NEW: The Small Business Administration Paycheck Protection Program has resumed accepting applications as of 10:30 a.m. EST, April 27th. Like the last round, we expect this money will likely go fast. What does that mean to you? If you haven’t applied, DO IT NOW. Get your documents in order and load up on patience. We will continue to update you as we get more information.

A few points to consider this round:

    • Did you know the Payroll Protection Program (PPP) is designed to keep your employees on the payroll, even if you have already laid them off. If you hire them back prior to the June 30th cutoff, there is still opportunity for 8 weeks of payroll loan forgiveness.

    • We are hearing that some Salt Lake City business owners had trouble with PPP in the first round because their bank wasn’t up and running yet, or wasn’t accepting applications at all. Here is a list to help circumvent that banking challenge (congress has opened up the application process to FinTech companies as well, which includes some Utah companies).

    • The SBA program is now ready for Schedule C proprietors. Be prepared and if you haven’t already started, here is a list of commonly required documents from lenders.

 

  • Know the difference between the SBA’s Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) and PPP.
    • With EIDL the applicant works directly with SBA. It’s a long term recovery funding for small business to apply within the year. It can be used for working capital. We’re finding there are many more things to be identified to get the loan.
    • PPP is short term relief over a two year term, you work directly with a participating lender and it is generally easier to get than an EIDL.

 

  • Make a strong Payroll Protection Program application. We had an opportunity to sit in on a webinar with more tips to help. Here’s what we learned:

For PPP, payroll calculations are the heart of application. And this part is critical in order to get the loan forgiven – it is mostly for payroll (75% of ask), (25% can be used on rent, utilities or Other – could be healthcare benefits, insurance payments, debt obligations, or refinancing the EIDL loan.

When determining your ask, you should be going off payroll expense.  The lender will look at IRS 940 (that shows year’s snapshot of payroll) payroll ledgers, quarterly payroll reports, etc. You will need itemization of what each employee is making.

So what is payroll? As defined by SBA –it means salary, wages, conditions, cash tips, parental, medical/sick/vacation leave, health care coverage, insurance premium, allowance for employee benefits, employee separation, retirement premiums (see SBA rules for full definition).

Independent contractors need to file their own PPP – employers should not include them on their payrolls.

How do the self-employed apply? You can use the net profit that the sole proprietor has declared in 2019. Employer should file 2019 taxes for this information. Information is pulled from c schedule on taxes.  Amount of ask should be calculated by: Net profit (from c schedule), divided by 52 times 8.

Employees have to be hired back by June 30th and should not be on unemployment by that time.

It is essential to follow all application instructions and initial the parts that require it.

We are grateful to our Salt Lake City business owners during this difficult time. We know it is hard given the current chaos and the desperate need for help. There is a list of free community resources to help walk you through the process on our COVID-19 Business Resources page – and as always we are here to listen and find ways to serve you better.  If you haven’t already (or your needs have changed) please let us know how it is going by connecting on our Salt Lake City business impact survey.