Small businesses that received government-backed loans to ease the pain of the coronavirus pandemic are beginning to turn to a process some say is as complex as getting the money: figuring out whether they have to pay it back, the Wall Street Journal reported. Some small-business owners have spent dozens of hours wading through the 11-page forgiveness application for Paycheck Protection Program loans. Others are trying to determine how or whether legislation President Trump signed earlier this month changes the math. Some lenders say that the government is putting them in a difficult spot by making them responsible for determining forgiveness, and they fear being saddled with unprofitable loans. The Treasury Department and the Small Business Administration have issued 18 “interim final rules” and 48 pieces of guidance in the form of “frequently asked questions” for the program. The government has approved $512 billion in loans to nearly 4.6 million businesses since the program’s April rollout.The new law lengthens from eight weeks to 24 the time that borrowers have to use PPP funds and qualify for forgiveness. It also lets them spend 40 percent of the loan on rent and certain other expenses, up from 25 percent. The changes came in response to requests for more flexibility from small businesses that remain closed, were slow to reopen or spend more on rent and other overhead. Read more.(Subscription required.)
In related news, Senate Democrats are calling for the Small Business Administration and Treasury Department to simplify the application process for small businesses seeking loan forgiveness under a federal coronavirus aid program, the Wall Street Journal reported. In a letter dated on Friday to SBA Administrator Jovita Carranza and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, 47 Democratic and independent senators urge the agencies to take several steps to streamline the forgiveness application for the Paycheck Protection Program. “Since the release of the forgiveness form and instructions a few weeks ago, we have heard significant concerns from small businesses and lenders alike about the complexity of the process, especially for the smallest businesses,” the letter said. The Senators’ recommendations include a simpler application for low-dollar loans that would require minimal documentation and resources, including “how to” videos and a help line, for borrowers who need assistance completing the forgiveness form. Read more. (Subscription required.)
Additionally, federal authorities administering business payroll loans as part of U.S. coronavirus relief efforts on Friday eased rules prohibiting lending to business owners with criminal records, allowing some with no convictions in the past year to access funds, Reuters reported. The U.S. Treasury Department and the Small Business Administration said the look-back period for non-financial felony convictions has been reduced to one year from five years. The prohibition threshold for business owners with felonies involving fraud, bribery, embezzlement and similar offenses remains five years, they said. The change goes further than what U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin had suggested on Wednesday. He said the period for considering felony records would be reduced to three years. The Paycheck Protection Program, part of a historic fiscal package worth nearly $3 trillion passed by Congress and signed by President Donald Trump to deal with the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic, offers businesses loans that can be partially forgiven if used for employee wages. The Treasury Department and the SBA said the decision was made in the interest of criminal justice reform. Read more.
