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Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL), Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, applauded the agreement of a $325 billion small business relief package, which includes nearly $285 billion for a second round of the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) to help the hardest-hit small businesses. The package includes a higher PPP forgivable loan calculation for restaurants, hotels, and other businesses in related services, and increased assistance for live venues in order to aid industries that have been severely impacted by state and local restrictions. The legislation also includes enhancements and a direct infusion of working capital in SBA’s lending programs, PPP set-asides for the smallest businesses and community lenders, and extension of debt forbearance in order to help minority-owned and underserved borrowers access grants and the working capital they need.
Last week, former Congressional Budget Office Director Doug Holtz-Eakin called PPP “the single most effective fiscal policy ever undertaken by the United States Government.”
A summary can be found here. A section by section can be found here.
“To all of the small business owners who have worked hard to make ends meet and to all the employees left in limbo: help is finally on the way,” Chairman Rubio said. “The Paycheck Protection Program was the single most effective relief program passed by Congress, and I am proud that this legislation will provide enough funds for a second round of PPP and additional relief measures to help the hardest-hit and underserved small businesses weather the second, and hopefully last, wave.
“Importantly, this package includes targeted assistance to aid restaurants and live venues who have been devastated by the impacts of the pandemic and state and local lockdowns,” Chairman Rubio continued. “Even though the days of 2020 are numbered and the vaccine distribution is beginning, we know that the economic devastation of the pandemic is ongoing and will continue into the new year. That is why I have been urging Democratic congressional leadership to pass bipartisan small business relief since the summer. I appreciated working with my colleagues, Ranking Member Cardin, Chairwoman Velázquez, and Ranking Member Chabot on this bipartisan, bicameral effort to save America’s small businesses.”
This $325 billion title would provide additional assistance to the hardest-hit small businesses, nonprofits, and venues that are struggling to recover from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. The title would provide funding for a second round of forgivable loans through the Paycheck Protection Program for small businesses and nonprofits experiencing significant revenue loss, make programmatic improvements to PPP, fund grants to shuttered venues, and enact emergency enhancements to other SBA lending programs. It would also simplify the PPP forgiveness process for loans under $150,000, including not requiring extraneous documentation for loan forgiveness when the borrower submits its one-page attestation form. Documents would only be required by the lender or SBA in the event of an audit or investigation. This critical assistance will provide small business owners with the capital they need to survive an impending second wave of the pandemic, including critical resources for the smallest businesses.