Chamber backs small business aid by Congress

LANCASTER — The Lancaster Chamber of Commerce, as a member of the Save Small Business Coalition, supports the united effort of the coalition and the US Chamber of Commerce urging Congress to provide further aid for small businesses.

The pandemic and public health measures necessary to combat it are preventing many businesses from fully reopening in our area and have left too many out of work. With some of

the CARES Act programs nearing expiration, and the challenges presented by reopening businesses additional support is required.

The Lancaster Chamber requests that Congress enact a “Phase 4” bill that, among others, would include these small business relief items:

Paycheck Protection Program Extension and Enhancement:

•Broaden the definition of forgivable expenses to include costs associated with protecting employees and customers and expand the period during which expenses qualify for loan forgiveness.

• Simplify good-faith certification for forgiveness of loans under $150,000.

• Expand eligible borrowers to include all non-profits, including 501(c)(6) organizations with no more than 300 employees, as long as PPP funds are not used for lobbying.

• Authorize a second round of loans for small businesses experiencing revenue reductions of 35% or higher.

Workforce Development:

•Provide $1.3 billion to assist job seekers access employment, education, training, and support services through a combination of new and existing programs.

Business Liability Protection:

• Protect business owners who follow applicable federal, state or local government guidelines, from COVID-19-related exposure liability.

• Protect businesses from liability claims arising from COVID-19 medical care for healthcare workers and facilities.

State and Local Aid:

• Assist state and local governments experiencing one-time COVID-related expenses and revenue shortfalls based on fixed share of actual costs and revenue shortfalls within an overall funding cap.

“Our Chamber is only one of the thousands of chambers of commerce in the US, helping small business survive this pandemic. We cannot do it alone,” said Mark Hemstreet, CEO of the Chamber. “This must be a joint effort between those protecting small businesses and the government entities with the ability to appropriate funding to help these businesses survive. We ask our members and the greater community to support us in this effort by contacting their Congressional representatives.”