At least 4 members of Congress benefited from loans under the $670 billion small business aid program
- At least four members of Congress benefited from loans under the PPP program first rolled out in April.
- There is no mandate compelling the small group of Republicans and Democrats to disclose their identities, raising concerns about possible conflicts of interest as debate kicks off on a future economic stimulus package.
- It is not illegal for lawmakers to apply for or try to obtain PPP money.
- Treasury Secretary Mnuchin is facing pressure to reveal more details about where the small business aid funds are going.
At least four members of Congress benefited from loans under the $670 billion Paycheck Protection Program — and there are no rules requiring them to reveal that they did so.
Politico first reported that a small group of Republicans and Democrats have close connections to businesses known to have taken loans under PPP, the small business aid program. Companies that benefited from the loans are either managed by the lawmakers' families or employ spouses in senior and sometimes executive roles.
Those on the GOP side include Texas Rep. Roger Williams, a businessman who owns auto dealerships and car washes, as well as Missouri Rep. Vicky Hartzler. Her family owns farms and equipment suppliers throughout the Midwestern region.
Democrats who accepted PPP loans are Nevada Rep. Susie Lee, whose husband is chief executive of a casino developer, and Rep. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell of Florida, another lawmaker whose husband is a senior executive at a restaurant that returned the PPP loan.
It's not illegal for lawmakers to either apply for or receive the federal rescue money. But it raises concerns about possible conflicts of interest as Congress begins to wrestle with the contours of another economic stimulus package.
Spokespersons for the four lawmakers told Politico the aid was obtained through established channels. Officials for William and Hartzler declined to tell the outlet the amounts of the loans. Both GOP lawmakers voted against a bill that would have required the Small Business Administration to identify companies granted loans over $2 million.
Politico reported that Full House Resorts — the company run by Lee's husband — received $5.6 million in PPP aid. And Fiesta Restaurant Group, the business where Mucarsel-Powell's husband served as a senior executive, was granted $15 million before opting to return it.
Democrats are stepping up their calls for greater transparency from the Trump administration after Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told lawmakers there were no plans to reveal the identities of companies that accepted PPP loans.
Mnuchin, however, said on Monday he would meet with lawmakers seeking clarity on the program, which was first rolled out in April. Some companies are concerned that disclosing a loan — which could amount to $10 million maximum — could reveal sensitive information about their business.
Through the end of May, the program has distributed 4.5 million loans totaling $510 billion, per the SBA.
Early on, critics blasted PPP as reports emerged that large and powerful businesses had benefited from loans while scores of small businesses faced delays getting federal help. Both Democrats and Republicans are pledging oversight for the taxpayer-funded program.
"Among other steps, the Administration should release the names of all PPP borrowers," top House Democrats wrote in a letter to Mnuchin on Monday.