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U.S. lawmakers said Tuesday that they’re working across party lines to set aside additional coronavirus aid for small businesses this week, after the new Paycheck Protection Program created in Washington’s third legislative response to the pandemic met with high demand.
The $350 billion loan program, established in a $2 trillion package that was signed into law on March 27, soon will require more money, according to multiple lawmakers.
PPP “will need at least another $200-$250 billion,” said Republican Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida in a tweet. Rubio also said Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is working with Minority Leader Chuck Schumer to bring to the floor legislation containing additional funds for PPP, and there were hopes it would be passed by a voice vote on Thursday.
McConnell, for his part, said in a statement Tuesday that he would work with Schumer and the Trump administration to OK the funding this week, passing a measure in the Senate through unanimous consent or a voice vote. Congress is on recess and slated to get back to work on April 20, though lawmakers could return to Washington, D.C., sooner or later than planned.
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House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy said in a statement that Treasury Secretary Mnuchin told him Tuesday morning that more money would be needed for PPP, and Mnuchin was planning to make a formal request to Congress. The Treasury Department will ask for between $200 billion and $250 billion, according to a Washington Post report.
“I support the Secretary’s request and following the Senate’s approval, the House should move swiftly to do the same and provide confidence to small businesses across the country that their government will be there for them,” McCarthy said in a statement.
Speaking on Fox Business Network on Tuesday, Mnuchin noted that President Donald Trump previously has said if PPP ran out of money, “he’s going to go back to Congress.”
The program for small businesses eventually could need as much as $1.8 trillion in funding, according to Howard Mason, Renaissance Macro Research’s head of financial research. Small businesses have suffered a record drop in optimism as the coronavirus crisis deepens, the National Federation of Independent Business said Tuesday.
U.S. stocks DJIA, +1.95% SPX, +1.77% have been plunging for weeks on coronavirus-related worries but have pared some of their losses thanks in part to hopes surrounding Washington’s aid programs.
In addition to boosting PPP this week, Democratic and Republican lawmakers and the Trump administration are working on a fourth legislative response to the coronavirus crisis. Analysts have predicted that the next big spending package could cost about $1 trillion but not become a reality for several weeks.
