Thousands of Maine businesses cash in on Payment Protection Program

More small businesses in Maine are taking advantage of the Paycheck Protection Program. Sen. Susan Collins says 25,695 small employers have received a total of $2.55 billion since the program began. That includes about 9,000 employers in the past week.

Collins said the average load in the second round of funding was $35,145 with an estimated average business size of three employees. Many of the loans went to Mainers who are self-employed.

“During the COVID-19 pandemic, these Paycheck Protection Program forgivable loans are a lifeline for thousands of Maine small businesses and self-employed individuals and are supporting Maine jobs estimated to exceed 200,000,” said Senator Collins. “The fact that the average loan size for Maine small employers in this second round of funding was just over $35,000 — supporting some of Maine’s smallest businesses as well as self-employed individuals like carpenters, entertainers, plumbers, and many others — shows why it was so important that Congress approved an additional $320 billion to replenish the PPP. This program is making a real difference by allowing small businesses to stay afloat and continue to provide paychecks to their workers.”

The Paycheck Protection Program was created to help small employers continue to pay their workers for an eight-week period during the COVID-19 pandemic. The loans will be forgiven so long as employers use the money to keep their workers on payroll and to pay certain eligible business overhead expenses.