It extends help to small, medium, and big businesses
Western Australia has announced a new assistance programme for businesses that will be affected by the Level 2 public health measures.
The Level 2 COVID-19 Business Assistance Package is a $72-million financial assistance programme that seeks to alleviate the burden on small businesses, large hospitality businesses, and commercial sporting franchises.
Help for small businesses
The Small Business Hardship Grants Programme gets the highest portion of the new assistance package with $66.8 million allocated to it. It will be given as grant for businesses, including hospitality, arts, and events, that have a "50% or greater reduction in turnover for any four-week period between January 1, 2022, and April 30, 2022, relative to the same period last year."
The grant’s amount depends on the kind of businesses operated and the number of employees:
- $3,000 grant for sole traders with no employees
- $7,500 grant for micro businesses with one to five employees
- $20,000 grant for small businesses with six to 19 employees
- $50,000 for medium-sized businesses with 20 or more employees and with an annual payroll of up to $4 million
According to the government announcement, businesses that previously received funding from other business support programmes may still avail from the new Level 2 package.
Read more: Are employee assistance programs worth it?
Tax relief for big businesses
For larger businesses with payrolls between $4 million and $20 million, they will be covered by the $2.8-million worth of payroll tax relief scheme.
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This means that eligible businesses will be granted a three-month payroll tax waiver if they experienced at least a 50% drop in turnover over any four-week period between January 1 and April 30, comparable to the same period last year.
Rebate for commercial sporting franchises
Meanwhile, there is also a $2.1 million COVID-19 Commercial Sporting Franchises Support Programme for the said businesses. It will include a $35,000 rebate per game for venue hire costs until June 30.
A waiver of public transport charges for home games of the Perth Glory, Perth Wildcats, Perth Lynx, and the Western Force in March will also be included in the scheme, with a 50% concession on public transport costs for April events.
The assistance programme, the fifth one since December, hikes the state's overall investment on COVID business support to almost $1.7 billion, according to the state government.
It was announced a day before the implementation of Level 2 restrictions on March 3, where businesses are again expected to take hit.
Premier Mark McGowan said that while he hopes the measures are only temporary, he recognises its impact on businesses regardless.
"My government is committed to doing everything we can to help protect WA businesses, local jobs and the economy from the full brunt of COVID-19," McGowan said in a statement.
The premier also reminded the public that while businesses can continue operating under Level 2, they are still called on to follow health advice amid the pandemic.
"We will get through this, together," McGowan said.