The PPP process was excruciating for some last year. Will it change this time around?

Market researcher Dave Cristofaro was down to his last $1,500 and on the verge of laying off his final four full-time employees — down from seven before the pandemic — when he got a loan in May from the federal Paycheck Protection Program. “I’m about to tell my employees, ‘Hey, we’re going to have to stop working,’” said Cristofaro, 56, who has run Actionable Research Inc. in Aliso Viejo since 2002. “When they were applying, it was incredibly difficult for many of them to get ahold of their bank to better understand how they were supposed to fill out these applications, how to qualify for the maximum amount that they were eligible for.” Discrimination also may have played a role in preventing funds from getting to small businesses run by people of color and women, said Anneliese Lederer, director of fair lending and consumer protection for the National Community Reinvestment Coalition advocacy organization in Washington. “Further widespread business failures would destroy jobs and firm-specific capital, and hamstring the recovery.” Angel Gonzalez said banking relationships were crucial to getting a $151,000 loan for Quality Trailers Inc. His Portland, Ore., company has since received a boost in orders, many from California, for its food-preparation trailers, which range from 16 feet to 30 feet long and can easily be hauled around town. “If it wasn’t for the PPP loan money, I wouldn’t be in business right now,” he said.