Small businesses need more PPP funding

When Congress designed the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), they assumed that a one size fits all program would work for the range of different business models that make up the small business community. They could not have been more wrong. Now that applications have closed - with more than $100 billion left in the fund - it's time to reevaluate, rework and relaunch the program to reach more business owners.

PPP was never going to work for my small business. The program assumed my highest expense was payroll and that my 1099 employees were expendable. Because of this flawed logic, I could not borrow enough money through the program to make a PPP loan worthwhile. Now I am at a disadvantage because I took a traditional economic injury disaster loan (EIDL) through the SBA and have no option for forgiveness.

And I am by no means the only small business owner who was left behind by PPP. We need to extend automatic forgiveness for businesses that took modest EIDL funding because PPP was not in their best interest or they would have not qualified.

As one in four small businesses report they will have to close their doors in the next three months without more support, Congress must act to make funds more readily available to small businesses of all kinds.

Glen Miller

Barrington