More than 23,000 Arkansans have filed for Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program benefits. The state will hopefully begin issuing PUA payments within the next couple of weeks.

Secretary Mike Preston provided an update on the Arkansas Ready for Business Grant Program. The program received more than 12,000 applications during the enrollment period. The funding requests for businesses totaled $147 million. 94 percent of applicants represented businesses with 50 or fewer employees, and of those, 46 percent represented businesses owned by women or minorities.

Five days ago, Governor Hutchinson committed to testing 60,000 Arkansans by the end of May. The Arkansas Department of Health reports that 69,008 Arkansans have been tested to date. Those who have symptoms or have been exposed to COVID-19 should get tested. Secretary Nate Smith noted that he’d like to see more testing done in southwest Arkansas, including Union County.

2020 Covid-19_infographic_2020-05-11.pdf