Jan 20, 2021

The Small Business Administration issued their guidelines on January 6 documenting how lenders will proceed with the PPP2 applications for non-profits. Presently, only churches who have not yet received a PPP1 loans are eligible to apply; but this process will open up soon for churches that have already received PPP1 grants and can demonstrate a 25 percent decline in their “gross receipts” in at least one 2020 quarter, compared to the same quarter in 2019.

When eligible, churches will be able to apply to local lenders for an amount equal to 2.5 times the 2019 average monthly payroll costs, which include housing allowances and benefit payments made by the church. Many lenders offered online registration links for the PPP1 funds to reserve places in line for later receiving invitations to the grant application website. You need to be continuously monitoring their websites.

What can you do this week?

  1. Contact your lender. – Check with your lender to make sure you know how and when they expect to receive new PPP2 applications. Many lenders had online registration links for PPP1 to reserve places in line for later receiving invitations to the application website. You need to be continuously monitoring their websites.
  2. Analyze your gross receipts. – Determine if your church meets the 25 percent decline in “gross receipts” requirement by comparing the individual quarters and the entire year for 2020 and 2019. If you have a preschool, it would be appropriate at this time to perform the same calculations exclusive of other church receipts.
  3. Consider changing lenders. – Some churches may consider changing lenders for PPP2. This is certainly allowed, but we need to keep in mind that the documents received in PPP1 by a lender are intended to be the same documents used to simplify the application process for PPP2.
  4. View this informational video:  https://www.facebook.com/watch/live/?v=560789121470950&ref=watch_permalink

Further questions? Contact James Brown, Conference Treasurer, at jbrown@epaumc.org, or Jo Fielding, Conference Benefits Director at jfielding@epaumc.org.