Calls grow to expand small-biz loans after 15,000 Maine firms get $1.9B
Photo / Jim Neuger
Many small businesses, like this eatery in downtown Portland, are offering curbside pickup, takeout and delivery while they remain closed to in-store diners under state order.
Lawmakers in Washington, D.C., are reportedly close to a deal to add $300 billion to the small-business relief program that expired last week.
Amid growing calls for more money, the package being discussed would also include $50 billion for the U.S. Small Business Administration's disaster relief fund, $75 billion for hospitals and $25 billion for testing.
Before Paycheck Protection Program funds were depleted, nearly 15,000 small Maine businesses received more than $1.9 billion in loans, according to an official tally released by the SBA on approvals through April 16.
A state-by-state comparison published by Bloomberg News puts Maine at No. 6 among the states with the greatest loan volumes as a portion of their eligible payrolls, with a percentage of 74.7%.
That list, based on Evercore ISI estimates of payrolls in each state, was led by Nebraska at 81.9%, with North Dakota, Kansas, South Dakota and Hawaii rounding out the top five. Maine outranked all of its New England peers, with Connecticut faring the worst of the six at No. 44 with loan coverage of less than half (47.5%) of eligible payrolls.
Maine State Chamber, Bankers Association
In Maine, groups including the Maine State Chamber of Commerce and the Maine Bankers Association are demanding that the lifeline be extended.
On Thursday, when the Paycheck Protection Plan funds ran out, the chamber called on Congress to swiftly approve a minimum infusion of $250 billion.
"It is critical that our nation’s leaders continue to work together to keep this program funded so more Maine small businesses can access critical aid," said Dana Connors, the chamber's president and CEO, in a statement. "The well-being of Maine’s economy, businesses, and workforce depends on it."
He also noted that in a small-business state like Maine, the PPP program is a lifeline that is helping businesses and their employees bridge the gap the pandemic is causing.
Without asking for a specific amount, the Maine Bankers Association, headed by Executive Director Chris Pinkham, is also urging lawmakers to expand the program.
"We have urged Congress to extend PPP by providing additional federal funds as soon as possible, given the economic damage this pandemic has done to small businesses and their millions of employees," the association said in a news release.
"We have asked our congressional delegation to support more funds expeditiously, so Maine banks can continue to provide this important financial lifeline to small businesses and help put the state on the path to recovery.
The now-exhausted $349 billion program, part of the $2 trillion Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act, aims to help small businesses cover near-term expenses during the COVID-19 crisis in the form of forgivable loans of up to $10 million.
SBA will forgive loans if companies keep their employees on the payroll for eight weeks and use the money for payroll, rent, mortgage interest or utilities.
$342B for 1.6M businesses nationwide
Before the money ran out last week, more than 1.6 million U.S. businesses were granted $342 billion in Paycheck Protection Program loans.
Close to a quarter of the funds (23.56%) were for loans ranging from $350,00 to $1 million, while the average loan size is $206,000.
Nationwide, the greatest dollar amount ($44.9 billion) will go to businesses in the construction sector, with a total of 177,905 approved loans.
A total of $43.3 billion will go to the professional, scientific and technical services sector, for which 208,360 loans were approved, according to data from the SBA.
The SBA said in a Monday press release that the program "provided a wide variety of industries in all sectors of the economy, including construction, manufacturing, food and hospitality services, health care, agriculture and retail, among many others.
"The Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) is saving millions of jobs and providing much-needed relief to help New England's small businesses make it through this challenging time," said Wendell G. Davis, SBA's New England regional administrator.
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