Letter to Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the House, Charles Schumer, Senate Majority Leader, Kevin McCarthy, Minority Leader of the House, Mitch McConnell, Senate Minority Leader - Rep. Gomez Calls for Additional Funding to Help Small Businesses

Letter

Dear Speaker Pelosi, Leader Schumer, Leader McCarthy, and Leader McConnell:

As Congress works to respond to our nation's needs during the ongoing pandemic, I urge you to reauthorize and replenish relief programs that have served as a lifeline to millions of small businesses. Small businesses are a vital part of our communities and the economy but have struggled to keep their doors open through nearly two years of a public health crisis.

In the wake of the pandemic's widespread, adverse impact on our nation's economy, Congress authorized several programs to ensure the survival of small businesses and the livelihoods of the people they employ, including the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), Restaurant Revitalization Fund (RRF), and the Shuttered Venue Operator Grant (SVOG) program. While the U.S. economy has shown promising growth, the spread of the latest omicron variant has dealt another blow to small businesses that rely on in-person services, such as the restaurant, hospitality, fitness, live event, and travel industries.

Due to overwhelming need and insufficient funds, most of these programs have completely exhausted, leaving hundreds of thousands of small business owners without the relief Congress promised them. In the past year alone, my caseworkers have helped over 170 small businesses receive over $11 million in federal relief. However, many small business-related casework inquiries remain unresolved due to the lack of federal funding.

I urge you to support the reauthorization and replenishment of these small business relief programs so all eligible applicants can receive desperately needed assistance, especially those in hard-to-reach
communities.

Sincerely,

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