SCRLA statement on Federal Pandemic Relief Bill
December 21, 2020
Today, Congress unveiled a $900 billion relief bill to provide short-term economic relief to the country in the face of the coronavirus pandemic. The plan includes several items that will benefit restaurants and hotels, most importantly a second round of access to the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), with unique provisions aimed to assist the restaurant industry, which continues to endure unparalleled job and revenue losses.
“From the day South Carolina’s hospitality industry began to be impacted by the pandemic, the South Carolina Restaurant and Lodging Association has worked with the American Hotel and Lodging Association and the National Restaurant Association to press Congress and the Trump Administration for both long-term and short-term economic support,” said John Durst, President and CEO. “This bill will help provide our industry with much needed capital that will create more time for us to work with Congress to create the additional programs to save our beloved industry.”
The plan announced today targets restaurant and hotel relief with provisions including:
- Enhanced PPP Loan Size: The PPP provides a business with a forgivable loan based on 2.5 times its monthly payroll costs. Restaurants, however, can seek forgivable loans based on 3.5 times monthly payroll costs.
- Enhanced Access to PPP: Companies that employ a total of 300 or more employees at all locations (combined) are deemed ineligible for the PPP. Today’s bipartisan plan reflects the reality that many mid-sized and larger restaurant groups are on the verge of bankruptcy and allows restaurants to qualify for PPP as long as they do not employ more than 300 employees at each physical location.
Other provisions in the bill that will benefit the hospitality industry include the deductibility of business expenses paid with PPP loans, enhancement of the Employee Retention Tax Credit (ERTC), extension of the augmented Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC), increased tax deduction for business meals, and One year extension for Troubled Debt Restructuring (TDR) relief (Section 4013 of the CARES Act). Which will allow for banks to continue to work with borrowers to gain additional forbearance and debt relief through the end of 2021.
“The action taken by Congress today will keep tens of thousands of restaurants from closing in the coming months,” said Tom Bené, President & CEO of the National Restaurant Association. “A second round of PPP, combined with unique enhancements for the restaurant sector, will provide critical access to capital. Restaurant operators and their employees are dedicated to serving their communities, and today’s bipartisan agreement will give them the opportunity to do that through the holidays. However, the long-term economic challenges facing independent, franchise, and chain restaurants will not end with the new year, and we will continue to press federal and state leaders for the support that will put us on the road to recovery.”
Chip Rogers, President & CEO of the American Hotel and Lodging Association, expressed pleasure that “this package contains many of the top priorities AHLA has continued to lobby for.”
About the South Carolina Restaurant and Lodging Association
For more than 75 years, the SCRLA’s mission has been to promote, protect and educate the foodservice and lodging industries of our state and to ensure positive business growth for our members. The SCRLA strives to represent the best interests of its members on small business issues, hospitality and tourism concerns and towards the protection of South Carolina’s quality of life. To learn more about the SCRLA, please visit SCRLA.org.
