C-Suite Wednesday – SBA Funds Over $518 Billion in PPP Loans
July 22, 2020
By Caity Witucki
Contributing Editor, C-Suite Wednesday
C-Suite Wednesday – SBA Funds Over $518 Billion in PPP Loans
On July 17, 2020, the House of Representatives Committee on Small Business held a hearing with Steven Mnuchin, the United States Secretary of the Treasury, and Jovita Carranza, Administrator of the Small Business Administration, to discuss the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). At the hearing, the program received bipartisan praise for aiding in economic recovery.
“Since March, the SBA has processed more loan volume than it has in the entire 67-year history of the agency,” says Carranza. As of last Friday, the SBA had approved nearly 5 million PPP loans for over $518 billion dollars, leaving over $132 billion in remaining funds. The recent data release for PPP loans above $150,000 has confirmed that at least 51 million jobs have been retained. However, 878,000 companies (about 18% of PPP applicants) have not yet reported the number of jobs that were retained. Therefore, the true number of jobs saved may be significantly higher than the initial reports.
The Treasury Secretary adds that PPP has not only saved millions of jobs, but is already improving the U.S. economy. “While the unemployment rate is still historically high, we are seeing additional signs and conditions of improvement,” says Mnuchin. “The Blue Chip Report is forecasting that our GDP will grow by 18% in the third quarter. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce reports that 79% of small businesses are at least partially open, and one-half of the remaining businesses will open soon. Retail sales rose by 18% in May and by 7.5% in June. Let me point out, June was actually 1.1% higher than the same June 2019.”
Even with the recent PPP extension, which allows participating lenders to make PPP loans through August 8, 2020, experts believe the remaining funds will not be exhausted. As a result, Congress is now considering several legislative proposals that would allow some borrowers to receive a second PPP loan. Other proposals include allotting additional funding for minorities or heavily impacted industries.
