The Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) created by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act and extended by the December 2020 year-end appropriations bill provides a direct incentive for small businesses to keep their workers on payroll. It is backed by the Small Business Administration (SBA) and provides potentially forgivable, low-interest loans for small to medium-sized organizations who can demonstrate expenses were used toward retaining their headcount.
Topics: Independent Contractor, COVID19, Coronavirus, Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, PPP Loan, Small Business Administration, PPP Loan Forgiveness, Payment Protection Program
On February 22, the White House announced changes to the Paycheck Protection Program that give exclusive access to certain small businesses.
Year-end legislation provided additional funding and an extension of the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) for the first quarter of 2021. Effective February 24, the Biden-Harris administration is instituting a 14-day holding period on new PPP applications (sometimes referred to as PPP2 loans) for businesses with 20 or more employees. The goal of the hold is to lessen the PPP competition for small businesses and sole proprietorships that may have had difficulty accessing the federal funds previously.
Topics: Election, COVID19, Coronavirus, employees, CARES Act, Paycheck Protection Program, PPP Loan, PPP Loan Forgiveness, Biden, PPP2
On Dec. 27, 2020, President Trump signed into law the Consolidated Appropriations Act (the Act) that had been passed with overwhelming majorities in both Houses of Congress on December 21. Trump delayed the signing as he pursued, with the approval of Democratic members of Congress, an increase in the amount of Recovery Rebate checks from $600 to $2,000. Without explanation or fanfare, the President signed the bill to the surprise of members of both parties. On Dec. 28, the House passed a stand-alone bill to increase the stimulus payments to $2,000, but with voting along party lines it is expected to die in the Senate.
Topics: individual tax, tax, tax deductions, Charitable contribution planning, Paid Family Leave, Paycheck Protection Program, PPP Loan, Stimulus, Employee Payroll Tax Deferral, Consolidated Appropriations Act
As businesses continue to grapple with effects from the COVID-19 pandemic, many are turning attention to forgiveness of Payroll Protection Program (PPP) loans. Borrowers do not need to repay PPP loans as long as they satisfy a variety of conditions, including a requirement to spend PPP loan proceeds on qualifying expenditures such as payroll and rent. The IRS previously clarified in Notice 2020-32 that these expenditures are nondeductible for tax purposes. But in many cases, PPP loans will not be forgiven by the end of the tax year. In that case, it is uncertain how to treat the expenditures in the year incurred, and what to do in the year of loan forgiveness.
Topics: COVID19, Coronavirus, PPP Loan, payment protection plan, PPP Loan Forgiveness, Nondeductible Expenses
The Payroll Protection Program (PPP) brought swift relief to thousands of organizations disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic by offering potentially forgivable loans to cover employee costs and certain other expenditures. Like the pandemic, the scale of the $650 billion loan program was unprecedented. Accounting and tax rulemakers are now parsing the manner in which PPP loan recipients should report their loan proceeds on financial statements and tax returns.
When organizations are financially struggling or affected by external events, several accounting considerations come into play. External events arising from the COVID-19 pandemic and its disruption could intersect with several components of accounting. A brief summary of possible considerations are described below.
Topics: goodwill impairment, going concern, income tax accounting, Revenue recognition, COVID19, Coronavirus, financial statement disclosures, SEC, PPP Loan, Payment Protection Program, credit loss
The window for applying for a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) expired on August 8, and the next phase of the program began—application for PPP loan forgiveness. A SaaS tool to simplify submission, the Small Business Administration (SBA)’s PPP Forgiveness Platform began accepting submissions on Aug. 10, 2020.
Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan recipients will be under scrutiny when applying for forgiveness, which makes conscientious recordkeeping essential. Extensive documentation is needed for loan forgiveness applications to verify that loans are being used for their primary intended purpose: to retain the workforce and maintain payroll costs.
Topics: COVID19, Coronavirus, PPP Loan, payment protection plan, PPP Loan Forgiveness
Companies will have a little more accounting guidance to go on when it comes to the accounting for their Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans. The American Institute of Certified Public Accounts (AICPA) recently weighed in on the matter, providing guidelines that companies could follow for their potentially forgivable government loans.
Topics: AICPA, COVID19, Coronavirus, PPP Loan, payment protection plan
As the dust settles on Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), organizations that received the forgivable loans face accounting questions. The program instituted by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act provides full or partial forgiveness on loans in an effort to help organizations struggling to cover payroll expenses due to the disruption of the COVID-19 virus. While financial institutions facilitate the loans, the Small Business Administration (SBA) reimburses them.
Topics: COVID19, Coronavirus, CARES Act, Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, PPP Loan, payment protection plan
