Allred Votes for Bipartisan Bill to Shore Up SBA, Increase Testing and Get Resources to Hospitals

Statement

Congressman Colin Allred (TX-32) voted today for The Paycheck Protection Program and Health Care Enhancement Act, a bipartisan interim coronavirus aid package. The bill will provide funding to relief programs at the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), increase COVID-19 testing and provide funding for hospitals, which can be used to purchase personal protective equipment and combat the outbreak.

"I am fighting to fix the issues and delays people are facing in getting help and I'm working to bring much-needed resources to our region," said Allred. "The health and safety of North Texans and the survival of our small businesses are on my mind every day. In order to beat this virus and provide the relief North Texas families need, we must keep working together."

"This bill is a good step, and we have much more work to do, including providing assistance to all our cities. Our economic future is directly tied to our public health response. I hope that our focus moving forward can be on developing a plan to dramatically ramp up testing, contact tracing and treatment," Allred concluded.

The Senate has already passed the measure and the bill is expected to be signed by the President. This interim package will supplement previous packages including the sweeping Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES) passed last month.

The Paycheck Protection Program and Health Care Enhancement Act:

Strengthens the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) by providing $310 billion in additional funding.
Makes improvements in PPP by setting aside $60 billion to improve access to this assistance for many small businesses in underserved rural and urban areas.
Expands small business support beyond the PPP program by securing $50 billion for SBA disaster lending, translating into more than $350 billion in loans, and $10 billion for SBA disaster grants.
Provides $75 billion for our hospitals and our health care workers, which can be used to meet such needs as Personal Protective Equipment (PPE).
Provides $25 billion to expand COVID-19 testing. It also requires the Administration to submit to Congress a federal COVID-19 strategic testing plan.
This is the fourth action in total taken by Congress following the passage of an emergency supplemental funding measure that provides $8.3 billion in emergency funding to assist with the initial response to the coronavirus outbreak, as well as the Families First Coronavirus Response Act. The Families First Act is a bipartisan relief package for workers and communities, which included expanded paid leave for workers, funding for testing, unemployment insurance and nutritional assistance.

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