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20 <br /> May recipients use Fund payments to provide emergency financial assistance to individuals and <br /> families directly impacted by a loss of income due to the COVID-19 public health emergency? <br /> Yes,if a government determines such assistance to be a necessary expenditure. Such assistance could <br /> include,for example,a program to assist individuals with payment of overdue rent or mortgage payments <br /> to avoid eviction or foreclosure or unforeseen financial costs for funerals and other emergency individual <br /> needs. Such assistance should be structured in a manner to ensure as much as possible,within the realm <br /> of what is administratively feasible,that such assistance is necessary. <br /> The Guidance provides that eligible expenditures may include expenditures related to the provision of <br /> grants to small businesses to reimburse the costs of business interruption caused by required closures. <br /> What is meant by a "small business,"and is the Guidance intended to refer only to expenditures to <br /> cover administrative expenses of such a grantprogram? <br /> Governments have discretion to determine what payments are necessary. A program that is aimed at <br /> assisting small businesses with the costs of business interruption caused by required closures should be <br /> tailored to assist those businesses in need of such assistance. The amount of a grant to a small business to <br /> reimburse the costs of business interruption caused by required closures would also be an eligible <br /> expenditure under section 601(d)of the Social Security Act, as outlined in the Guidance. <br /> The Guidance provides that expenses associated with the provision of economic support in connection <br /> with the public health emergency,such as expenditures related to the provision of grants to small <br /> businesses to reimburse the costs of business interruption caused by required closures, would <br /> constitute eligible expenditures of Fundpayments. Would such expenditures be eligible in the absence <br /> of a stay-at-home order? <br /> Fund payments may be used for economic support in the absence of a stay-at-home order if such <br /> expenditures are determined by the government to be necessary. This may include, for example,a grant <br /> program to benefit small businesses that close voluntarily to promote social distancing measures or that <br /> are affected by decreased customer demand as a result of the COVID-19 public health emergency. <br /> May Fund payments be used to assist impacted property owners with the payment of their property <br /> taxes? <br /> Fund payments may not be used for government revenue replacement, including the provision of <br /> assistance to meet tax obligations. <br /> May Fund payments be used to replace foregone utility fees? If not, can Fund payments be used as a <br /> direct subsidy payment to all utility account holders? <br /> Fund payments may not be used for government revenue replacement,including the replacement of <br /> unpaid utility fees. Fund payments may be used for subsidy payments to electricity account holders to the <br /> extent that the subsidy payments are deemed by the recipient to be necessary expenditures incurred due to <br /> the COVID-19 public health emergency and meet the other criteria of section 601(d) of the Social <br /> Security Act outlined in the Guidance. For example,if determined to be a necessary expenditure, a <br /> government could provide grants to individuals facing economic hardship to allow them to pay their <br /> utility fees and thereby continue to receive essential services. <br /> Could Fund payments be used for capital improvement projects that broadly provide potential <br /> economic development in a community? <br /> 5 <br />