As coronavirus numbers rise, hitting Texas hard both medically and economically, the Governor is offering small business owners a glimmer of hope.
On Monday, Abbott said investment bank Goldman Sachs and the Lift Fund are offering a lifeline to Texas small businesses.
"Fifty million dollars in loans in small businesses through the SBA;s Paycheck Protection Program," Abbott said.
The Governor also said it's time to start thinking about re-starting the state's economy, but you can't do it by flicking a switch. It has to be done in stages.
"This is not going to be a rush the gates, everybody is suddenly open at once," Abbott stated
The Governor says he'll have an announcement later this week on schools.
Elsewhere:
- Texans will start seeing an extra $600 on top of their usual unemployment benefits. The Texas Workforce Commission is extending hours; you can apply for benefits from 7am to 7pm.
- The IRS says it has started to deposit stimulus checks into bank accounts. You can track where your stimulus money is at by clicking HERE.
- The Houston area now has 5,587 cases of the virus with 93 deaths. The City of Houston is up to 2,239 cases with 18 deaths; Harris County has 1,508 cases and 28 residents in the county have passed. The state has 14, 5050 confirmed cases and has lost 317 Texans.
- Harris County says 63 jail workers and 46 inmates have now tested positive for the virus.
- More than 100 calls about price gouging are being looked at by a task force in Harris County
And Texans superstar J.J. Watt is giving some encouragement to Pearland high schoolers struggling with all of this.
"This is a difficult time. I know some of you may be happy about this. You probably sleep until noon," Watt said. "I know some of you are probably sad. You're missing out on things like prom and graduation, some lifelong memories that you won't be able to get back."
You can check out Watt's entire message for the kids below.