Regional airports/airlines – what assistance are they eligible to receive?
Passenger airlines are eligible for $25 billion in loan authority and $25 billion in grants to maintain their operations, employee payroll, and contracts around the country. The bill also includes $4 billion in loan authority and $4 billion in grants for cargo air carriers.

The bill also provides $10 billion in grants through the Airport Improvement Program to support projects and operations at airports around the country. It also provides $3 billion in grants for contractors employed by the airlines, to ensure that airlines can maintain existing operations contracts. The bill also includes $56 million for the Essential Air Service to maintain existing air service to rural communities.

Within the tourism industry, who is eligible and how are the funds accessed?
All industries and firms are eligible to benefit from the broad financing from the Treasury fund to the extent they don’t receive enough assistance from other programs. How to access this support will depend on the size and model of the business and the exact facility used.

What does this bill do to put restrictions on the airlines accepting grants and loans?
The loans come with conditions including: restrictions on executive compensation; prohibition on stock buybacks and the prohibition on paying dividends for the duration of the loan plus 12 months; the airline or business must maintain its existing employment levels through September 30, 2020 to the extent practicable, and in no case reduce it by more than 10%.

How does it support airports and affiliated contractors?
The bill provides $10 billion in grants to airports to help them maintain employment, continue operations, clean and sanitize to prevent the spread of coronavirus, and service airport construction debt.

The bill also provides $3 billion in payroll support grants to airline contractors, including baggage handlers, wheelchair pushers, and caterers. These grants can only be used for paying employees and contractors that receive grants must maintain current employment levels through September 2020.

How does the “conflict of interest” prohibition for the president and members of Congress apply?
Conflicts of Interest

• Applies only to the $500B allocated to Treasury – not the SBA lending provisions.
• Applies to President, Vice President, head of any executive department, any Member of Congress, and their immediate family members (spouse, children, son-in-law, daughter in-law).
• If Member (or President/Vice President/head of executive department) combined with that individual’s family members controls or owns more than 20% of any class of equity security of a company (by voting rights or value), that means that company is ineligible for lending under the $500B allocated to Treasury.
• Applies not just to public companies but also private companies (LLCs, S corps, etc.).
• Principal executive officer and financial officer of each company seeking funding under Treasury lending must certify that the conflict of interest section does not apply to their company (i.e., they are not controlled by a Member/President/VP/head of exec department or those peoples’ family).

Does the bill provide assistance to cruise lines, the owners and operators of small passenger vessels, or port facilities?
In general, the CARES Act provides $454 billion to provide loans, loan guarantees, and other investments to assist eligible businesses. Eligible business are U.S. businesses whose losses result from the coronavirus, and U.S.-owned cruise lines, owners and operators of small passenger vessels, and port facilities are expected to qualify.

Does the bill provide any regulatory relief to the trucking industry?
The CARES Act includes language requested by the Department of Transportation (DOT) to clarify state authority to issue special permits for increased truck weight. Under either a “major disaster” or “emergency,” states can issue special permits for heavier trucks to deliver relief supplies. This ensures the validity of state-issued special permits.

What are the labor provisions related to the Federal Reserve loan facility and how do they apply?
Topline: There are no mandatory union provisions for the $454 billion in emergency funding. The Secretary has wide authority to establish the best programs needed to support the economy.

What are the union provisions in the bill?

• There is a section in the bill instructing the Secretary to “endeavor to seek” to establish a mid-size business lending facility for direct lending as one of several facilities funded with that $454 billion.
• Two of the requirements for direct loan recipients under solely the mid-size business lending facility impose union-related restrictions. Those include not abrogating existing Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBAs), and an agreement that the business will stay neutral in union organizing.

What do they do?

• The provisions restrict the business from abrogating an existing collective bargaining agreement and agreeing to stay neutral in any labor union formation.
• Will businesses have to agree to these restrictions?
• The section only requires the Secretary to “endeavor to seek” to establish a direct loan program. The Secretary does not have to establish one.
• The bill text only requires a good faith certification by a business that it is meeting the requirements of the union provisions if one is established.
• There is no enforcement mechanism.
• It is also important to remember these provisions apply to only one option for how the $454 billion in funding will be distributed.
• The bill provides several ways for the Treasury to work with the Fed to get money to businesses outside of the union provisions.
• What flexibility does the Secretary have to waive the provisions?
• The Secretary has maximum flexibility: Remember, the point of the emergency lending is to give the Secretary maximum flexibility for helping our most distressed sectors of our economy.
• In the bill text, you will see that the Treasury Secretary has a great deal of discretion and waiver authority.
• For example, the bill preserves the Secretary’s right to waive certain restrictions for the loan if it’s to “protect the interest of the Federal government.”
• And the bill only requires a good faith effort for the Treasury Secretary to try to follow the terms and conditions, but it’s not a requirement.
• Treasury Secretary may not be able to follow it or might decide to structure midsize business support differently.
• Are there other provisions in the bill that impact unions or union activity?
• Yes. Section 4025 of the bill prevents the government from requiring an air carrier to enter into a collective bargaining agreement (CBA) negotiations to get a loan. It does not prevent an air carrier from entering CBA negotiations on its own.
• The airline industry does not oppose this provision.