COVID-19 Resources for Nonprofits // INTEGRALORG

COVID-19 Resources for Nonprofits and Charities

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June 29, 2020: Applications are now open for The Government of Alberta Small and Medium Enterprise Relaunch Grant to ease relaunch costs faced by small businesses and nonprofits. Applicants will be required to demonstrate a revenue reduction of at least 50% in April and/or May 2020 in comparison to April 2019, May 2019 or February 2020 as a result of the public health orders. Eligible organizations can apply for 15 per cent of their pre-COVID-19 revenue, up to a maximum of $5,000 in funding. Details about program. Guidelines

May 19, 2020: Applications are open for the Government of Canada's $350 million Emergency Community Support Fund designed to help charities and nonprofits support Canada's most vulnerable populations during the COVID-19 crisis. The funding is being administered by three different partners – the Canadian Red Cross, United Way Centraide Canada, and the Community Foundations of Canada/local community foundations, depending on the type of organization applying and the nature of the project/need. Consult this infographic to help determine which partner to apply to.

Community Foundations of Canada stream: Applications must be submitted before July 27, 2020 for activities occurring between April 1, 2020 and March 31, 2021. If you would like to apply, please reach out to your local community foundation to discuss your project and application (some local community foundations have their own application portal) or you can apply through the Community Foundations of Canada portal. ECSF general information; FAQs, application portal,
local community foundation location map

Canadian Red Cross stream: Details on COVID-19 Emergency Support for Community Organizations Granting Program for Non-Profits, details on COVID-19 Emergency Support to Community Organizations Preventing Disease Transmission Training and Equipment Program , FAQs, application portal.

United Way Centraide Canada stream: Local United Way Centraides will support granting programs for registered charities and qualified donees. ECSF General information, local United Way finder/application portal.

May 3, 2020: The Government of Alberta has noted that all workplaces are expected to develop and implement policies and procedures to address COVID-19. The Government of Alberta has published a comprehensive document, Workplace Guidance for Business Owners, to support employers in safely re-opening or continuing operations. Consult this document for guidance on communication related to COVID-19; sick staff and volunteers; prevention measures including cleanliness, distancing, and screening; and requirements for quarantine and isolation. Additionally, see the Government's Guidance for Reopening page.

April 24, 2020: Government of Canada announces the Canada Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance (CECRA) for small businesses and non-profit and charitable organizations. This program, which will be administered by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, will lower rent by 75 per cent for small businesses that have been affected by COVID-19. Under a rent forgiveness agreement, which includes a moratorium on eviction, the mortgaged commercial property owner would reduce the small business tenant’s monthly rent by at least 75 per cent. The tenant would be responsible for covering 25 per cent, the property owner 25 per cent, while the federal government and provinces would share the remaining 50 per cent. The forgivable loans would be disbursed directly to the mortgage lender. The program will provide forgivable loans to qualifying commercial property owners to cover 50% of three monthly rent payments that are payable by eligible small business tenants who are experiencing financial hardship during April, May, and June. Impacted small business tenants are businesses paying less than $50,000 per month in rent and who have temporarily ceased operations or have experienced at least a 70% drop in pre-COVID revenues. It is expected that CECRA will be operational by mid-May, and further details will be announced soon. Details.

April 21, 2020: Trudeau announces $350 million Emergency Community Support Fund to support charities and nonprofits: "So to support charities and nonprofits in their important work, our government is setting up a $350 million Emergency Community Support Fund. A portion of these funds will go directly to smaller independent frontline organizations and the rest will flow through national organizations like the United Way, Community Foundations Canada and the Red Cross that can get funds to local organizations and vulnerable people quickly. This is money for things like training volunteers, increasing at-home deliveries for seniors or driving people with disabilities to appointments. With this fund we’re giving more resources to charities and nonprofits so they can adapt to the new realities and difficulties brought on by this pandemic."

General Updates

Government of Canada: Coronavirus disease (COVID-19): Charities Directorate: T3010 filing deadline extension. As part of government actions taken in dealing with the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Charities Directorate is extending the filing deadline to December 31, 2020, for all charities with a Form T3010, Registered Charity Information Return due between March 18, 2020 and December 31, 2020.

ECVO: ECVO notes that the Government of Alberta has created a framework to assess the various needs of Alberta’s non-profits based on what they have heard. Document.

Government of Aberta: Annual returns and AGMs "In keeping with public gathering restrictions, deadlines are suspended for corporations, partnerships, cooperatives and non-profit organizations to hold annual general meetings and file their annual returns. These groups will remain active in Alberta, and will not have their corporations, partnerships, cooperatives or non-profit organizations dissolved due to failing to file annual returns. ECVO received updates from the Government of Alberta in regards to Annual General Meetings during the production of the document noted above."

Government of Alberta Press Release, March 17 at 3:30 p.m.: Alberta Premier Jason Kenney declares State of Emergency and announces $60 million for municipalities, charitable and non-profit organizations providing social services support to help their COVID-19 response. Details and application.

Government of Canada: Canada’s COVID-19 Economic Response Plan: Support for Canadians and Businesses: Support for Businesses: Helping Businesses Keep their Workers

Government of Canada: Temporary Wage Subsidy: Full details on how it works. The Temporary Wage Subsidy is a three-month measure that will allow eligible employers to reduce the amount of payroll deductions required to be remitted to the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA). You are an eligible employer if you are a non-profit organization, registered charity.

AGLC: Changes to how charitable gaming proceeds may be used during the COVID-19 crisis.

Sources of Information

Public Health Agency of Canada

Public Health Agency of Canada: Outbreak update

Government of Alberta: COVID-19 coronavirus info for Albertans

Alberta Heath Services: COVID-19 Self-Assessment

World Health Organization:detailed information: plus your COVID-19 questions answered: text via Whatsapp and receive answers.

Advocacy

Alberta Nonprofit Network: COVID-related advocacy and issue gathering for the sector

Alberta Nonprofit Network: letter urging the Government of Alberta to ensure funding security and flexibility for nonprofits

ECVO: Frequently Asked Questions - COVID-19 Pandemic (plus advocacy issues and a comment form at the bottom of the page: "At this time, what are your organization's most pressing concerns?")

Imagine Canada: COVID-19 and the charitable sector: a letter to Prime Minister Trudeau

Imagine Canada: Sector letters to government

Imagine Canada: a form to fill out that automatically sends a letter to your MP and select Ministers to ask for measures to assist the nonprofit sector (scroll to the bottoem of the page)

Muttart Foundation: Call to province to remember charities

Assistance

Canada’s Regional Development Agencies: Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) If you are a tourism operator or small- or medium- sized business or organization impacted by the sudden shifts in the economy and need pressing assistance, the RDAs could assist you with: Access to federal funding to help you stay in business. Advice and pathfinding services to other federal programs and services available.

Government of Canada: Applying for EI Sickness Benefits

CBC – How to apply for EI and COVID-19 emergency benefits

Government of Alberta: Emergency Isolation Support: for workers

Employer Resources

Government of Alberta: Vacation pay, leave, or banked overtime

Government of Alberta: Job-protected leave

Government of Canada: Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy: The federal government will pay up to 75 percent of wages for qualifying companies, including nonprofits and charities, whose revenue has decreased by at least 30%. Eligible employers who suffer a drop in gross revenue of at least 30% in March, April, and May when compared to the same month in 2019 would be eligible to access the subsidy. For nonprofits organizations and registered charities, the government will continue to work with the sector to ensure the definition of revenue is approriate to their circumstances.The number of employees at an organization is not relevant. The maximum subsidy amount is $847 / week per employee. The maximum salary amount of $58,700. The program runs from March 15 to June 6, 2020.

Government of Canada: Canada’s COVID-19 Economic Response Plan: Support for Canadians and Businesses: Support for Businesses: Helping Businesses Keep their Workers
"To support businesses that are facing revenue losses and to help prevent lay-offs, the government is proposing to provide eligible small employers a temporary wage subsidy for a period of three months. The subsidy will be equal to 10% of remuneration paid during that period, up to a maximum subsidy of $1,375 per employee and $25,000 per employer. Businesses will be able to benefit immediately from this support by reducing their remittances of income tax withheld on their employees’ remuneration. Employers benefiting from this measure will include corporations eligible for the small business deduction, as well as non-profit organizations and charities."

Employee Resources

Employment Insurance: Regular benefits

Government of Canada: Applying for EI Sickness Benefits

Government of Canada: Temporary Income Support for Workers and Parents

Government of Alberta: Job-protected leave

Momentum: Blog: Financial Supports for People Impacted by COVID-19

Fundraising

Imagine Canada: COVID-19 Resources for Canadian Fundraisers

Vitreo Group: Fundraising in the time of COVID-19

Urgent Needs

Federation of Calgary Communities: COVID-19 urgent charity needs page: sign up form to share your organization's needs with Calgarians who want to help

Volunteers

Volunteer Connector: COVID-19 Volunteering: Volunteer opportunities related to COVID-19 or that volunteers can do at home remotely

Volunteer Strathcona: Want to help during the COVID-19 Emergency? Volunteers can sign up for "The COVID-19 Emergency Project" to help those in need during the crisis

Giving

United Way: Local United Way organizations have created partnerships with stakeholders to directly support those affected by the crisis and the community agencies that serve them
United Way Calgary: COVID-19 Community Response Fund, United Way Alberta Northwest: COVID-19, United Way Capital Region: Local love in a global crisis

Canada Helps: Donate to COVID-19 Pandemic Response

Alberta Nonprofit Network: focus on advocacy, issue-gathering for the sector, and resources for talking to funders

Board Source: What Nonprofit Board Members Should Be Doing Right Now to Address the COVID-19 Situation (an American resources, but helpful.)

Blumbergs: Canadian Charity Law: several blogs for Canadian charities about legal compliance and COVID-19

ECVO: Frequently Asked Questions - COVID-19 Pandemic (plus a comment form at the bottom of the page: "At this time, what are your organization's most pressing concerns?")

CCVO: COVID-19 Resources for Nonprofits?"

McLennan Ross LLP: COVID-19: Blogs and a collection of resources: legal perspective

Ontario Nonprofit Network Blog: Nonprofits on the front lines of COVID-19