Last updated on April 11, 2020
So far, Congress has passed two bills related to COVID-19 which have provisions specifically aimed at small businesses. They are:
- The Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) and
- The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act).
Free Money for Businesses
- The Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) is a loan which is designed to convert to a grant for small businesses
- Emergency Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) Grants are grants of up to $10k for small businesses who apply for EIDL loans from the SBA (see Economic Injury Disaster Loan information)
- The Employee Retention Tax Credit is a tax credit for keeping employees on payroll, good for up to $5k per employee (but can’t be combined with PPP)
- FFCRA Paid Leave gives you & your employees paid leave which is reimbursed by the federal government, including the cost of healthcare benefits
Free Money for Individuals
- Unemployment rules changes make more people eligible for unemployment, and increase the benefits for everybody on unemployment
- Recovery Rebates are checks the federal government will be sending directly to individuals or families
Loans for Businesses
- SBA Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) are loans of up to $2 million which are paid back over 10-30 years
- The Paycheck Protection Program is a loan of up to 2.5 months of payroll with a maximum of $10 million for small businesses; any portion of the PPP loan which is left after the forgiveness amount converts into a loan over 2 years at 1% interest.
- The Main Street Lending Facility from the Federal Reserve is a new loan program designed to encourage banks to lend to medium-sized businesses who are too small to be bailed out directly, but too big for the small business programs
Overviews and Comparisons
- CFO Dive article on the trade-offs between the various programs and tax credits
- US Chamber of Commerce page with links to COVID-related information and guides