PPP funds depleted; talking points for bankers to customers

As of the morning of April 16, the funds for the Paycheck Protection Program have been depleted. While we expect Congress to appropriate more funds for the PPP soon, in the meantime the Small Business Administration and Treasury Department will not be processing any more loan requests through the PPP.

“There is currently a bill being discussed in congress that would add additional funds to the program,” OBA Executive Vice President/Goverment Relations Adrian Beverage said. “With the initial amount appropriated now being gone, there will be tremendous pressure on Congress to get the additional funding approved. There are still millions of small businesses, independent contractors and sole proprietors needing help.”

In the meantime, however, bank customers could understandably become antsy as they await the PPP to restart. The OBA has prepared some talking points for your customers, as well as media and local officials, to allay their fears and help them understand this is NOT a bank-caused problem.

• Oklahoma’s banks were standing by their small business customers before the SBA’s Paycheck Protection Program, and they stand by them now that the PPP money has run out. Banks of all sizes will continue to work closely with small businesses to assess their options going forward. There may also be other federal programs that could help small businesses unable to participate in PPP such as the Fed’s Main Street Lending Program.
• We still believe Congress should extend PPP by providing additional federal funds as soon as possible given the economic damage done to small businesses and their millions of employees by this pandemic. We again call on Congress to approve more funds expeditiously, so America’s banks can continue to provide this important financial lifeline to small businesses and help put the nation on the path to recovery.

What should a small business do if their PPP loan didn’t get approved in time.

• The first thing they should do is talk to their bank about other options that might help them through this crisis. In addition to any assistance the bank might be able to provide directly, there may be other federal programs that could help. For example, small businesses may be eligible for the Fed’s Main Street Lending Program. They should also make sure all of their PPP paperwork remains in order in case Congress does provide additional funding in the future.