[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 37 (Friday, February 26, 2021)]
[House]
[Page H737]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  0915
                PPP FLEXIBILITY FOR FARMERS AND RANCHERS

  (Mr. HAGEDORN asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute.)
  Mr. HAGEDORN. Mr. Speaker, the CARES Act allowed farmers and ranchers 
to apply for the Paycheck Protection Program by utilizing only net 
income in their loan calculations. This has prevented many agricultural 
partnerships from receiving the maximum loan amount possible.
  My bipartisan bill that I have introduced today, the PPP Flexibility 
for Farmers and Ranchers Act, allows the use of gross income to 
calculate the loan and includes a retroactive provision to enable farm 
partnerships that initially used net income to recalculate unforgiven 
PPP loans.
  Ag producers throughout the Nation have suffered greatly from 
historic drops in demand during the pandemic. As we push to reopen our 
economy, we must ensure that our farmers and ranchers have access to 
the resources needed to maintain operations through the end of the 
pandemic.
  I am grateful to my colleagues and an array of national agricultural 
groups who join me in this commonsense effort to boost our farmers, 
ranchers, and agricultural economy.
  I encourage Members to cosponsor my bill.

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