WASHINGTON–By a 92-7 margin, the Senate has voted to extend the Paycheck Protection Program to the end of May.
In the process, two Republican amendments were rejected and a budget point of order was waived.
The PPP had been scheduled to expire on March 31. A similar measure has already passed the House by a 415-3 vote, meaning it is now headed to President Joe Biden for his signature in order to become law.
“This program has been a lifeline to countless small businesses and has saved more than 50 million jobs in this country,” said Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), in comments on the Senate floor. “If we do not act, there are 190,000 pending applications for loans that will be in limbo. These small businesses need this assistance now in order to pay their employees and stay afloat.”
Kentucky Republican Rand Paul urged senators to vote no, saying the program would allow health care centers affiliated with the national Planned Parenthood organization to get aid.
Sen Benjamin L. Cardin (D-MD) said he plans to work with Republicans on a bill to address issues with the program to pass when Congress returns next month, including making retroactive a March 3 change to how the SBA calculates loans for sole proprietors to allow business owners who applied earlier to get more money.
Amendments Rejected
By a 48-52 vote, the Senate rejected an amendment offered by Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) that would have limited how the Small Business Administration could spend the PPP money by preventing the agency from prioritizing some businesses over others.
“The very reason why we even have to do an extension is because the new administration has unfairly and unnecessarily restricted eligible businesses and nonprofits from applying,” Rubio said. “It's created confusion. People haven't been able to get in by the deadlines. Unless we put in more guardrails, there's little assurance that this is not going to continue.”
As CUToday.info reported earlier, the PPP was amended in December to prioritize smaller businesses, businesses in low income areas and CDFIs.
The Senate also voted 48-52 to reject an amendment from by Sen John Kennedy (R-LA) that would have barred business owners convicted of felonies related to “riots or civil disorder” in the last two years from getting loans through the program.
The Congressional Budget Office said in a March 16 report extending the program would increase the cost of the program by $15 billion. Cardin said there will be $50 billion left over from money already appropriated by Congress to fund the program at the end of this month.
Praise for Passage
A number of groups are praising passage of the extension, including the National Association of the Self-Employed.
“On behalf of our members, self-employed entrepreneurs, gig economy workers and micro-business owners across the country, we applaud Congress for working together in a bipartisan way to extend the PPP application deadline,” the NASE said. “Extension of this critical lifeline for America’s small business community will ensure more money gets into the hands of those businesses who need it most during these unprecedented times."