Many small businesses have experienced a major shake-up from COVID-related issues, and at times like these having liquid assets are important to allow a firm to pivot as necessary. As you have likely heard, the secondary Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) is providing major funding to assist especially vulnerable businesses such as restaurants, travel agencies, entertainment venues, and farmers. That is not all however, as it will help small businesses continue to keep their personnel retained with a second forgivable loan for payroll and other qualified expenses.
Approximately $284 billion has been allocated for the second PPP from the Federal Government. Currently banks are rolling out their website portals for businesses to apply. The new PPP is going to require a little bit more math than previously, as one will need to prove ongoing revenue losses. It needs to be shown that there is at least 25% less gross revenue from one quarter in 2019 to the same quarter in 2020, though it appears the business can choose which quarter they would like to compare.
For small businesses that have been negatively affected, we encourage you to review the second draw form to ensure you qualify. If so, a good next step is to visit your bank’s website to see if they have provisioned an online portal for applying. Many of the larger U.S. banks including J.P. Morgan, Bank of America, and PNC have already deployed a portal on their site, and others will be following suit shortly. You may have trouble reaching banking call centers during this time as they are likely overwhelmed with requests, however you may have a better time reaching your local branch. If you don’t have a current relationship with a bank, there are online lender options such as Lendio, Smartbiz, Fundera, and others that may be able to assist you.
For those contracted with the government currently, the language enacted in the CARES Act permitting agencies to provide contractors sick or paid leave if they cannot access their worksites is currently extended until the end of March.
If you are a contractor currently looking for new business opportunities with the federal government to bolster your revenue, we encourage you to take a 5-day trial of EZGovOpps Market Intelligence. EZGovOpps provides a competitive advantage to federal contractors through
JHB Solutions, LLC d/b/a EZGovOpps does not have an association with the businesses referenced in this article and makes no claim as to their fitness/ability to provide a loan through the Small Business Administration.