Federal workers, contractors ill with coronavirus

      Agencies are reporting several thousand cases of confirmed COVID-19 infections among federal employees and contractors, according to a report by GovExec.

      Here are the details as of April 1:

• DOD: 306 cases in civilian workers; 893 in military personnel; and nearly 100 cases among contractors;
• VA: 532 cases among Veterans Health Administration employees; facilities in Indianapolis, IN and New Orleans, LA have the most cases;
• USPS: 259 cases;
• State Dept.: 156 cases among workers, including 118 overseas;
• TSA: 79 employee cases;
• HHS Dept.: 74 employee cases;
• Interior Dept.: 7 cases among National Park Service employees.

Read more:
GovExec story: https://bit.ly/2RiH9So

Is construction essential now?

      Construct Connect has created an interactive map to track which states and localities have deemed construction to be essential during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Read more:
ConstructConnect story:https://bit.ly/39N3bDf

HUBZone annual recerts voluntary

      Under recent HUBZone regulations, recertifications are supposed to be annual starting this year. But SBA officials in a webinar recently clarified that the new annual recertification process will be voluntary for the remainder of 2020, except for firms that are up for a three-year review this year, according to a summary by PilieroMazza PLLC law firm.

      SBA officials said they are prepared to be flexible about certain criteria due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Read more:
PilieroMazza blog entry: https://bit.ly/3dX2wCt

Inside this edition:

Surveys show COVID-19 pain, worry for small biz contractors

$349B-plus in small biz loans, advances, etc.

Velazquez presumed ill with COVID-19

Updated Set-Aside Alert Coronavirus Resources

Agencies offer guidance for contractors

3% of workers infected: poll

Immunity for federal vendors

Survey: Impact of COVID-19 on small business contractors

Column: DOL Issues Temporary FFCRA Regulations the Day FFCRA Became Law

Washington Insider: