The Cook County Board unanimously approved a request from the Cook County Revolving Loan Fund Committee to suspend for six months payments on all loans and halt the accrual of interest on all loans because of the economic impact on business of the COVID-19 shutdown.
As County Auditor Braidy Powers explained, the action freezes principal and interest and pushes back by six months the due date on every loan, including loans that are delinquent or otherwise non-current. Further, County Board Member Robert Deschampe stressed that there may be a need to revisit the question at the end of six months and extend the suspension of payments. Other board members were quick to agree with Deschampe.
Hal Greenwood, chair and long-time member of the revolving loan fund committee, expressed delight at the action. “Many thanks should go out to the County Board and the revolving loan fund committee for supporting this bold action,” Greenwood said. With about $15,000 in payments due each month, the suspension should delay payments of roughly $90,000 over the six-month period, plus the savings from non-accrual of interest, he said.
The County Board resolution said:
WHEREAS, on March 13, 2020, the Governor of the State of Minnesota declared a peacetime emergency related to the transmission of the novel coronavirus and its resulting illness, COVID-19; and on March 17, 2020, the Cook County Board of Commissioners declared Cook County in a state of emergency for conditions resulting from the COVID-19 outbreak;
WHEREAS, the actions taken to stem the COVID-19 outbreak will have a profound economic impact on small local businesses;
WHEREAS, a quorum of the Cook County Revolving Loan Fund Committee met on March 24, 2020 to consider actions to aid small local businesses struggling with the COVID-19 outbreak economic impact and unanimously approved a recommendation to the Cook County Board to offer a six month deferral of loan payments to recipients of the Cook County Revolving Loan Fund;
WHEREAS, the Cook County Board of Commissioners also recognizes the profound economic impact of the COVID-19 outbreak and wishes to provide aid to small local businesses:
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Cook County Board of Commissioners approves offering a six-month deferral of loan payments to Cook County Revolving Loan Fund recipients.
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