Applications open Jan. 19 for new PPP round

The relief loan floodgates will reopen Tuesday, as the U.S. Small Business Administration opens the latest $284.5 billion round of Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) funding available. 

This time, borrowers who received allocations during the initial rounds of PPP funding in 2020 can reapply under Second Draw PPP Loan applications. First Draw PPP Loans are for borrowers who had not received a loan before Aug. 8, 2020, while the Second Draw PPP Loans are for eligible businesses with 300 or fewer employees.

PPP loans are aimed at helping small businesses meet payroll costs and make mortgage interest, rent and/or utilities payments due to the economic crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Eligible Second Draw PPP Loan borrowers must demonstrate at least a 25% drop in gross receipts between comparable quarters in 2019 and 2020, and second-round loans are capped at $2 million. While this will be the first round in which PPP recipients can apply for a second round, Ryan Losi, executive vice president of CPA firm Piascik, told Virginia Business in December 2020 that the requirement to show a drop in revenue could disqualify some small businesses seeking additional funding.

“That’s going to eliminate a lot of businesses that have basically been able to sustain, or have even prospered, during this time,” he said. Andrew Lohmann, an executive vice president of Richmond-based law firm Hirschler, also advises businesses interested in applying for a Second Draw Loan to carefully review 2019 and 2020 financial records.

“Be aware that gross receipts doesn’t necessarily translate to gross revenue or net income — it’s a test that’s based on existing SBA standards,” he says. “In the second half of 2020 there was a fair amount of merger and acquisition activity, and borrowers are advised to look at how the … new Second Draw PPP will apply to how you calculate gross receipts, either based on acquisitions that a borrower has made or dispositions the company has made during 2020.”

With the application portal set to reopen Tuesday, banks are prepared to take on another round of PPP loan requests.

“While it is difficult to predict with certainty, we are anticipating strong demand for this next round of PPP based on inbound inquiries and conversations with our clients,” says Atlantic Union Bank CEO John Asbury. “Building off what we learned in 2020, Atlantic Union Bank has made all the necessary preparations to best manage this new round of PPP loans for both our current and new customers.”

Asbury encourages small businesses to “continuously check” the bank’s PPP page for updated information about the current round of funding.

Lohmann, however, doesn’t expect demand to be as high for Second Draw applicants. “I’ve heard fewer companies, fewer clients talking about taking advantage of the Second Draw, either because they have weathered the storm or unfortunately the second round came too late,” he says. 

Despite difficulties opening its application portal on time during the initial rounds of PPP funding, McLean-based Capital One Financial One Corp. (Virginia’s largest bank) announced its plans to accept applications starting Tuesday.

“Capital One is committed to supporting our small business customers during this challenging time and will participate in the next round of PPP loans,” according to a Capital One statement. “We will begin accepting PPP loan applications on Tuesday, Jan. 19, 2021, when the SBA portal opens to large banks.”

Of the original PPP round that closed last summer, 5.2 million applicants nationwide received $525 billion in loans as of Aug. 8, 2020. The initial round of funding was split between two iterations during spring and summer 2020.

“A second round of PPP could not have come at a better time, and the SBA is making every effort to ensure small businesses have the emergency financial support they need to continuing weathering this time of uncertainty,” SBA Administrator Jovita Carranza said in a statement. “SBA has worked expeditiously to ensure our policies and systems are relaunched so that this vital small business aid helps communities hardest hit by the pandemic.

“I strongly encourage America’s entrepreneurs needing financial assistance to apply for a First or Second Draw PPP loan.”

Loan recipients must apply for forgiveness through their PPP lender, compile data including payroll and non-payroll costs and submit all information to the lender, according to the SBA. Businesses that had loans of $50,000 or less can fill out a more streamlined application, the SBA announced in early October. 

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