobless rolls shrank for the first time during the coronavirus pandemic, a sign people are starting to return to work, even as millions more Americans filed for unemployment benefits. Continuing claims, which tally Americans’ ongoing benefit claims in state programs, fell to 21.1 million for the week ended May 16, Labor Department figures showed. Those data are reported with a one-week lag. That suggests the job market is starting to rebound as businesses reopen.

China Passes Hong Kong Security Laws as U.S. Prepares to Retaliate
China’s parliament has approved new national security laws for Hong Kong, which will allow Beijing to bypass the city’s legislature and clamp down on political dissent in a move expected to trigger economic retaliation from the United States. The National People’s Congress (NPC), a legislative body that rubber-stamps rules made by the Chinese Communist Party, approved the controversial security law proposal in a vote of 2,878 for and one against. Six of the delegates abstained from voting. The move means the NPC Standing Committee can now push ahead with formulating the new laws aimed at tackling secession, subversion, and terrorism in Hong Kong.

Other links of interest

• ISSA Webinar Recording – Legislative Update: COVID-19 and the Cleaning Industry (May 26, 2020; available to ISSA members only)
• ISSA Calls on Congress to Enact COVID-19 Liability Relief
• ISSA Coronavirus Government Response FAQ
• SBA Coronavirus (COVID-19): Small Business Guidance and Loan Resources
• EPA Coronavirus (COVID-19)