Author Archives: 205admin

Austin-Travis County extends ‘Stay Home Work Safe’ orders

Austin-Travis County extended the “Stay Home Work Safe” orders today, as anticipated. Note, these are NOT in conflict with the state orders, but rather adjusted orders to accommodate them.

Mayor Steve Adler and Travis County Judge Sarah Eckhardt admitted not much changes under the extended guidelines – except to allow for salons to reopen under the state’s rules. Though both asked Austinites to continue social distancing, wearing facial coverings and limiting nonessential travel to reduce the spread of COVID-19.

The Austin-Travis County orders extend the requirement to wear facial coverings in public, though there is no penalty for violating that rule. And both orders are consistent with the governor’s latest order, which requires people to “minimize social gatherings and minimize in-person contact with people who are not in the same household.

Also included is instructions to voluntarily keep guest logs at local businesses, this will help future contact tracing efforts.

Austin Rental Assistance, Apply May 4th-6th

Neighborhood Housing Department Issues $1.2M in Rental Assistance to Be Administered by Austin Housing Authority
Fri, 05/01/2020 – 09:56

Applicants must apply 9:00 a.m. May 4th through 11:59 p.m. May 6th

The City of Austin Neighborhood Housing and Community Development Department (NHCD) is providing $1.2 million in emergency rental assistance to Austinites affected by the COVID-19 outbreak to be administered through a contract with the Housing Authority of the City of Austin (HACA).
 
The Relief of Emergency Needs for Tenants (RENT) program will distribute one-time rental subsidies through a lottery system similar to HACA’s Housing Choice Voucher program.  Residents must apply for the lottery through HACA’s RENT website at www.atxrenthelp.org starting May 4th at 9:00 a.m. and ending at 11:59 p.m. on May 6th.  More information is available www.atxrenthelpinfo.org.
 
“Funding for this emergency rental assistance is being accessed from the City’s local funds.  In this time of pandemic and economic uncertainty, Austin families need the security of safe and stable housing,” said Rosie Truelove, Director of NHCD. 
 
“While we recognize that $1.2 million can only go so far, we are committed to our ongoing efforts to identify and access additional help for these families as soon as we possibly can. Providing this rental assistance is something we can do right now,” Truelove said.
 
HACA will manage the intake and processing of applications, determine applicant eligibility, and—upon approval—direct payments to landlords to help cover tenants’ rent obligations. 
 
“The RENT Program is expected to help more than 1,000 families in our community stay in their homes during this difficult time,” said Michael Gerber, CEO of the Housing Authority of the City of Austin.  “We applaud the Mayor and City Council providing critical funds for this emergency rental assistance program.  While the needs in our community will likely far exceed the rent help available, HACA is committed to moving funds quickly to help as many Austin families as possible.”
 
Applicants not selected in the lottery will receive written notification from HACA, with a list of additional potential alternative resources.  Should additional funding become available, all eligible Austin renters would be able to apply for subsequent lotteries or programs to ensure the broadest distribution of rental assistance possible. 
 
Eligibility for Rental Assistance
 
Eligibility is limited to City of Austin households that are at or below 80 percent of the Median Family Income (see table below) who can document both a financial impact by COVID-19 and need of rent relief (e.g., paystubs, unemployment notice, notice of rent due, etc.).  Applicants must also demonstrate that they are party to an existing lease agreement and are not recipients of other rental assistance programs. 

 
Amount of Assistance Available

The amount of rental assistance will be determined either by the number of bedrooms in the apartment OR the actual  monthly rent amount (per the current lease), whichever is LOWEST minus the 30 percent of the household’s gross monthly income (see table below).
  

 City of Austin Mayor Steve Adler praised the collaborative nature of the program.
 
“With so many out of work, the cries for rent relief are loud and they are being heard.  Thank you to the Housing Authority and the Austin Apartment Association for helping to rapidly deploy the RENT relief program for those in greatest need.  This is our community coming together to get crucial work done,” said Adler.
 
Adler’s remarks were echoed by Austin Council Member for District 4 and Chair of the City of Austin Housing and Planning Committee Greg Casar. 
 
“Addressing the crisis is a community issue.  No one should lose their home because of the COVID crisis,” said Casar.  “The City is here to help with the RENT program to provide Austinites the support they need paying May rent. For us to protect everyone’s housing stability, we also need landlords in the community to look for ways to offer additional relief through decreased rents and relaxed rules.”
 
Similar agreement was expressed by Austin Apartment Association Executive Vice President Emily Blair. 
 
“Austin Apartment Association member staffs are working closely with families in their communities to help connect people with resources and meet immediate needs, so we know many people who need these funds,” said Austin Apartment Association Executive Vice President Emily Blair.
 
“Our property managers will be eager to share this rental assistance source with their residents in need. On behalf of the hundreds of thousands of residents in our communities, we thank the City of Austin for helping Austin renters remain safe in their homes and helping keep the City’s housing supply stable,” Blair said.
 
For more information about the RENT program, call or text the HACA RENT Call Center phone number at (512) 400-4275.  Visit www.atxrenthelpinfo.org or www.austintexas.gov/RENT for more information.

Action: Top Priorities for Entertainment Workers in Subsequent COVID-19 Legislation

Letter writing campaign, contact your representatives now. Personalize your letter for better effect. The following goals are from the IATSE C.A.R.E.S. announcement.

Congress has begun to pursue additional federal legislation in response to the coronavirus pandemic. The entertainment industry will continue to be disproportionately impacted by this health crisis and we need to ensure that that subsequent COVID-19 legislation puts workers first. We must act now and urge our representatives to include the following priorities in any subsequent legislation:

· Make sure workers in all states have access to COVID-19 relief by demanding that states ramp up and improve their unemployment claim processing.

· Preserve workers’ healthcare and ensure that no-one loses their benefits by passing a 100 percent COBRA premium subsidy to keep families insured on their job-based healthcare plan and extend eligibility to 36 months.

· Extend the “CARES” Act’s unemployment insurance provisions for as long as the health crisis persists.

· Allow all nonprofits fair access to the government economic support in the Paycheck Protection Program – including labor unions, the staffs of which are providing vital assistance to members around the clock and face the same hardships that small businesses face.

· Protect the healthy pension plans and earned pension checks of entertainment workers by allowing multiemployer plans to implement policies that safeguarded pensions after the Great Recession, such as freezing zone status, smoothing investment losses, and doing no harm to healthy pension plans.

· Update the Qualified Performing Artist tax deduction, allowing creative professionals to keep more of our hard-earned money by deducting necessary business expenses from their taxes, now due in July.

· Provide direct economic support for organizations in the arts, entertainment, and media industries with appropriate workforce restoration requirements to get people back to work when it is safe to do so.

· And finally, we must protect entertainment workers still performing essential work in news media and converting facilities into temporary field hospitals by requiring the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to issue an Emergency Temporary Standard.

Start writing your letter.

PSA, Avoid Postal and Email Scams!

The following from a USPS PSA on the subject:

Although most Americans are sheltering at home to avoid the Coronavirus, staying home won’t insulate them from being targets of scammers.

Take some time to browse the USPS’s list of common scams being seen in the wild amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

They released these two PSA videos to address the topic too.

Information about scams.
Information about Stimulus Check deliveries.

Provide payment information to the IRS to receive your stimulus faster

Want your stimulus check faster? Didn’t have a refund or direct deposit setup for the IRS in 2018? Didn’t file in some of the previous years? If you want your stimulus check faster you need to provide payment information to the IRS!! Use their new portal to enter your info, otherwise be stuck waiting for printed paper checks to be mailed.

Main Portal for tracking Stimulus:
https://www.irs.gov/coronavirus/economic-impact-payments

Groups not required to file taxes should provide payment method here:
https://www.irs.gov/coronavirus/non-filers-enter-payment-info-here

Announce: Shelter-in-place extended to May 8

The following was sent to the membership via the announce mechanism on April 13th 2020 via the office of the president:


Brothers and Sisters,

The City of Austin and Travis County have extended the shelter-in-place order until May 8. The new ordinance also calls on residents to wear facial coverings when out in public. <https://www.statesman.com/news/20200413/coronavirus-in-austin-facial-coverings-required-in-new-stay-at-home-orders?nocache=1&utm_source=SFMC&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Austin%20American-Statesman%20austin-breaking-news%202020-04-1322:25:27&utm_content=GCOX_AUS&utm_term=041320>

Continue to stay home, safe and well.

In Solidarity,

Rachel Magee,
President.

Announce: Secretary Treasurer

The following was sent to the membership via the announce mechanism April 9th 2020 from the office of the recording secretary:


Dear 205 family,

Brother Michael Danburg has resigned as Secretary-Treasurer. Unfortunately, the Covid-19 pandemic has prompted the need for Brother Danburg to travel a different path from the one he originally planned. Although the Executive Board is sad to loose him, we understand the need to put family first and wish him the very best.

To ensure continuity of office, Brother Roger Dale Barrick has been appointed to serve as Interim Secretary-Treasurer, effective immediately. Notices for a by-election for the office of Secretary-Treasurer will follow in due course.

Wishing you all peace and good health.

In solidarity,

Andrew Twenter
Recording Secretary

Announce: Message from IATSE Political Department

The following was sent to members via the announce mechanism on Mar. 31st 2020 via the office of the president:


Dear Members,

The following is a communication from our union’s Political Department:

In this challenging time, the IATSE Political Department is pleased to highlight this press release regarding the successful passage of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security “CARES” Act by Congress moments ago:

https://www.iatse.net/news/congress-passes-cares-act-providing-immediate-economic-relief-entertainment-workers <https://www.iatse.net/news/congress-passes-cares-act-providing-immediate-economic-relief-entertainment-workers>

This bill will provide tangible and immediate economic relief for entertainment workers across the United States. Most notably, the bill increases and extends unemployment benefits, sends one time direct payments, establishes the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program for those who would otherwise not qualify, and increases federal arts funding.

While many entertainment workers were not eligible for the relief in earlier pieces of COVID-19 legislation, we won access to economic relief through over 107,000 emails by IATSE members and allies, calls, social media posts, and other outreach to Members of Congress. Thank you to all of you who emailed your legislators and facilitated outreach to have your brothers, sisters, and kin do the same. We all share in this victory.

Attached is a flowchart – produced by the Department for Professional Employees, AFL-CIO (DPE) in partnership with the IATSE and other arts, entertainment, media industry unions – to provide initial guidance on how to access the expanded unemployment insurance benefits.

In addition, here is the National Employment Law Project factsheet on the unemployment provisions in the “CARES” Act:

https://www.nelp.org/publication/unemployment-insurance-provisions-coronavirus-aid-relief-economic-security-cares-act/ <https://www.nelp.org/publication/unemployment-insurance-provisions-coronavirus-aid-relief-economic-security-cares-act/>

The fight is not over. We remain focused on ensuring that subsequent COVID-19 relief legislation includes pension relief, access to affordable healthcare, and economic support for the entertainment industry to put people back to work.





Rachel Magee,
President.

Announce: March Membership Meeting / VP Election

The following was sent to the membership via the announce mechanism on Mar. 27th 2020 via the office of the recording secretary:


Dear 205 Family,

I hope this message finds you well.

Earlier this week, Mayor Adler signed a Stay Home – Work Safe Order <https://www.austintexas.gov/sites/default/files/2020-03/Order%2020200324-007%20-%20Stay%20Home%20-%20Work%20Safe%20%28OCR%20v2%29.pdf> to prevent the spread of Covid-19. Because of this order, the union office is closed and officers are working from home. Additionally, the March regular meeting is canceled and the election for Vice President is postponed until further notice.

Brother Joe Martin will continue to serve as Interim Vice-President and Election Judge Miller will continue to collect the previously mailed ballots and hold them until the day of the election. Additionally, the deadline for receiving ballots is extended until 10:30 a.m. the day of the election.

Every member should have received a notice of election containing a ballot, an unmarked envelope, and a larger envelope addressed to Election Judge Joan Miller with return address so that the eligibility of the voter can be determined. Any ballot received in an envelope without a return address cannot be counted. If you did not receive these items, or have any concerns about the voting process, please contact Election Judge Miller at (512) 663-6991 or ifzf273 at icloud.com.

We appreciate your patience and understanding while we navigate this unchartered territory.

Healthy wishes to everyone.


In solidarity,

Andrew Twenter
Recording Secretary

Announce: Keep in touch, share resources and don’t forget to file…

The following was sent to the membership via the announce mechanism on Mar. 25th 2020 from the office of the president:


Brothers and Sisters.

During the City of Austin’s mandatory shelter in place order <http://www.mayoradler.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Order-20200324-007-Stay-Home-Work-Safe.pdf>, please do the following 4 things,

Join IATSE Local 205’s Mutual Aid FaceBook Group <https://www.facebook.com/groups/3791903320850075/blocked/> to converse with members and coworkers, share resources, and coordinate help.

Sign up for free with Zoom <https://zoom.us/> to keep in touch with each other via video conferencing.

File for unemployment insurance <https://twc.texas.gov/news/covid-19-resources-job-seekers>. TIP: file online at night. Demand is high during the day, expect the phones to be busy and the website to crash. But, be patient and keep trying. We don’t know how long we are going to be out of work.

Be prepared to provide,
Last day of work
Name and address of last employer
First day of work with last of employer
Rate of pay for with last employer
Hours of work for last employer
Sign up for disaster assistance <https://twc.texas.gov/jobseekers/disaster-unemployment-assistance>
Disaster Unemployment Assistance (DUA) provides unemployment benefits for individuals who lost their jobs or self-employment or who are no longer working as a direct result of a major disaster for which a disaster assistance period is declared, and who applied but are not eligible for regular unemployment benefits. See the Eligibility section for details.

Day 1 down, 19 more to go.

Stay safe, keep well,

Rachel Magee,
President.