On Tuesday, March 30, 2021, President Joe Biden signed the “PPP Extension Act of 2021” into law extending the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) loan program application until May 31. The original cutoff date was March 31, but overwhelmingly both chambers of Congress passed legislation to extend accepting applications for two more months.
The SBA has been denying PPP applications from farmers and ranchers who operate in a partnership or as a sole-owner LLC. Because of this, two separate bills have been filed to help bring clarification to the issue at hand and to allow PPP access to farmers and ranchers who operate under a partnership or a sole-owner LLC status.
The “Paycheck Protection Clarification for Producers Act” (H.R. 1246) is being carried by Representative Jeff Fortenberry (R-NE) and Representative Henry Cuellar (D-TX). This bill was introduced to the House on February 23, 2021 and has been referred to the House Committee on Small Business.
The “PPP Flexibility for Farmers and Ranchers Act” (H.R. 1411) is being carried by Representative Jim Hagedorn (R-MN) and 67 co-sponsors, including 10 from Texas. This bill was introduced to the House on February 26, 2021 and has also been referred to the House Committee on Small Business.