WASHINGTON, D.C. — On Wednesday, the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA) released a statement expressing support for a number of elements contained in the Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions Act, or the HEROES Act, that would update the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).
According to AHLA, 70 percent of hotel employees have been laid off or furloughed, and measures like PPP loan flexibility and extending the covered period to use loan proceeds could help keep hotels open and hotel employees on the payroll until travel demand returns. As Congress debates additional funding, the hotel industry will be releasing a “Roadmap to Recovery” later this week laying out the industry’s top priorities in the next funding package.
“According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the leisure and hospitality sector lost 7.7 million jobs in April alone. That is more jobs than construction, manufacturing, retail, education, and health services combined. With the impact to hotels being nine times worse than 9/11, the devastation caused to our industry is staggering and we are truly engaged in a fight for survival,” said Chip Rogers, president and CEO of AHLA.
“The HEROES Act includes a number of important provisions that the hotel industry has long advocated for to support the millions of employees in our industry who have shouldered the brunt of this economic shutdown,” Rogers added. “By expanding the PPP, Congress would help save millions of jobs and support our small business hotel operators who make up more than 61 percent of our industry.”
The legislation would extend the covered period of the PPP from the original date of June 30 through the end of the year; eliminate the 75 percent/25 percent rule on using loan proceeds; and change the maturity period from two years to a minimum of five years, among other measures.
“The hotel industry was among the first impacted and will likely be the last to recover. Without these important changes to PPP, and some reasonable liability protection, small business hotels won’t be able to survive with the ability to retain and rehire employees. Legislation which helps our employees while offering support to the thousands of hotel owners will ultimately strengthen the economy for everyone,” Rogers said. “We look forward to working with both sides of the aisle to ensure bipartisan support for swift action to pass legislation and get our economy on the road to recovery.”
