News

Congress’s most recent COVID-19 relief bill was signed into law on Sunday, Dec. 27, 2020, as the Consolidated Appropriation Act of 2021 (CAA). Title X of the CAA provides additional bankruptcy relief for individual and corporate debtors, as well as creditors impacted by COVID-19. Most changes are temporary as noted below.

Congress passed a $900 billion COVID-19 relief package on Monday, Dec. 21, which was signed by President Trump late Sunday, Dec. 27. While most of the coverage of the legislation has focused on a new round of stimulus checks and unemployment benefits, the legislation includes some notable components for healthcare providers.

Friday, Eldredge & Clark, LLP has elected four new partners to the firm which include Kathy McCarroll, Joshua C. Ashley, Katie M. Eaves and Michael McCarty Harrison. Michael S. Moore has been appointed practice group leader of the Labor and Employment Practice Group and a member of the firm’s management committee.

Beginning Friday, Jan. 1, 2021, the minimum wage in Arkansas will increase to $11 per hour. In 2018, Arkansas voters approved a ballot initiative to incrementally raise the minimum wage to $11 an hour by 2021. The increase in minimum wage offers employers an opportunity to evaluate their pay practices.

After several rounds of discussion, congressional leaders reached a deal on a new COVID-related stimulus bill. The bill passed both houses of Congress on Monday, Dec. 21 and was signed into law by the President Trump on Sunday, Dec 27. The stimulus package, which totals nearly $900 billion, provides aid for workers and businesses and includes expansions and revisions of existing COVID relief programs.

On Wednesday, Dec. 16, the EEOC released new guidance for employers regarding how the legal requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) will impact administration of the COVID-19 vaccine. That guidance, which came in the form of frequently asked questions, recognizes the complex legal questions that arise with administering a COVID-19 vaccine in an employment context.

The Business and Commercial Services office of the Arkansas Secretary of State (AR SOS) will be closed beginning at noon on December 30, 2020 and will not reopen until January 4, 2021. Any company wishing to dissolve before the end of the year must do so prior to noon on December 30, 2020.