Small Business Owners and Experts Available for Comment on Increased Funding for SBA’s PPP Program

Washington, DC – Following reports that funding for the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) could dry up and the announcement that the U.S. Senate is preparing to allocate an additional $250 billion to the program as early as this week, Founder and CEO of Small Business Majority, John Arensmeyer, issued the following statement. Small Business Majority is able to connect members of the media with small business owners who have had trouble submitting their PPP application, and policy experts are on hand to discuss the program and concerns Small Business Majority has about the ability of small business owners to access credit quickly.

“It is no secret that the launch of the Paycheck Protection Program has come with its fair share of mishaps. Banks were not provided the guidance or assurances needed for cohesive industry-wide launch; key loan provisions of the loan program, like repayment structure, were not agreed upon before lending began last week; and business owners in our network have been turned away from applying for the program.   

We are pleased that additional funds will be allocated to the program, and we are hopeful this will benefit those business owners without a formal banking relationship who are currently at the end of the line to apply for the program. But at the same time, we remain skeptical that even with increased funding the PPP program will be robust enough to meet the needs of the smallest, most vulnerable small businesses. If there is one thing the difficult launch of PPP has made clear, it is that this program cannot and will not be the end all be all solution for small businesses in this economic crisis. What most small businesses really need and what Congress ought to be focused on is providing unrestricted grant assistance, not additional funding for a convoluted loan process," said John Arensmeyer, CEO at Small Business Majority.

WHAT: On Friday, April 3rd, the PPP program launched, and Small Business Administration (SBA) approved banks began accepting applications from some small business borrowers. The $350 billion SBA backed loan program was designed to help COVID-19 impacted small businesses float payroll and some other expenses for an eight-week period. However, the launch proved to be difficult and banks and many business owners nationwide were unable to navigate the application process. Now, following reports that funding for the program may dry up faster than Congress initially anticipated, the Senate is preparing to allocate an additional quarter trillion dollars in funding for PPP. Small Business Majority policy experts and business owners trying to apply for PPP are available to speak with reporters. 

WHO: The following small business and lending experts at Small Business Majority are available for interviews:

• John Arensmeyer, Founder and CEO
• Small business borrowers are on hand to provide insight into their experiences applying for PPP

WHEN/WHERE: Small business owners and policy experts are available to speak to media today, Tuesday, April 7th, and the rest of this week by phone and video conference.

TO REQUEST AN INTERVIEW: Contact Aimee Brierly, Media Relations Manager: (202) 535-3229 or [email protected].

From the onset, Small Business Majority has expressed concerns with the stimulus package and the structure of the PPP loan program. Small Business Majority’s policy proposals can be found here.