Vermont Business Magazine The US Small Business Administration has approved more than $853 million in loans to 4,896 Vermont businesses, Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont) announced on Wednesday. The assistance comes from the Paycheck Protection Program that was created as part of the CARES Act Congress passed in late March. Leahy, the Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, has had a leading role in crafting the three emergency COVID-19 bills.
“Help is finally on the way for many Vermont small businesses. One of our top priorities in the CARES Act was to ensure businesses would have access to capital to help them persevere through this crisis. Our banks, credit unions and other lenders have done an extraordinary job under very trying circumstances to process these applications. Thanks to their hard work and partnership with SBA many Vermont businesses now have access to a lifeline.
“Even as we applaud this news we know that unfortunately these relief programs aren’t working equally well for every type of business. I have heard from hundreds of Vermonters who own restaurants, bed and breakfasts and inns, or other businesses that are shut down and have had to lay off employees. They are rightfully concerned about how the rules of this program will work for them or whether they can participate at all. There are a number of issues we will address in the next corona response package, and increasing funding for the program and making it more flexible and inclusive are top priorities.”
The Paycheck Protection Program is designed to provide cash-flow assistance through 100 percent federally guaranteed loans to employers who maintain their payroll during this emergency. If employers maintain their payroll, eight weeks of the loan will be forgiven, which would help workers remain employed, as well as help affected small businesses and the economy snap-back quicker after the crisis.
Additionally these loans include no SBA fees, and at least six months of deferral with maximum deferrals of up to a year. Small businesses and other eligible entities will be able to apply if they were harmed by COVID-19 between February 15, 2020 and June 30, 2020. Loans are available through June 30, 2020. Small businesses looking to find out more information about the SBA programs can visit https://www.sba.gov/.
Senator Leahy's staff said the SBA has not shared with them how many total PPP applications have been filed by Vermont businesses.
Source: (WEDNESDAY, April 15, 2020) – Leahy