The Senate on Tuesday evening passed legislation extending a program helping small businesses amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The bill allows the Small Business Administration to keep approving Paycheck Protection Program loans until Aug. 8. The loans can be turned into grants. The bill, which will next head to the House, was approved by unanimous consent, just a few hours before the program was set to expire with $130 billion still unspent, Politico reports. So far, the Small Business Administration has approved almost 4.9 million loans, totaling $520.6 billion.
The unanimous agreement was a surprise, as lawmakers had been arguing over different legislation dealing with the program. Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.) told Politico something had to be done to extend the program, as there are "literally millions of small businesses nationwide at risk."
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