Last night a Virtual Town Hall meeting was held on Facebook Live by Delegates Elizabeth Guzman, Jennifer Carroll Foy and Prince William County Board of Supervisors Chairwoman Ann Wheeler. They took the time to address the current situation of how the state of Virginia was dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, they answered questions that were submitted through the viewers.

Each representative discussed the topics that many had questions on, such as Governor Ralph Northam’s Executive Order 53, which is the state’s stay-at-home mandate barring essential goods and services, is still in effect until June 10. Violators of this order could be charged with a Class 1 misdemeanor, punishable by a fine and/or jail.

Other topics that were covered were:

State taxes are still due on May 1 to help with a financial shortfall during the fiscal year.

State inspections for vehicles have a 50-day extension after the due date.

SBA loans are available up to $2 million to help with small businesses so they can meet payroll, fixed debts and other expenses. Business owners can refer to https://www.sba.gov/page/coronavirus-covid-19-small-business-guidance-loan-resources for more details.

During the town hall, the PW Perspective asked how will the county address their efforts to protect undocumented immigrants during this time? Chairwoman Wheeler responded with her continuous efforts to see that Prince William County ensures inclusivity, which was one of her platform topics during her campaign, hence the hashtag “Prince William Strong.” In addition, she mentioned that when people are going through eventual testing, it is going to be done in different languages.

“The testing is going to be based on need, not on documentation status,” she said. She also discussed how schools are providing documents in different languages to reach everyone. Next week, Delegate Guzman will be hosting a virtual town hall in Spanish.

#PrinceWilliamStrong