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| Government Corruption |
| Fed report finds 75% of $800 billion Paycheck Protection Program didn't reach employees |
| 2022-07-09 |
| [JustTheNews] Taxpayers paid $4 for every $1 in wages and benefits received by workers in jobs saved by the federal government’s pandemic Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), according to a new study by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. The Fed study also found PPP didn’t support jobs at risk of disappearing, and money flowed disproportionately to wealthier households. “The PPP was a very large and very timely fiscal-policy intervention, saving about 3 million jobs at its peak in the second quarter of 2020 and distributing $800 billion well within two years of the onset of the COVID-19 crisis,” authors William Emmons and Drew Dahl concluded in their study, “Was the Paycheck Protection Program Effective?” “But it was poorly targeted, as almost three-quarters of its benefits went to unintended recipients, including business owners, creditors and suppliers, rather than to workers. Due to differences in the typical incomes of those varied constituencies, it also ended up being quite regressive compared with other major COVID-19 relief programs, as it benefited high-income households much more.” When COVID-19 pandemic-induced executive orders forced small businesses to stop or reduce operations, the PPP was created as a temporary program under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act. Forgivable loans began on April 3, 2020, one week after President Donald Trump signed the legislation and three weeks after a national emergency was declared. The low-interest loans could be made without collateral for up to $10 million to businesses with fewer than 500 employees. The loans were forgivable if businesses maintained employment and wages at pre-pandemic levels for two to six months following acceptance of the funds. The Small Business Administration reported 90% of the nearly $800 billion in PPP loans were forgiven by last month, according to the study. The Fed report quoted research published in the Journal of Economic Perspectives estimating PPP loans saved 2.97 million jobs per week in the second quarter of 2020 and 1.75 million per week during the fourth quarter of 2020. The research also found the cost per job saved for one year was $169,000 to $258,000. The average wage and benefits for a small business employee was $58,200 in 2020. Small business owners spent $3 out of every $4 in PPP to pay suppliers and meet other expenses, according to the Fed report. The research found that 72% of PPP funds went to households with incomes in the top 20% of the national distribution. Comparatively, 20% to 25% of the federal government’s unemployment insurance went to households in the top 20%. Approximately 10% to 15% of stimulus checks – up to $1,200 per adult and $500 per child – went to households in the top 20%. Related: Paycheck Protection Program: 2021-12-29 'No Fault Of Anybody:' $100 Billion Is Stolen From Taxpayers Via COVID Relief Funds Paycheck Protection Program: 2021-12-23 Nearly $100 billion pilfered from pandemic relief funds, roughly 100 arrested, Secret Service Paycheck Protection Program: 2021-06-24 Stacey Abrams Makes Millions Running Local Elections in Fulton County |
| Posted by:Skidmark |
| #18 I will vote for the lesser of 2 evils before I vote for the evil of 2 lessers. |
| Posted by: Deacon Blues 2022-07-09 11:27 |
| #17 agreed |
| Posted by: Frank G 2022-07-09 10:31 |
| #16 Before anyone asks me if I'm a "purity test" guy, no. I'm not. I'll vote for Marco Rubio because he's definitely not as bad as Val Demings. Also, not as bad as Lindsey Graham, though that's the choir he sings in. Life is not ideal. Still, we should strive... |
| Posted by: M. Murcek 2022-07-09 09:53 |
| #15 And here I am without my shocked face. Think I left it in my other browser. |
| Posted by: DarthVader 2022-07-09 09:36 |
| #14 For those in Georgia, Kelly Loeffler is a great example of what happens when you sit back and let The Party drive. See also Martha McSally (Appointed senator from A-10) What did those great picks get us? |
| Posted by: M. Murcek 2022-07-09 09:20 |
| #13 Yes, yes. It got filtered down thru the bureaucracy, so no one is any longer accountable. Don't tell me GOPe didn't vote for it. They were scared stiff like everyone else. That's no excuse. |
| Posted by: M. Murcek 2022-07-09 09:14 |
| #12 The article, if you read it, is about administration and distribution of the money from PPP. |
| Posted by: The Walking Unvaxed 2022-07-09 09:11 |
| #11 GOPe types figure "you have nowhere else to go." Then We went to Trump. They couldn't have that. There's the model. Don't let them pick our candidates. |
| Posted by: M. Murcek 2022-07-09 09:02 |
| #10 You sound like G(r)om. COVID made G(r)om insane. He really was not an idiot. |
| Posted by: M. Murcek 2022-07-09 08:59 |
| #9 So we should: Get involved at the local level. Stop letting your local Republican committee promote GOPe types. Easy? No. More effective than holding your nose while you vote? Maybe not, but it's worth a try. |
| Posted by: M. Murcek 2022-07-09 08:58 |
| #8 #5 Poor people already understand being poor. Rich people, Heaven forbid they should have to learn how. Posted by M. Murcek You sound like G(r)om. |
| Posted by: The Walking Unvaxed 2022-07-09 08:52 |
| #7 ^ So we should: a) Vote for the greater evil? b) Not vote at all? |
| Posted by: Frank G 2022-07-09 08:52 |
| #6 For everyone who votes GOPe as the "lesser of evils," this is what you vote for. |
| Posted by: M. Murcek 2022-07-09 08:51 |
| #5 Poor people already understand being poor. Rich people, Heaven forbid they should have to learn how. |
| Posted by: M. Murcek 2022-07-09 08:43 |
| #4 Yawn. Small business owners spent $3 out of every $4 in PPP to pay suppliers and meet other expenses, according to the Fed report. So not enough in Hunter's pockets. The research found that 72% of PPP funds went to households with incomes in the top 20% of the national distribution. I guess poor people don't have enough employees. |
| Posted by: Bobby 2022-07-09 08:37 |
| #3 |
| Posted by: Mullah Richard 2022-07-09 07:30 |
| #2 They could afford this, but Social Security is still insolvent... |
| Posted by: M. Murcek 2022-07-09 07:09 |
| #1 Reads like your typical govmint program. I'd say repeal the 16th Amendment but that not going to happen. Taxation without representation can't be as bad as taxation with representation (sarc). |
| Posted by: JohnQC 2022-07-09 00:26 |