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U.S. lawmakers are struggling to reach an agreement on setting aside additional coronavirus aid for small businesses, leading analysts to predict that an extra $250 billion for a Paycheck Protection Program won’t get approved until next week.
“Negotiations will continue, and we expect that Congress remains incentivized to take action to increase small-business assistance and prevent a shortfall in the program. That action may not come until next week, however,” said analysts at Height Capital Markets in a note Thursday.
Two top Democrats — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer — in a statement on Wednesday morning said they want the additional $250 billion for PPP to get packaged with other provisions, such as $100 billion for health-care institutions, $150 billion for state and local governments and extra help for food-stamp recipients.
But Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, the Kentucky Republican, signaled in a series of tweets late Wednesday that he won’t budge from the GOP plan to aim for just an additional $250 billion for PPP. The loan program for small businesses initially got $350 billion in a recent $2 trillion coronavirus package, known as the CARES Act or Washington’s “Phase 3” virus legislation.
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And see:Coronavirus small-business aid program could ultimately need $1.8 trillion in funding
McConnell said on Twitter that he plans to ask on Thursday morning for “unanimous consent to pass standalone emergency funding for the hugely popular Paycheck Protection Program.”
“Nobody thinks tomorrow will be the Senate’s last word on COVID-19,” the senator tweeted. “If we want to act fast, Congress has to focus. There is no realistic chance that another sprawling bill which allocates half a trillion dollars to a number of priorities, even important ones, will be able to pass the Senate or the House by unanimous consent this week.”
Pelosi, for her part, said in an NPR interview on Wednesday afternoon that the current Republican approach “will not get unanimous support in the caucus in the House. It just won’t.”
Separate from the fight between the Republican-led Senate and Democratic-run House’s leaders, Republican Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky has signaled he doesn’t support a quick approval for additional PPP money and could throw a wrench in the process.
In addition to boosting PPP, 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.
U.S. stocks US:DJIA US:SPX 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.
