MORGANTOWN — The U.S. Senate passed a plumped-up version of the coronavirus aid package called CARES 3.5 on Tuesday. Sen. Shelley More Capito, R-W.Va., talked about it in a Wednesday press conference call and Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., submitted a statement on it.
The original proposal was a $250 billion supplement to the $350 billion Paycheck Protection Program included in the CARES Act for forgivable loans for businesses with fewer than 500 employees. Democrats blocked quick passage of that in order to negotiate some additional measures.
What came out via a unanimous-consent resolution – so everyone could remain soically distanced – totaled $475 billion. The PPP was boosted to $310 billion and includes $60 billion for the Economic Injury Disaster Loan program, with $50 billion for loans and $10 billion for small business grants of up to $10,000 apiece.
CARES 3.5 also include $75 billion for struggling hospitals (which have lost significant revenues by stopping elective procedures) and $25 billion for testing. The testing money will be split between the federal government and the states; some will be for virus diagnosis and surveillance while some will go toward antibody testing to see who’s immune.
Capito said the package is expected to pass out of the House and get signed by the president on Thursday.
Capito’s office pointed out that CARES originally included $100 billion for medical providers and only $30 billion of that has gone out.
Capito said during the press call that some of the new PPP funds are weighted toward smaller lending institutions rather than the big banks because many businesses work through their local banks and credit unions.
Capito noted that the first round of PPP was drained in just 10 days – to the surprise of mny who underestimated the demand. “There’s still a lot, particularly on the very small side, that still haven’t accessed this. … Moving forward, we can build on this, we can build on this program.”
West Virginia saw 7,618 PPP loans totaling $1.3 billion go out, she said. For those who are still waiting, she urged them to re-contact their lenders now and make sure they’re in the queue. “If that one’s not working, find another one.” And for those who are frustrated with delays or being ignored, “I’m not going to say be patient. You’re going to have to be pushy and make sure you’re in that queue.”
She invited anyone who needs help finding a lender to call her Charleston office at 304-347-5372.
Manchin reiterated some of his previous concerns in his statement. He said, “I remain extremely worried that it will not reach the people and the places that need it most.I will keep fighting to change the formula for distributing this emergency healthcare funding to ensure our rural health providers receive their fair share.
“I will continue to fight for our publicly owned hospitals – like those in Webster and Pocahontas counties – so that they are eligible to apply for PPP loans,” he said. “And I will continue to fight to make sure small rural businesses get a fair shot and our state and local governments receive the flexible funding they need to maintain essential services now.”
Manchin said he would like to see four conditions added to the legislation: a 20 percent Rural Benchmark in the $100 billion provider fund; priority for facilities that have been significantly affected by COVID-19 preparation (rural facilities have lost 50% to 80% of revenue); priority for facilities that provide care for a disproportionally high percentage of Medicare and Medicaid patients; priority for facilities that provide care for populations with above average senior populations or comorbidities that are particularly vulnerable to complications from COVID-19 and for populations in areas with limited access to health infrastructure.
Asked by The Dominion Post about this, Capito echoed Manchin’s concern about the public hospitals, saying many rural hospitals across the country are owned by local city or county governments and they’re blocked from receiving CARES dollars. They have raised the issue with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin,
“He’s working to try to get some flexibility there,” she said. “I think it’s just a matter of getting some better advice and regulatory flexibility here. We’ve been working on that nonstop to try to help these folks.”
The Dominion Post also asked Capito about two installments of CARES money that have come to West Virginia – $635 million each – and are sitting in a bank account because, as Gov. Jim Justice has said many time, the rules on how to use it are unclear. He would like to put some toward backfilling a $350 million state budget hole caused by lost income tax revenue.
Capito said, “This is turning out to be a more difficult persuasion.” They’ve talked to Mnuchin, President Trump and Vice President Pence. The law currently says the money can’t replenish lost tax revenues and they’ve been asking for flexibility to make backfilling an allowable expense.
A proposal to tweak the law to do that didn’t make it into this package, she said, but it could come into a future measure.
“There’s a lot of blue sky here, I think,” she said, “I think we’re going to be able to push it over the edge. I think in the end we’re going to prevail with the president and the secretary of the Treasury to change the language in the law. … I’ve been working this one hard.”
Asked if this new round of money will be enough, she said no one, including Mnuchin, really knows. “There are certain areas of our economy that are still flailing. We’re keeping our eye on that.” And they hope to tackle it when they resume work on May 4.
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