Nassau County issued the following announcement on June 8
Nassau County Executive Laura Curran joined Town of Hempstead Supervisor Donald X. Clavin to announce that the Town will be contributing $2 million to support the County’s Boost Nassau PPE giveaway program, which provides personal protective equipment (PPE) kits free of charge to small businesses and nonprofits. The County kicked off the program last week by investing half a million dollars, with support from the Local Economic Assistance Corporation, which would cover the costs of roughly 1,000 kits. This contribution by the Town of Hempstead will help make another 4,000 PPE kits available.
“The success of our small businesses depends on employees feeling safe to return to work, and customers feeling confident to once again shop and dine in our malls and our downtowns—and PPE is crucial to building back that confidence,” said County Executive Curran. “The overwhelming response we received to our PPE giveaway demonstrates the need and struggle businesses are having to stock up on these supplies. I want to thank Supervisor Clavin for this contribution, which will allow us to exponentially expand this program and help take some of the pressure off thousands more small businesses. I also want to commend the IDA and LEAC Board and staff for stepping up and being able to administer this program so quickly.”
“Small business is the cornerstone of our communities, and this effort will help make it easier for our small businesses to reopen and operate in a way that keeps customers and employees safe,” said Supervisor Don Clavin. “Distributing personal protective equipment is a vital part of each phase of reopening each community throughout Nassau County. I commend County Executive Laura Curran and the Local Economic Assistance Corporation for the leadership role they’ve taken in identifying this opportunity to support small businesses and our local economy. The Town of Hempstead is proud to help expand their efforts and ease the burden on our small businesses to reopen during this difficult economic time.”
How the Program is Funded
Nassau County launched the program last week with an initial investment of $500,000, which would cover costs for approximately 1,000 PPE kits. The County is utilizing $400,000 through Federal HUD funding and the Nassau County IDA has secured $100,000 through their sister organization, the Local Economic Assistance Corporation (LEAC). The $2 million to support the distribution of PPE kits to local small businesses was allocated from the grant funding the Town of Hempstead received from the Federal Coronavirus Aid Relief and Economic Security Act to help offset unbudgeted expenses directly related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Together with the County’s initial $500,000 investment, more than 5,000 personal protective equipment kits will be distributed to small businesses. All contracts with vendors are subject to IDA/LEAC board approval.
Business Eligibility & How to Apply
The PPE program is intended for businesses and nonprofits with less than 20 employees, MWBE-owned businesses and businesses in hard hit and economically distressed neighborhoods. Other criteria include businesses being open for at least one year and having gross revenue of less than $3 million. The one-page application may be found at www.boostnassau.net.
Within 24 hours of accepting applications last week, the County reached their 1,000-kit supply limit—fulfilled on a first-come first-serve basis. Businesses are encouraged to continue to apply while these additional funds are utilized to secure more kits. Businesses will be added to the list in the order in which they registered. The County is targeting to distribute the first 1,000 kits the week of June 15.
The PPE kits will include:
- One Contactless infrared digital thermometer
- Five face-shields
- 400 3-ply-masks
- 100 pair vinyl ppe/powder-free-gloves
- Two gallons hand sanitizer with spray pump
- 1,800 sanitizing-wipes in a canister
Visit www.nassaucountyny.gov/reopen for resources and everything businesses need to know as they prepare to reopen.
For more information about the Town of Hempstead and its efforts to improve the quality of life for residents and businesses throughout the region, visit https://hempsteadny.gov/.
Original source can be found here.
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