Ann Arbor - Ypsilanti Regional Chamber issued the following announcement on April 22.
U.S. Senator Gary Peters (D-MI), Ranking Member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, today called on the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to conduct a wide-ranging examination of the allocation of funds distributed as part of the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). The Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act provided $349 billion to the U.S. Small Business Administration to support small and medium-sized businesses struggling with the economic fallout of the ongoing global pandemic. But the program’s funds were quickly depleted, and it has been widely reported that many of the small and minority-owned businesses these funds were intended for did not receive this much-needed financial assistance.
“As small businesses in Michigan and across the country continue to face dire financial challenges, I am concerned that PPP loans may not have gone to those who need them most,” wrote Senator Peters. “Over 1 million Michigan residents, many of whom worked for small businesses, have filed for unemployment in the past month alone—the fourth highest in the nation. However, Michigan currently ranks 35th out of 50 states for processed PPP loans. There is also evidence that a substantial amount of PPP loans have gone to large hotel and restaurant chains, rather than the struggling small and minority-owned businesses who may be forced to permanently close their doors without urgent assistance.”
The Paycheck Protection Program, established under the CARES Act, is a loan program intended to help small and medium-sized businesses cover operational costs during the Coronavirus pandemic. However, the PPP has been beset with implementation problems, including delayed and unclear guidance to both potential lenders and recipients.
Original source can be found here.
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