From Sussex County:

It was extremely disappointing that the first round of stimulus funding released this weekend was allocated through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. It is virtually impossible for Sussex County to qualify for this funding under the traditional formulas used for eligibility.

This is not the only loss Sussex County suffered over this past weekend. On Friday, County business owners applying for the Payroll Protection Program under the CARES Act encountered nothing but chaos in the process. It seems only banks that are SBA (Small Business Administration) approved are qualified to be a lender. Unfortunately, many banks in Sussex County are not SBA approved. Hence, many who are not customers of an approved financial institution cannot apply for the loans and grants put in place to help small businesses during this unprecedented time. To make matters worse, banks that are approved are putting their emphasis on current customers.

If the events of this weekend are any sign of the challenges the County must endure in the future, it begs the question, “How many other roadblocks will be placed in our way preventing rural communities like Sussex County from receiving their fair allocation of the Coronavirus Stimulus Bill?

There are 140,488* Sussex County residents who are counting on our Federal representatives and our Governor to fight for a more equitable manner of allocating this aid. Every county in our State has been affected by this extraordinary health crisis and every county should have received a direct grant. A formula that favors 17 counties and ignores the needs of the other 4 is unacceptable.