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Congress may approve more small business loans

Posted at 7:16 AM, Apr 08, 2020
and last updated 2020-04-08 07:16:51-04

LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — More financial help may be coming to small business owners impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Last month, Congress gave about 349 billion dollars for the Paycheck Protection Program, a small business loan to keep workers on the payroll. Now, President Donald Trump wants the Senate to vote on more funds as early as Thursday.

The president is asking to give out an additional 250 billion dollars to small businesses. The new initiative would consist of forgivable loans to businesses with fewer than 500 employees.

The funding would help cover salaries, benefits, and other costs like mortgages, rent, and utilities.

The treasury department says 75 billion dollars in guaranteed loans have already been processed, but it's unclear how much has gotten into the hands of business owners.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says he will push the Senate to vote for the added funding this week, after Secretary of Treasury Steven Mnuchin said more relief is needed.

"I urged them at the President's request that they get us another 250 billion dollars approved and we look forward to the Senate passing that on Thursday and the House passing it on Friday,” said Mnuchin. “This is much needed support and we want to make sure that every single small business can participate."

These additional funds could be approved in Congress by the end of the week.