Another No Good, Very Bad Week For PPP
Following months of pressure and an eventual judge order, the full extent of who received a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan from Trump’s Small Business Administration (SBA) is finally available to the public. From Project Veritas and Larry Kudlow’s wife to Tom Brady and Jake Paul, the list of the wealthy and well-connected whom received taxpayer-funded relief grows longer and longer. Meanwhile, as more than 400,000 small businesses have closed for good since the start of the pandemic, reports have revealed that more than half of the PPP loans distributed through the program’s expiration in August went to larger businesses. In addition to the millions of dollars meant for actual struggling small businesses that flowed into the wrong hands, the PPP data shows serious flaws — including typos, missing email addresses, and more.
In an effort to provide greater transparency into this latest tranche of data, Accountable.US compiled the information into a searchable database at COVIDBailoutTracker.com. We will be analyzing the new data and releasing its findings on a rolling basis at the PPP Live Blog.
WHO GOT A PPP LOAN? NOT ENOUGH ACTUAL SMALL BUSINESSES
Washington Post | Small-business loans to big companies prompt Congress to overhaul PPP rules
Insider | Anti-LGBTQ+ groups, including the school where Mike Pence’s wife is a teacher, got millions of dollars in federal COVID-19 assistance, says new data
Esquire | Thanks to PPP, $4.3 Million of Our Money Went to Bigots and Fools
Accountable.US | REPORT: Over $2.7 Billion In PPP Money Went To Well-Off Individuals With No Employees
The Witchita Eagle | Two elected Kansas officials awarded a total of $495,200 from CARES Act. Did they need it?
NBC News | Accused hate groups receive pandemic aid
@Accountable_US | “NEW REPORT: Now in addition to celebrities, Trump-connected businesses, Karen Pence’s boss and Project Veritas, we know that 25 designated hate groups received taxpayer dollars from #PPP, including 2 white nationalist groups. 1/” [View Twitter Thread]
The City | How NYC Small Businesses Got Short Shrift on PPP Loans
Business Insider | Fast food franchisees collected more than $1 billion in federal PPP aid earmarked for small businesses, analysis finds
San Antonio Business Journal | PPP data highlights scope of local oil and gas industry
The Morning Call | $1 billion of PPP loans helped Lehigh Valley businesses weather pandemic. Which ones benefitted?
Accountable.US | Final PPP Data Reveals Oil, Gas, and Mining Scored Billions While Wind and Solar Were Left in the Cold
WCNC | Maximum PPP loan went to Rep. Budd’s family’s business
Dallas Morning News | New PPP data shows law firm of spy chief John Ratcliffe’s wife got $116,266 when he was still in Congress
Orlando Sentinel | Church of Scientology received at least $4 million in PPP loans: report
Star Tribune | Millions in federal relief goes to Minnesota companies with ties to lawmakers
Yahoo! Sports | Penguins, Fenway and Fubo Among $1.7 Billion in PPP Loans for Sports Business
Triangle Business Journal | Why a luxury charter service in Kinston secured millions in PPP loans
PPP DATA DROP EXPOSES THE PROGRAM’S MISMANAGEMENT AND INEFFICIENCY
Fortune | ‘Poorly designed and irresponsibly run’: PPP scrutiny mounts after SBA data dump
“The SBA’s release of the PPP loan data last week has only amplified the scrutiny, with more details coming to light about the program’s application and the beneficiaries of more than half a trillion dollars in taxpayer funds. The data dump showed that more than half of all PPP funds went to only 5% of recipients, while more than a quarter of all funds went to only 1% of borrowers.”
Accountable.US | Small Business Advocates Urge Congress: Don’t Repeat Trump PPP’s Mistakes That Abandoned Communities of Color, Most in Need
Charlotte Business Journal | New research finds SBA’s PPP loans only had small benefit on employment
Wisconsin Public Radio | ‘Kick In The Teeth’: Small Businesses Face Higher Taxes Because Of PPP Loans
News Channel 5 | SBA loan application demonstrates little vetting in securing emergency funding
PPP FRAUD ROUNDUP
New York Times | How Bad Was Virus Aid Fraud? One Banker Was ‘Frustrated With Humanity’
“Four months after the federal government’s signature coronavirus relief program for small businesses expired, investigators and lawmakers have only scratched the surface of schemes that illicitly tapped its forgivable loans. The program’s hastily drafted and frequently revised rules, its removal of normal lending guardrails and governmental pressure to swiftly approve applications created the ideal conditions for thievery to thrive.”
Washington Post | Officials: Virginia man took Vegas trip with $350K PPP loan
Patch | Hicksville Family Members Charged In $13M PPP Fraud Scheme
Entrepreneur | A Mysterious Maine Farm Got a $1.2 Million PPP Loan
San Francisco Chronicle | Arkansas man gets 2 years in prison for virus relief fraud
NBC 4 Los Angeles | Northridge Man Pleads Guilty to COVID-19 Relief Fraud
Federal News Network | Contagion of fraud: PPP exploits designed to bypass ID verification