I work with some of the smartest, hardest working, most compassionate people in the federal system. I am no way bashing the agency. I am proud of the work we do and the people I work along side with. We are there after all the disasters. Hurricanes, floods, droughts, storms, tsunamis, fires, earthquakes. Now, we’re tasked with a pandemic that is affecting the whole USA. There’s 30 million small businesses. That’s a scale that the agency has never had to deal with. Imagine the scope.

We are all working long hours to approve as many loans as possible. Most of us have families and friends going through the same things you are. We listen to your stories and your struggles. We try to do as much as we can. We are loan officers but now we are also business advisors and therapists. We cry with you when you share with us that your business income is the sole income coming into your household. Without it, you can’t pay the mortgage and feed your kids. You say, you don’t want a loan. You just want the ability to reopen your business to make a living. We try to help you navigate with all the new programs that just came out and which should be the best for your business. The CARE Act came out on Friday the 27th. We knew only what you knew as we read what was coming out on the internet together. However, at the end of the day, we can only offer as much as what the program can offer. What was told to us yesterday was due to the demand of the program, the funds are depleted. We are now only able to lend 2 months of Gm or a max of $15k. My colleagues and I all hope that perhaps things will be different next week but we just don’t know. Information comes down to us and we have to pivot and adjust on an everyday basis. It’s hard for us as well. The agency wants to help as many businesses as possible. Perhaps by limiting it to a max of $15k, there will be more businesses we can assist with. It’s not a lot but at least it’s something.