As conversations continue surrounding a new relief package when Congress returns next week, Senators in both parties say they support adding new requirements for businesses who want to apply for a second tranche of funding through the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) in the next round of relief legislation.
Negotiations among a core group of senators, which includes Republican Senators Susan Collins and Marco Rubio and Democratic Senators Jeanne Shaheen and Ben Cardin, are already underway about what the next phase of the program should look like. Sen. Collins noted that it was their goal to have a tentative deal by the time lawmakers return to Washington on July 20. Both Collins and Rubio have also noted the need to include means-testing or revenue-loss test and lower number of employees requirements for the next round of funding. Democrats have also filed their own legislation to let businesses that already qualified for one PPP loan apply again if they have 100 employees or less and if they can show they have lost 50 percent or more of their revenue due to the coronavirus.
There is approximately $130 billion left of the money Congress appropriated for the program, though business can continue to apply for loans through August 8 under legislation passed earlier this month. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told House lawmakers that he was already having conversations about using the money left over in PPP to fund another round of help for businesses most impacted by the coronavirus.
ABC has also held conversations with Congress about critical changes to the PPP in the next round of relief, including expansion of the program for 501(c)(6) organizations and tax deductibility of PPP loans. Both proposals have gained bipartisan support in the House and Senate.
