At Deadline, Senate Approves Five More Weeks of Stimulus Loans

Small businesses now have until August 8 to apply

Just hours before the Paycheck Protection Program was set to expire, with over $130 billion left unallocated, the Senate voted to extend the program by an additional five weeks. The extension still needs to be voted on by the House, and to get the president’s signature for approval. This could be a challenge because, as the New York Times points out, “Members of both chambers are expected to leave Washington for the Fourth of July and are not set to fully return for two weeks.”

For restaurants in particular, the PPP loans have been a bit of a mess. The first wave of funds was depleted in two weeks, with large loans initially going to chain restaurants like Shake Shack and Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse. Many independent restaurants, especially Black-owned restaurants, had a hard time securing loans, and even when they could it was complicated to actually use the funds.

The extension will ideally bring relief to more restaurants and small businesses, though maybe they could have just used that $130 billion to cancel rent (which would help employers and employees alike) and allow restaurant workers to stay home until the pandemic is over.

And in other news...

• McCormick spices will operate 24 hours a day to replenish the supply that quarantine home cooks and bakers depleted. [SupplyChainDive]
• Little Caesars fires two Ohio employees after a couple opened their pizza and found pepperoni arranged in the shape of a swastika. [Snopes]
• Texas bar owners are suing over the state’s re-closure, and declaring “Bar Lives Matter,” which...no. [Insider]
• Chipotle is launching a DTC farmers market to support its suppliers. [The Spoon]
• Subway pulls its 2-for-$10 sub deal after franchisees say it’ll make them lose money. [NYPost]
• Chef Sean Sherman is opening an Indigenous Food Lab in Minnesota, which will include a restaurant, a training kitchen, and education center.” [Modern Farmer]
• People who run fair food stands are struggling as all the state fairs are canceled. [NPR]
• Protesters: Defund the Police!

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