U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND), a Senate Banking Committee member, announced today 30 senators are now cosponsoring his bipartisan Paycheck Protection Small Business Forgiveness Act.
“The Paycheck Protection Small Business Forgiveness Act would give our small businesses peace of mind and remove the anxiety placed on them by the bureaucracy’s cumbersome forgiveness process,” said Senator Cramer. “I am grateful to my colleagues for their support, and I look forward to working with them to pass our bill when the Senate returns in September.”
Senator Cramer’s bill streamlines forgiveness for Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans of $150,000 or less if the borrower submits a simple, one-page attestation form to the lender. The approximately 4.2 million PPP loans of $150,000 or less account for 85 percent of all PPP approved loans but only 26 percent of the PPP funds delivered. The bill is endorsed by over 200 trade groups and associations, earning the support of small business groups like the National Federation of Independent Business, local and national lending associations representing credit unions and bankers, and labor groups like the Independent Electrical Contractors. Learn more here.
Senator Cramer originally introduced the bill with Senators Bob Menendez (D-NJ), Thom Tillis (R-NC), and Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ). Joining them as cosponsors are Senators Tom Cotton (R-AR), Martha McSally (R-AZ), Mike Crapo (R-ID), John Cornyn (R-TX), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Jerry Moran (R-KS), David Perdue (R-GA), Kelly Loeffler (R-GA), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), John Barrasso (R-WY), Mike Rounds (R-SD), Steve Daines (R-MT), Joe Manchin (D-WV), Roy Blunt (R-MO), John Boozman (R-AR), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Richard Burr (R-NC), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Cory Gardner (R-CO), Roger Wicker (R-MS), Dan Sullivan (R-AK), Doug Jones (D-AL), James Lankford (R-OK), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), John Kennedy (R-LA), Jim Inhofe (R-OK), and Mike Enzi (R-WY).
“Amid an already incredibly difficult situation, making it easier for Alaska’s small business owners to get their PPP loans forgiven is significant,” said Senator Murkowski. “Making the process easier for our small businesses is one huge benefit, but it is also significant that passing this simple piece of legislation could save small businesses and lenders nearly $2 billion nationwide. As one of the biggest priorities expressed by small business lenders in Alaska, I’m proud to support this bill which will support more of Alaska’s small businesses in their pursuit of financial recovery.”
“The Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) has helped hundreds of South Dakota small businesses keep their lights on and their workers employed throughout the pandemic,” said Senator Rounds. “PPP loans are forgivable if employers use the funds to keep employees on the payroll. Our legislation would eliminate the red-tape businesses have to deal with in order to go through the loan forgiveness process. We want to make the process simpler and more efficient. I’m pleased that our common sense legislation is gaining steam in Congress.”
“Small businesses across America and West Virginia are hurting due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and we must do more to help them. The Paycheck Protection Small Business Forgiveness Act will help our small businesses by streamlining the process for Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan forgiveness, giving them the support they need right now to keep their employees and their doors open. I look forward to working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to pass this commonsense, bipartisan legislation that helps Main Street stay afloat,” said Senator Manchin.
“The Paycheck Protection Program has been a lifeline for workers and small businesses in Missouri and states across the nation,” said Senator Blunt. “This bill eliminates burdensome red tape to make it easier for employers to use the PPP loans to keep workers on the payroll and help businesses bounce back quickly.”
“America’s small businesses are the backbone of our economy and we have asked them to do a lot this year. Shutdown to bend the curve. Apply for a government loan to keep employees on the payroll. Reopen the economy safely. Provide PPE to your employees,” said Senator Cruz. “Providing a simplified loan forgiveness process for small business owners will help lessen the burden they have shouldered due to coronavirus. It’s the least Congress can do to help them get back on their feet and help get people safely back to work.”
“The Paycheck Protection Program has been a critical lifeline for small businesses across Colorado, but the current red tape required to forgive the smallest of those loans threatens to undermine their benefit,” said Senator Gardner. “I’m proud to join the bipartisan Paycheck Protection Small Business Forgiveness Act to reduce the stress, financial burdens, and uncertainty small businesses face.”
“I’ve heard concerns from many Alaskans about the bureaucracy and costs that smaller businesses could be faced with when receiving forgiveness for their PPP loans,” said Senator Sullivan. “I’m glad to cosponsor a commonsense bill to shield smaller PPP loan recipients from these high compliance costs at a time when they are already so vulnerable. Senator Cramer has done yeoman’s work bringing more of our colleagues on board and I am hopeful, with this robust bipartisan support, we will get it passed and signed into law.”
“The COVID-19 pandemic has placed such a heavy burden on small businesses in Alabama and across the country. Small business owners have already suffered enough by simply trying to keep their businesses afloat during these trying times without having to needlessly deal with more paperwork to forgive their Paycheck Protection Program loans. Borrowers and banks alike are in need of immediate relief. This bipartisan legislation will ensure that lenders are able to forgive loans under $150,000 and allow for business owners to focus on adapting to this new normal,” said Senator Jones.
“The federal government needs to make good on its promises to Oklahoma small businesses and lenders with the PPP program and make loan forgiveness straight forward and efficient,” said Senator Lankford. “Simplifying the process for loans of $150,000 and less will ensure small businesses and financial institutions can get loans processed in a timely manner and provide a safe harbor for lenders, while maintaining the requirements and auditability standards from the CARES Act and subsequent guidance from SBA. I appreciate Oklahoma’s lenders who stepped up to the plate to get PPP loans out the door quickly and properly, and I look forward to this bipartisan bill’s passage to streamline the PPP loan application and forgiveness process.”
“The Paycheck Protection Program has been crucial for many small businesses in Mississippi,” said Senator Hyde-Smith. “This legislation will simplify the forgiveness process, allowing small business owners to focus on reopening their business safely, which will play a big part in our nation’s economic recovery.”
“The PPP program is working. In Oklahoma alone, the program has helped hundreds of thousands of employees retain their jobs through loans to small businesses, but expensive and time consuming paperwork still looms. I want our small businesses to be able to focus on safely reopening, not government paperwork and red tape. I’m proud to cosponsor this legislation to streamline the forgiveness process for smaller loans which represent 89 percent of all the loans in Oklahoma—to provide certainty to our local businesses,” said Senator Inhofe.
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Release from U.S. Senators.
Magnolia Tribune
