Congress Approves $484 Billion in Additional Funding
This week, Congress approved H.R. 266, The Paycheck Protection Program and Healthcare Enhancement Act. This funding bill was negotiated between the Trump administration and congressional leaders after the small-business Paycheck Protection Program—created as part of the CARES Act—ran out of money last week and stopped processing loans. So far, 1.6 million small businesses have received funding through PPP, according to the Small Business Administration. The new funding measure includes $310 billion to replenish the Paycheck Protection Program, $60 billion for the Economic Injury Disaster Loans Program (an emergency loan program that provides forgivable grants to small businesses), $75 billion for hospitals and health-care providers, and $25 billion for a new coronavirus testing program. H.R. 266 was the fourth emergency funding bill Congress passed in the past two months to deal with the aftereffects of the coronavirus, and brings the total federal commitment close to $3 trillion. President Trump signed the legislation into law on April 24.
Members of Congress are already sounding the alarm for the need of another round of stimulus to try to contain COVID-19’s economic fallout. This latest funding, however, may be the last for at least several weeks. Divisions are emerging about the need and structure of further financial relief, especially for hard hit states and cities which are experiencing financial strain due to reductions in tax revenue. Senator Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) stated this week that he is wary of approving additional funding for states and cities, and that some states may have to declare bankruptcy (every state but Vermont has a requirement to maintain a balanced budget and current law doesn’t allow states to declare bankruptcy). Congress is not scheduled to return to Washington, D.C. until May 4 at the earliest.
Treasury Provides Paycheck Protection Program Guidance
The U.S. Department of Treasury has published guidance intended to stop federal Paycheck Protection Program loans from going to large companies. The Department of Treasury says it is unlikely that a public company with substantial market value and access to capital markets will be able to make the required certification in good faith that their PPP loan request is necessary. Any borrower that applied for a PPP loan prior to the issuance of this guidance and repays the loan in full by May 7, 2020 will be deemed by SBA to have made the required certification in good faith. Borrowers and lenders may rely on the guidance provided as SBA’s interpretation of the CARES Act and of the Paycheck Protection Program Interim Final Rule. The guidance can be found HERE.
Senators Brown, Reed Seek to Create $75 Billion Housing Assistance Fund
Senators Sherrod Brown (D-OH), ranking member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs, and Jack Reed (D-RI), are preparing to introduce legislation that would provide federal aid to all state-level Housing Finance Agencies (HFAs). The proposed $75 Billion Housing Assistance Fund would build off of the success of the Hardest Hit Fund, which Senators Brown and Reed championed in 2010 (and which provided funds to state housing finance agencies to provide targeted foreclosure prevention assistance to households and neighborhoods in states hit hard by the economic and housing market downturn). Financial assistance could go toward mortgage payment assistance; utility payments; and other support to prevent eviction, mortgage delinquency, default, or foreclosure, or loss of utility services. The Brown-Reed bill would provide assistance to communities nationwide and includes a small state minimum, ensuring each state would receive no less than $250 million. The Senators plan to introduce the legislation as soon as the U.S. Senate returns to session.
Congresswoman Introduces Legislation to Fund Service Coordinators
Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX-15), who sits on the House Budget Committee, introduced today H.R. 6503, the Pandemic and Public Health Emergency Support for the Elderly and Persons with Disabilities Act. H.R. 6503 would provide funding, as deemed necessary, for multifamily service coordinators and service coordinators in public housing during the COVID-19 emergency period. The legislation would provide funding and grants, through the Department of Housing and Urban Development, for housing support services (including the delivery of medicines, groceries, meals, and household supplies), project-based rental assistance (Sec. 202 and Sec. 811) and other assistance and services. The bill has been sent to the House Committee on Appropriations for further consideration. The full text of the bill can be read HERE.
Tell Congress to Strengthen Affordable Housing during COVID19 Emergency
NAHMA, along with many of its industry colleagues, continue to urge Congress to include resources for affordable housing and community development programs in the next coronavirus emergency response package. In an April 23 letter to Congressional leadership, NAHMA and the Campaign for Housing and Community Development Funding requested that Congress provide additional resources to ensure that the concerns of people experiencing homelessness, low-income renters, providers of affordable housing and community services, including low-income rural and urban communities, are addressed.
Additionally, NAHMA has sent a Grassroots Alert focused on providing additional industry COVID-19 relief. As Congress prepares to return to Washington to consider what the fifth round of economic stimulus will entail, we request that members continue to reach out–if they have not done so yet–via digital channels (email and social media) to lawmakers and ask for additional housing assistance. We also continue to ask members to educate lawmakers about the impacts of COVID-19 in their districts or states. The Grassroots Alert, and many others resources are also posted to the NAHMA Coronavirus Resources webpage at https://www.nahma.org/coronavirus-information-and-resources/.