As of this week, upwards of 38,000 businesses in Ohio have had loans approved through the U.S. Small Business Administration totaling over $10 billion. These loans have the potential to keep businesses open and workers employed throughout the duration of the Coronavirus pandemic.

The Paycheck Protection Program was included in the Federal CARES Act which allocated $350 billion to help small businesses keep workers employed during the pandemic resulting in the economic downturn. Employers can apply for a loan up to 2.5 times the borrower’s average monthly payroll costs, not to exceed $10 million. The loan is to be used for the following purposes:

• Payroll costs (using the same definition of payroll costs used to determine loan eligibility)
• Interest on the mortgage obligation incurred in the ordinary course of business
• Rent on a leasing agreement
• Payments on utilities (electricity, gas, water, transportation, telephone, or internet)
• For borrowers with tipped employees, additional wages paid to those employees

Unfortunately, as of today, the program is no longer accepting applications as the funding for the program has run out. Applications for small businesses opened on Friday, April 3 and for independent contractors/self-employed individuals, it opened a week later. There has been talk at the federal level about adding additional funds to this program.

It is our hope that more funds become available for businesses in Ohio to continue to operate and keep their workers employed throughout the course of the Coronavirus pandemic. We will keep you apprised of any developments on this program and any other programs available to small businesses through our Coronavirus Business Resource page on our Ohio Chamber website.