Congress has allocated an additional $310 billion for the Paycheck Protection Program in line with the request by Worldwide ERC® for more funds for the program.

Moments ago, U.S. President Donald Trump signed into law the Paycheck Protection Program and Health Care Enhancement Act (H.R. 266). The U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 266 last night by a vote of 388 to 5. The United States Senate under unanimous consent had passed the legislation on 21 April.

The Paycheck Protection Program and Health Care Enhancement Act allocates an additional $310 billion for the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). Of the $310 billion, $250 billion can be loaned through any financial institution, $30 billion through lenders with assets between $10 and $50 billion and the remaining $30 billion by lenders with assets of less than $10 billion. On 16 April, the Department of the Treasury had announced the depletion of the initial $349 billion in funds allocated for PPP.

The PPP is available to businesses with fewer the 500 employees. Loans under the PPP, which is administered by the Small Business Administration (SBA), are provided through SBA approved and federally insured financial institutions under favorable terms. The loans are for two years at 1% interest rates with no principle or interest due for the first six months of the loan. The loans must be used for payroll, interest on mortgages, rent or utilities and covers 8 weeks of pay for employees making less than $100k a year but the loan can be forgiven based on a percentage of retained employees.

Since 10 March, Worldwide ERC® has been pushing for financial relief including favorable business loans for the workforce mobility community. Worldwide ERC® again sent a letter on 20 April to congressional leaders requesting additional financial relief assistance including more funds specifically for the PPP.

It is likely that this last round of funding for PPP will still be insufficient. Worldwide ERC® will continue to advocate for more funding for the program as well as allowing businesses to have loans forgiven under PPP and continue to take the payroll tax deferral, which is currently not allowed. We are also pushing for household goods moving companies affiliated with larger companies with over 500 employees to be eligible for the Paycheck Protection Program.