Paid Sick Leave & Deadlines for Small Business Relief
March 2021
Dear Neighbors and Friends,
I hope that you and yours are safe and healthy given the extraordinary circumstances amid COVID-19. As the legislature reconvened in January, I was appointed Chair of Budget Subcommittee 4 on State Administration and we have been hard at work to bring equity and deliver results for you, your family, and your business. I fought for what is outlined below to provide much needed relief, and to ensure our recovery efforts ultimately put people first.
Please contact me with any questions or if you need support from any of the members of the 51st Assembly District office team. If you need assistance with EDD, please fill out this form.
Paid Sick Leave
Earlier this month, Governor Newsom signed the paid sick leave bill I helped champion into law. Californians who cannot work or must care for a loved one because of COVID-19, will now get up to two weeks of paid sick leave. Frontline and essential workers no longer have to make a choice between a paycheck and their health and safety, or the health and safety of others.
Here’s what our state’s new paid sick leave law means for you and your family:
- 80 hours of guaranteed COVID-19 emergency paid sick leave for circumstances such as quarantining, recuperating from disease, recovering from the side effects of the vaccine, providing care for a sick family member, or responding to childcare and school closures.
- If you work for an employer with 25 or more employees, you will automatically receive this paid sick leave benefit through September 30 and retroactive to January 1 –
If you already missed work because you had COVID-19 or were caring for a family member with COVID-19, you could be entitled to backpay. - If you work for an employer with fewer than 25 employees, you will not automatically receive this benefit, but your employer can still offer it –
There is a tax credit, covering workers who make $60 an hour or less, that reimburses 100% of the cost (up to $511 a day) of paid sick leave for any employee who needs it.
We can stop the spread of COVID-19 and save lives, and also ensure financial security and economic opportunity for workers and workplaces. I’m committed to helping all those who have faced hardship and heartache; everyone who has borne the brunt of the global pandemic.
Vaccines
On April 1 all Los Angeles County residents age 50 and older may receive the vaccine. On April 15, all Los Angeles County residents age 16 and older may receive the vaccine.
In the coming weeks, we will be unveiling a pilot project with LAUSD to use school sites as vaccine centers in hot zones like East Los Angeles who have been disproportionately impacted. We have already partnered with mobile clinics and community clinics to ensure residents who use public transit, have language barriers, and lack access to the internet or a smartphone with data, are able to make a vaccine appointment, and can get vaccinated right away.
I have fought and will continue to fight for equity in COVID-19 testing and vaccination. Thanks to efforts I’ve led with federal, state, county, and city offices, no neighborhood is going to get left behind. More Californians than ever are now eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine, and the number of vaccination sites is growing rapidly. For more information, please visit https://myturn.ca.gov/ or https://carbonhealth.com/covid-19-vaccines/los-angeles. You may also call 1-833-422-4255 or 1-833-540-0473, to make an appointment, or sign up for notification of when you can get one.
Rent Relief
The relief for renters and landlords that I championed is here. If you need help paying for past due rent or utilities, you may be eligible for California’s COVID-19 Rent Relief program, designed to cover up to one year of unpaid back rent (accrued between April 2020 and March 2021). A statewide Local Partner Network has been convened to provide support across every community, in every language. Please visit http://HousingIsKey.com for more information and to apply. You may also call 1-833-422-4255 or 1-833-430-2122.
Federal Stimulus
I called on US President Joe Biden to approve a 2021 Economic Impact Payment of $1,400 per qualifying adult, and $1,400 per dependent, for all Americans with Social Security Numbers, as well as for children who have one or more parent with an Individual Tax Identification Number(ITIN), or who is ITIN eligible. If you have not yet received your payment of $1,400 or more, or if you never got federal relief in 2020, please visit https://www.irs.gov/coronavirus/get-my-payment.
Golden State Stimulus
In addition to federal relief, I fought to ensure California’s resources would go to households and small businesses facing hardship. If you earned $30,000 or less in 2020, you might qualify for the up to $3,000 California Earned Income Tax Credit (CalEITC). If you have a child under 6, you might also qualify for the up to $1,000 California’s Young Child Tax Credit.
The deadline to file your state and federal tax returns for 2020 has been extended until May 17. File your 2020 tax return for free, and if you qualify for CalEITC, you will also receive a bonus $600 one-time grant, designed to help you make ends meet, called the Golden State Stimulus.
Caregivers participating in the California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids program, (CalWORKS) ITIN households, earning up to $75,000, excluded from 2020’s federal CARES Act stimulus, as well as Californians who rely on Social Security Disability Insurance, (SSDI) Supplemental Security Income, (SSI) or the Cash Assistance Program for Immigrants (CAPI) are eligible to receive the Golden State Stimulus as well.
Business Resources
Local businesses shape neighborhoods and create opportunities for CA families. That's why I championed Relief Grants for small businesses, nonprofits, and cultural institutions, expanded California Competes Tax Credits, license fee waivers, tax relief for startups, and more. I want to ensure AD-51 and California businesses, workplaces, entrepreneurs, and workers thrive.
I fought for $575 billion in additional Relief Grants which are now available for small businesses, nonprofits, and cultural institutions that have faced COVID-19 related hardships. Both those with Social Security Numbers and ITINs are eligible. Please visit https://careliefgrant.com/ to access on-demand webinars, answers to an extensive list of Frequently Asked Questions, and links to county-by-county directories of partner organizations able to support applicants in multiple languages. Please email careliefgrant@lendistry.com or call 1-888-612-4370 if you hit a roadblock. The deadline for this round of applications is March 31.
I championed $71.1 million in additional California Competes Tax Credits (CCTCs) which are now available for businesses creating full time jobs that might not otherwise get created this year. CCTCs are available to businesses of any industry or size that want to locate in California or stay and grow here. Please visit https://www.calcompetes.ca.gov/Login.aspx?ReturnUrl=%2f to apply, or for more information. The deadline for this round of applications is March 29.
I also fought for $70.6 million in fee waivers for individuals and businesses that have not been able to operate or have operated at reduced capacity in line with health and safety restrictions. As a result, restaurants and bars, and 59,000 other on-sale license holders will have their license fees up to $1,235 waived by the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control. 600,000 individuals and businesses licensed in barbering and cosmetology will have their renewal fees waived by the Department of Consumer Affairs. In addition, the $800 minimum franchise tax – often a barrier for start-ups – has been waived by the California Franchise Tax Board.
We can support working Californians and their families, and we can support small business owners and large employers. We can do both, and we have.
In Service,
Wendy Carrillo
Assemblymember, 51st District
