Senate Approves PPP Extension Until May 31
The measure, specifically, extends the current March 31 deadline to apply for loans to May 31; meanwhile, the government would also get an additional month to process loans after the program closes—until June 30. Lawmakers thought that the circumstances in which the PPP was developed have not yet subsided, and so they wanted to extend the deadline to allow more people to access the aid program.
They likely had in mind the major delays seen both last year and within the past few weeks. The White House—remembering the experiences from the early pandemic, whern huge corporations accessed the ostensible small business program—restricted participation for the first two weeks to only the smallest of companies. This restriction, however, may have ironically led to these businesses being shut out., as the announcement itself seems to have delayed their applications. The priority window opened on Feb. 24, but guidance on the changes only dropped this week. Many banks, despite the revisions, wound up putting many applications on hold while waiting for this guidance, and now that it's out, many are asking potential borrowers to redo their applications to fit within the new requirements.