New CDC Guidelines The CDC has released new mask guidelines easing former recommendations. The CDC is no longer using vaccination status as the benchmark for mask guidelines and are now using low, medium, and high levels for counties to measure COVID risk and mask recommendations. For low level counties no…
COVID Rules for Residential Evictions RESIDENTIAL EVICTION UPDATE – August 27, 2021 – SCOTUS weighs in. Finally, some clarity to the situation by the source least expected – the U.S. Supreme Court (“SCOTUS”). It has been a tortured road for Landlords during the COVID-19 Pandemic as the story is told…
Business interruption insurance & COVID Should business interruption insurance cover losses due to the COVID-19 shutdowns, even if said insurance policy contains a virus exclusion? A bar and restaurant based in Park Ridge and a former jewelry store in Chicago have gone to the U.S. 7th Circuit Court of Appeals to…
Drop the Mask in your business? After a year of employee and customer mask requirements being a no-brainer for small businesses, the CDC’s recent change in guidance that those who have become fully vaccinated against COVID-19 need not wear masks in many public settings has required business owners to put…
The Illinois Housing Development Authority (IHDA) and the City of Chicago Department of Housing (DOH) have each announced separate Emergency Rental Assistance Programs. Both programs will be funded using the federal COVID-19 relief funds. Owners with non-paying residents in Chicago can apply to both agencies for assistance, but will only…
SBA Restaurant Revitalization Fund Eligible restaurants and other dining establishments are entitled to apply to the U.S. Small Business Administration for a $28.6 billion grant program under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, as established in section 5003 of the legislation. The SBA recently released a Program Guide that…
What Can Small Businesses Do About the Maskless? As more states lift requirements that people wear COVID-19 masks indoors when in public, what can small businesses do to protect their employees—and other customers who still prefer to wear masks? As of April 5, more than one-third of states (18) lacked…
New County Ordinance, Supreme Court Orders to Impact Landlords Landlords in Illinois, especially those in non-home-rule portions of Cook County, will face a raft of changes this spring in the wake of three state Supreme Court orders issued in late February, and a new ordinance passed by the Cook County…
How to Determine Your Workplace Vaccination Policy As COVID-19 vaccines begin to become available for working-age people—first for those in healthcare, then those in other “frontline” occupations, then for those at risk due to medical conditions, and finally for the general 18-to-64 population—can employers implement mandatory vaccination policies? In general,…
Updated December 7 The Chicago area and Illinois business owners are facing a number of challenges and the CoronaVirus pandemic is threatening the continued viability of their business. Here are some of the more frequently questions asked by business owners. Residential Evictions can proceed under certain conditions The moratorium in…