Coping with COVID-19
April 22, 2020
Photo by istock.com
The U.S. Senate passed a $484 billion Tuesday to provide additional aid for small businesses and hospitals to address the current health and economic crises caused by the coronavirus pandemic, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal. A vote in the House is expected Thursday.
President Trump tweeted that he supported the law after White House officials and congressional leaders agreed on provisions.
The law will provide additional funding for the Paycheck Protection Program for small businesses as well as testing for COVID-19. It does not include measures sought by Democrats for state and local governments, which have been postponed to future stimulus legislation.
Both political parties wanted to replenish the Paycheck Protection Program, which offers potentially forgivable loans to small businesses with less than 500 employees to cover payroll expenses, after it depleted the $350 billion allocated under the $2.2 trillion Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act last month.
The bill increases the authorization level for the Paycheck Protection Program from $349 billion to $659 billion, according to a summary of the bill by the Convenience Distribution Association. The allocations for the Paycheck Protection Program will be made by the following institutions:
- $30 billion for loans made by insured depository institutions and credit unions that have assets between $10 billion and $50 billion.
- $30 billion for loans made by community financial institutions, small insured depository institutions and credit unions with assets less than $10 billion.
The bill also increases the authorization level for the Emergency Economic Injury Disaster Grants from $10 billion to $20 billion.
“We applaud congressional leaders and the administration for reaching a deal to increase desperately needed funding to support America’s small businesses during this difficult time,” said Neil Bradley, executive vice president and chief policy officer of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, in a prepared statement. “These additional funds could make the difference between keeping a business up and running over the coming weeks or being forced to reduce salaries, lay off employees, or shutter businesses entirely.”
Topics: Retail – General, Coronavirus / COVID-19