On March 26, BRAC announced a formal pause on our 2020 strategic goals and shared retooled priorities to support the regional business community through the COVID-19 pandemic and recovery period. The original release and the crisis period plan of work may be viewed here.
While BRAC has helped businesses throughout the area understand new legislation and funding opportunities, BRAC and other chambers of commerce are not eligible for aid through the Paycheck Protection Program.
To continue our work, your support is now more important than it has ever been.
If you or your organization would like to further support BRAC’s recovery work, consider making a tax-deductible donation through the Greater Baton Rouge Economic Partnership, BRAC’s 501(c)3.
If you are interested in joining BRAC, contact Monica Hughes at monica@brac.org.
Outcomes to date under BRAC’s pandemic recovery work include:
- Launched the PPE Marketplace to source and supply regional businesses with PPE necessary for reopening, with more than 740 orders placed to date
- Launched BR Works to connect displaced workers with local job opportunities. BR Works currently has more than 100 businesses listing openings.
- Produced more than 230 pieces of analysis and guidance, including daily COVID-19 Brief emails, a weekly economic indicator dashboard, a booklet on federal business aid programs, a recovery loan comparison chart, grey area guidance for opening, PPP v UI analysis, and more
- Created the brac.org/recovery page to house all relevant guidance, information, analysis, and BRAC initiatives related to the pandemic
- Led the development of the Safe at Work framework, a guidance on safely reopening Louisiana’s economy, endorsed by nearly 60 organizations around the state
- Hosted more than 45 free business webinars for more than 3,900 attendees, featuring state and federal elected officials and subject matter experts on everything from federal aid programs to school reopening
- Assisted 27 regional businesses in pivoting production to PPE
- Partnered with the Health District to set up and source its PPE distribution center, which has received 100,000+ items
- Conducted 1,700+ outreach calls to regional businesses to assess economic impact and connect businesses with resources