For qualifying companies, this is money that can be used to cover payroll and other business expenses – and new application deadlines are fast approaching. Small businesses and nonprofits with less than 20 employees and sole proprietors can apply for a second P3 loan until March 9.

The program remains open to all eligible entities from March 10 to 31.

Sole proprietors can use the P3 money to pay themselves, and the program’s hallmark is “easy forgiveness.”

“Don’t take it for granted,” said Jeff Hoagland, president and CEO of the Dayton Development Coalition. “Someone else will take the money.

Turner said his congressional office has helped more than 200 small businesses, with more than $ 800 million in loans made to Dayton-area businesses since the P3 project began. It is possible to reach the benchmark of $ 1 billion for businesses in the Dayton area, he believes.

U.S. Representative Mike Turner, R-Dayton, on Thursday discussed a $ 4.3 million grant to help replace RTA buses in Greater Dayton. CORNELIUS FROLIK / STAFF

The loans “have helped preserve over 35,000 jobs in our community, and there is still money available,” Turner said.

If local businesses don’t apply, the Dayton area will likely lose the money, he and others have warned. The money is frozen or it will be spent elsewhere, the congressman said.

Maggie Ference, senior vice president and director of small business administration at Huntington National Bank, said the PPP program is not a “normal lending process”.

“There are no guarantors,” Ference said. “There is no waiting for collateral support. There is no repayment capacity analysis. Don’t worry about your credit score before this opportunity.

Applicants don’t need a business relationship with a bank to start, she also said. The payroll of the business dictates the amount of the loan, but the funds can also be used for other reasons: mortgages, rent, utilities and other operating expenses.

Ference said: “It’s a really unique opportunity to have access to these funds.”

Hoagland noted that the unemployment rate in the Dayton area has fallen from around 14% at the height of the COVID crisis to closer to 5% today. “We need to keep that momentum going. “

“To our businesses, if you think about it, please contact your bank, please call them,” Hoagland added.

Pavan Parikh, legislative counsel and assistant vice president of the Federal Home Loan Bank of Cincinnati, said the money was intended for businesses “which, frankly, are the lifeblood of the US economy.”

“When you look at the P3 program process, the federal government has recognized that we need the private financial sector to move our economy forward,” he said.

The Paycheck Protection Program was first created by the CARES Act to provide forgivable loans to small businesses affected by coronavirus shutdowns.

The program was also funded by subsequent coronavirus relief legislation, the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act (CRRSAA). Turner voted for these laws.

Turner said an extension of the program seems unlikely.

“Our advice to those sitting on the fence is to apply now before the March 31 deadline,” said JT Thurston, Ohio Bankers League spokesperson. “We don’t know what the future holds and it remains uncertain whether there will be any further extensions to the program.”