Sen. Bert Stedman, (R-Sitka), applauded a rule today that\nfixed an issue for commercial fishermen who were unable to receive adequate\nfunding under the Paycheck Protection Program. The US Department of Treasury\nand Small Business Administration announced a rule yesterday that will allow\ncommercial fishing businesses to account for crew member payroll, something\nthat was not formerly available. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
However, businesses currently only have until June 30,\n2020 to apply for PPP funds<\/strong>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2019m happy that our Alaskan fishermen will finally be able\nto receive equal opportunities for aid under the PPP program in the same way\nthat other businesses have been able to do,\u201d Stedman said. \u201cSoutheast Alaska\nrelies on fishing as a huge part of our economy and food supply, and this\nprogram will help alleviate some of the stress from the major loss in revenue\ndue to circumstances from the COVID-19 pandemic.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The structure of commercial fishing businesses using self-employed\nindependent contractors meant crew member payroll was unintentionally\nineligible for compensation under this program originally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Stedman urged those fishing businesses who can to apply by\nthe June 30 deadline. However, he said his office will continue working with\nlenders and leaders to extend the deadline for those businesses who recently\nbecame eligible under this rule. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cMany folks are currently out on the fishing grounds and\nwill not be able to apply for this relief,\u201d Stedman said. \u201cMy office will\nwork with the congressional delegation to seek an extension.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n This fix came after U.S. Senators Lisa Murkowski and Dan\nSullivan (R-Alaska) and U.S. Representative Don Young (R-Alaska) sent letters\nto the Trump administration requesting the change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n BACKGROUND<\/strong>: <\/p>\n\n\n\n While commercial fishing businesses have been eligible for\nPPP loans, before today\u2019s fix they were not fully able to take advantage of the\nPPP due to the Department of Treasury\u2019s previous treatment of their employees.\nFishing crew members are generally considered self-employed independent\ncontractors by the Internal Revenue Service. Even though these crew members are\nfunctionally employees, the previous rules did not allow commercial fishing\nbusinesses to account for their employee\u2019s wages when calculating payroll costs\nwhen applying for a PPP loan. This led to reduced loan amounts. Today\u2019s rule\nallows these businesses to account for their crew member\u2019s wages when applying\nfor a PPP loan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n See\nthe full press release from Alaska\u2019s congressional delegation here.<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n