Strings Attached: Preparing for and Mitigating Risk Associated with COVID-19 Stimulus
Schools are closed, employees work from home and businesses have suspended operations. For now, business leaders are properly focused on the health and safety of their employees and running their businesses under extremely challenging circumstances. For many, the $2.2 trillion “Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act” or the “CARES Act” is a potential lifeline, offering financial assistance to a broad swath of families, businesses, employees, independent contractors and so called “gig workers.” However, just as with the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and the Troubled Asset Relief Program, there will be significant government oversight and a new Inspector General with a broad mandate and subpoena power. There is no such thing as “free” money from the government.
