Paycheck Protection Program Returns

$284 billion of the $900 billion COVID-19 relief package recently signed into law is earmarked for the second go-round of the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), a loan program designed to aid struggling small businesses. Businesses that received a PPP loan in 2020 are allowed to apply again.

The loan program has many requirements, but here are a handful, with an assist from The National Law Review: PPP loans are restricted to businesses that employ no more than 300 people (or meet an alternative size standard); have used (or will use) their entire first PPP loan; and had “gross receipts during Q1, Q2 or Q3 2020 that were at least 25% less than the gross receipts from the same quarter in 2019.”

The breadth of expenses covered by PPP loans has also expanded beyond rent, payroll, and covered mortgage and utilities. The loan can also be used for, among other things, Covered Operations Expenditures,  or payments for business software or cloud computing service that facilitates business operations, product or service delivery… and Covered Worker Protection Expenditures,  such as  operating or capital expenditures that allow a business to comply with requirements or guidance issued by the CDC, HHS, OSHA or any state or local government during the period beginning March 1, 2020.