NAC Blog: More funding for PPP

Celebrating NAHREP familia, cultura, politics, and grassroots action

Que onda mi gente?!

I’ve been thinking a lot about the NAHREP 10 disciplines. Of course, the one that pops out right now for me in neon lights is the ominous: Live below your means and be ready for the next recession because downturns are a regular part of our economic cycles.

Regardless of whether we heeded that advice and saved for a rainy day, the most important thing right now is #mindset. At NAHREP, we stay positive, we push forward, we think ahead, and we innovate. As we look at the present moment, the question is: how do we grow from this experience? Familia, we’ve been through this before in 2008, and we will get through it again. It is more important than ever to lean in and rely on each other for information, for ideas, and for support.

One of our NAHREP 10 Certified Trainers Jona Gamboa said it best this week, “The NAHREP 10 Disciplines are a lifestyle and wealth is about so much more than money.” This cannot be more true.

The Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) ran out of money but more funds are on their way

I know many of you have heard of the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), a critical program within the CARES Act that offers forgivable SBA loans to small businesses to cover payroll, rent, utilities, etc. We recorded a video on it featuring our NAHREP National President, Sara Rodriguez, and Elizabeth Dobers from BBVA. You may have also heard that the program ran out of money shortly after it went into effect.

Policymaking is difficult. Thinking back to how much my perspective changed before and after my time at the White House, to say I was idealistic before my time in government is an understatement. It took over a year to pass the Affordable Care Act because people felt so strongly about various aspects of the bill that every word was being negotiated. If we made one change to fix something, then we would lose the support of some other Congressional member that was on the fence. Negotiation takes a long time, mostly because unintended consequences are always a part of any legislative process. We don’t know what we don’t know.

When Congress was passing the CARES Act, I was in communication with many congressional offices through the weekend and at crazy hours of the night as we were pushing to get many of the provisions we advocated for in NAHREP’s letter. At the time, the offices were all working remotely, receiving an avalanche of requests from every organization and entity under the moon. Everyone had a different interest to protect and need to be included in the bill. The CARES Act was ultimately passed quickly because the urgency to get money out to the hands of the American public was so dire and so desperate. Unfortunately, a clear understanding of how the programs will actually work was not ironed out.

Today, we’re experiencing a lot of problems with the PPP. Many NAHREP members who applied on the same day the program was launched, still have not been able to receive funds. The PPP was intended in theory to help small businesses, yet it seems like it was the big chains that were among the first to get relief.

While the original PPP funding did run out, I am happy to report that this week the Federal government moved to pass additional funding for the PPP. And, while replenishing the money is an important step, we need to ensure that money is going to the small businesses it was intended to help. NAHREP is sharing stories about the PPP with lawmakers, highlighting who its working for and who it is not. If you have applied for a PPP loan, please share your story.

If you haven’t applied for the PPP already but you would like to, it is so important that you submit an application now. The money is being granted on a first come first serve basis. For more tips for how to apply, tune in here.

Unemployment Insurance

Aside from the Paycheck Protection Program, the CARES Act offered an expanded version of unemployment insurance. I’ve heard from many of our NAHREP members that you believe that you do not qualify for unemployment, mostly because real estate has been deemed essential in your state. This is not true. Tune in here for more information. You may be pleasantly surprised at what you can qualify for.

Thank you for your involvement in the National Advocacy Committee up until now. It is more important than ever that NAHREP’s advocacy voice be organized and loud. Do not forget that your stories make real change.

Un abrazo familia.