The U.S. Senate approved a bill Tuesday in what is being called phase 3.5 of coronavirus relief. The $484 billion package includes an increase in the authorization level for the Paycheck Protection Program from $349 billion in the phase 3 legislation to $659 billion in this legislation, which equates to an additional $310 billion authorized for lending. The House is expected vote on the bill this week.

The bill sets aside the following amounts for the PPP to be made by the following institutions:

• $30 billion for loans made by insured depository institutions and credit unions that have assets between $10 billion and $50 billion; and
• $30 billion for loans made by community financial institutions, small insured depository institutions and credit unions with assets less than $10 billion.

Details of the bill can be accessed by clicking here.

The PPP, which lenders could begin utilizing on April 3 to help small businesses overcome the challenges created by the COVID-19 pandemic, exhausted its $350 billion funding capacity April 16 as U.S. lawmakers remained in a stalemate over how to allocate more money.

Just over 81,000 Paycheck Protection Program loans totaling more than $20 billion were approved in New York state, making it the third largest recipient of the small business loans in the country as of April 16, according to an SBA report issued on April 17.

The PPP is slated to be available through June 30, 2020.

The New York Credit Union Association continues to help credit unions navigate the PPP through its resource center, which includes links, resources, frequently asked questions and other valuable information. Updated information is added as the Association receives it.

The PPP resource center can be accessed on the Association’s website.