“We have not received the requested information or a formal response from you.” the senators wrote. Sen. Paul’s office would not confirm to CNA on Monday, May 17, if the SBA had responded to the May 10 letter.
A spokesperson for the U.S. Small Business Administration did not immediately respond to CNA’s request for comment on Monday.
When the CARES Act passed Congress in March 2020, Planned Parenthood Action’s acting president appeared to criticize the legislation for “targeting” Planned Parenthood affiliates.
PPP loans were only meant for businesses and non-profits with 500 or fewer employees, but the organization warned that SBA would have “broad discretion” in counting all Planned Parenthood affiliates as part of one large organization – thus excluding affiliates from loans.
However, it was reported in May 2020 that Planned Parenthood affiliates had received $80 million in PPP loans. The SBA last year requested the return of funds distributed to at least one Planned Parenthood affiliate, explaining that it was affiliated with the national organization.
The senators noted last week that since their initial April 15 letter to the SBA, “at least two additional” Planned Parenthood affiliates were approved for PPP loans.
Data released by the SBA shows that two Planned Parenthood affiliates in Pennsylvania and New York were approved for PPP loans on April 21 and April 27.
Planned Parenthood Keystone, in Warminster, Pennsylvania, was approved for a PPP loan in the amount of $853,975 on April 21. On April 27, Planned Parenthood of Greater New York, Inc. in New York City was approved for a PPP loan of $10 million – the maximum loan amount under the program.
“This is unacceptable,” the Republican senators wrote. “As members of the U.S. Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, we expect transparency and cooperation with requests for information from your agency.”
Earlier in 2021, a group of 25 Republican senators sent a letter to the SBA administrator on March 25, demanding an investigation into why Planned Parenthood affiliates were continuing to receive PPP loans.
Other affiliates which received PPP loans in 2021 include Planned Parenthood of the Columbia Willamette, Inc. in Portland, Oregon, which was approved for a $2 million loan on Feb. 25. Planned Parenthood of Maryland in Baltimore, and Intermountain Planned Parenthood in Billings, Montana, were each approved for PPP loans on March 15; their loan amounts were more than $1.6 million and more than $1.2 million, respectively.
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