With Congress currently deadlocked on a COVID-19 relief bill, the American Bankers Association and 51 state bankers associations today urged lawmakers to support standalone Paycheck Protection Program loan forgiveness legislation that would streamline the process for small business borrowers.
The groups called on lawmakers to consider two recently introduced bills—S. 4117, sponsored by Sens. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.), and H.R. 7777, a House companion bill sponsored by Reps. Chrissy Houlahan (D-Pa.) and Fred Upton (R-Mich.).
“If S. 4117 or H.R. 7777 were enacted, these proposals would forgive PPP loans of less than $150,000 upon the borrower’s completion of a simple, one-page forgiveness document,” the groups wrote. They added that “while we support congressional efforts and ongoing negotiations to assist all Americans, we do not believe small businesses should be entangled in the differences over a larger COVID relief package.”
According to SBA data, PPP loans of $150,000 and less account for about 85% of total recipients but less than 26% of loan dollars, the groups said. “As the country continues to struggle with the economic consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, S.4117 or H.R. 7777, or a similar proposal, will allow SBA to direct its limited resources to help our nation’s small businesses.”
