Late last week, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), in consultation with the U.S. Treasury Department, released a simpler loan forgiveness application for Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans of $50,000 or less. The instructions for this new application note that the application requires fewer calculations and less documentation for eligible borrowers.

The SBA began approving PPP forgiveness applications and remitting forgiveness payments to PPP lenders for PPP borrowers on Oct. 2.

Even with the new forgiveness application process, the Big “I" believes loan forgiveness applications can be further simplified and continues to advocate for Congress to pass S. 4117, the “Paycheck Protection Program Small Business Forgiveness Act," sponsored by Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-North Dakota) and Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-Arizona).

This important legislation would ensure our nation's small business owners who took PPP loans, including Big “I" members, can focus their time, energy, and resources back into their business and communities instead of allocating significant time and resources into completing complex PPP forgiveness forms. Specifically, S. 4117 would forgive PPP loans of less than $150,000 upon the borrower's completion of a simple, one-page forgiveness document.

In September, the Big “I" joined a number of organizations in sending a letter to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-New York) urging support for the “Paycheck Protection Program Small Business Forgiveness Act."

Wyatt Stewart is Big “I" assistant vice president of federal government affairs.