On Wednesday, April 1, at 9 am PDT / 12 pm EDT, I’ll be on Facebook Live with BoardSource CEO Anne Wallestad and host Andy Davis to discuss some of the main legal issues we’re hearing from the nonprofit sector during the COVID-19 crisis.
We’ll be responding to questions from attendees, but I believe we may cover some discussion on any of the following topics:
- Workplace safety
- The General Duty Clause requires employers to furnish to each worker “employment and a place of employment, which are free from recognized hazards that are causing or are likely to cause death or serious physical harm. – OSHA COVID-19 webpage
- Guidance on Preparing Workplaces for COVID-19 (OSHA)
- The CARES Act (signed into law on March 27)
- Employment law issues
- COVID-19 and the Fair Labor Standards Act Questions and Answers (Department of Labor)
- Compensation
- Work from home
- Vacation / PTO
- Employee-volunteers
- COVID-19 and the Family and Medical Leave Act Questions and Answers (Department of Labor)
- Covered employers
- Employee eligibility
- Employee entitlement
- Unpaid leave
- Unlawful discrimination
- Layoffs (WARN Act – 100 or more employees)
- Employee Rights – Paid Sick Leave and Expanded Family and Medical Leave Under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (4/1/20 – 12/31/20)
- Covered employers and exemptions
- Paid leave entitlements
- Qualifying reasons for leave
- Payroll tax credits
- Returning employees to work after leave
- Employee Retention Payroll Tax Credit and Delayed Payment of Payroll Taxes (Payroll Relief Under the CARES Act Softens the Financial Impact of COVID-19 for Employers – Ogletree)
- Privacy considerations (Privacy Considerations for Employers and Health Care Providers When Communicating about Coronavirus-Infected Individuals – Proskauer)
- Employee benefit plans – Several deadlines established by the IRS to adopt amendments or restatements to employer-sponsored retirement plans, including 403(b) plans maintained by tax-exempt entities and pre-approved defined benefit pension plans, were extended (IRS Provides Additional COVID-19 Relief: Plan Adoption Deadlines Extended – Seyfarth Shaw)
- Terminations
- Unlawful discrimination
- Expanded unemployment insurance – increase in payments by $600 per week for four months (in addition to the regular amount paid under state law)
- Independent contractor – employee distinction
- Protected employee communications (“I Thought We Were Friends!” Can Nonprofits Terminate Employees for ?Their Social Media Posts? – NPQ)
- COVID-19 and the Fair Labor Standards Act Questions and Answers (Department of Labor)
- Small Business (and Nonprofit) Loans (Coronavirus Emergency Loans Small Business Guide and Checklist – U.S. Chamber of Commerce; Loans Available for Nonprofits in the CARES Act (Public Law 116-136) – National Council of Nonprofits; How the Treasury Department is Taking Action (CARES Act Resource Page) – U.S. Treasury; Coronavirus (COVID-19): Small Business Guidance & Loan Resources – U.S. SBA)
- Eligibility
- Uses
- Maximum amount of loan
- Loan forgiveness
- Economic Injury Disaster Loan Assistance – application instructions and forms
- Paycheck Protection Program – FAQs (“Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Monday that small business loans will be made available starting Friday [April 3]” – Washington Post)
- Legal issues related to financial management
- Understanding financial situation (Sustainability to Survivability: 5 Nonprofit Finance Must-Do’s in the Time of COVID – NPQ)
- Reserves
- Zone of insolvency
- Governance
- Duty of care under changed circumstances
- Governing document (e.g., Bylaws) compliance
- Contracts (including leases)
- Performance
- Breach
- Force majeure, impossibility/impracticability, frustration of purpose (UPDATE: Force Majeure Under the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic – Paul Weiss)
- Events
- Collaborations
- Advocacy
- Lobbying
- Political activities
- 501(c)(3)-consistent activities
- Support for individuals
- Support for small businesses
- Earned revenues and unrelated business activities
- Fundraising
- Online
- Solicitations causing donations to become restricted
- Commercial/professional fundraisers
- Commercial co-ventures
- Temporary raise in charitable contribution deduction limits (Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act)
- Grantmaking
- Modifying grant agreements
- UPMIFA and endowment fund spending
- Major corporate changes
- Mergers
- Dissolution (Covid-19 could mean extinction for many charities – CNN)
- Transfers of assets / programs
More from BoardSource
Responding to COVID-19: The role of the CEO and board chair in a crisis (Recording)