Senators Markey & Warren Call For ‘Robust’ COVID-19 Small Business Relief in Budget Package

In full transparency, the following is a media release from Sen. Ed Markey and Sen. Elizabeth Warren, who were elected by voters in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to serve the state in Washington DC in the US Senate. Both are Democrats.

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BOSTON – Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), a member of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, and Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) wrote to Senate leadership urging them to include a “robust” small business relief package in the Fiscal Year (FY) 2022 spending package.

Massachusetts is home to more than 715,000 small businesses that employ 1.5 million people. These small businesses need additional relief to overcome the economic impacts of the Omicron coronavirus variant.

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act (P.L. 116-136) and the American Rescue Plan Act (P.L.117-2) provided vital funding for our nation’s small businesses through the creation and funding of critical programs like the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), the Shuttered Venue Operator Grant Program, the COVID Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program (EIDL), and the Restaurant Revitalization Fund (RRF). These programs have provided hundreds of billions of dollars in relief to businesses across the country. However, these programs were quickly depleted and countless small businesses were left without any aid.

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In their letter, Senator Markey and Warren request additional funding for the hardest hit sectors in Massachusetts, including restaurants, hotels, travel, gyms, and live entertainment, business that are struggling to stay afloat.

“While we are grateful for the historic investment in our nation’s small businesses by the CARES Act and American Rescue Plan Act, the need for aid has been far greater than the funding provided by Congress,” write the Senators in their letter to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell. “The COVID-19 pandemic has not ended and neither should the relief for small businesses. Investments like these will help small businesses protect their workers, pay rent, pay the bills, cover their loans, and ensure that they can survive this ‘new normal’.”

A copy of the Senators’ letter can be found HERE. 

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