Washington, DC – Congressman Andy Barr (KY-06) is calling on the U.S. Department of Treasury and the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) to simplify its application for small businesses applying for loan forgiveness through the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). Congressman Barr co-led a letter with Congressman French Hill (AR-02) to Treasury and SBA making this request. 54 of their colleagues signed onto the letter, which you can read here.
This effort comes after Congressman Barr has listened to many small business owners in Kentucky’s Sixth District who have expressed concerns that the length, documentation requirements and complexity of the forgiveness application would be incredibly time consuming for many small businesses and their lenders, forcing many small mom and pops in Kentucky and nationwide to hire legal and accounting help at great expense just to fulfill the application requirements.
“Small businesses don’t need additional costs and red-tape as they battle back from the COVID-19 related shutdown of our economy. That is why I have written a letter to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and SBA Administrator Jovita Carranza requesting that the loan forgiveness application for loans $350,000 or less be simplified,” said Congressman Barr. “Much like how the IRS relies on Form 1040 EZ for taxpayers with relatively straightforward tax filings, Treasury and the SBA should create a streamlined forgiveness application for small business loans below the dollar threshold.”
“Treasury has already pledged to fully audit loans in excess of $2 million,” Barr continued. “This request would not preclude Treasury and SBA from conducting oversight over the funds, or otherwise auditing any loan. But a streamlined forgiveness application would ease the burden on both borrowers and lenders of smaller PPP loans, consistent with congressional intent, while at the same time allowing Treasury and the SBA to focus its scarce and valuable resources on the program’s higher risk and larger dollar-value loans.”
Additionally, Congressman Barr voted on Thursday, May 27, in favor of H.R. 7010, the Paycheck Protection Program Flexibility Act, which would ease some of the restrictions placed on small businesses that received PPP loans.