The Small Business Loan Programs and Re-Opening
NFIB Research Center
The Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program are the
two primary loan arrangements, and for many, the only loan programs available to small business
owners in need of financial assistance. After a brief lapse in funding, the PPP loan program is back
online, facilitating loans and accepting new applicants. The EIDL program is also back online and
processing loans with new funding, but currently closed to new applicants other than businesses in the
agriculture industry.
The terms and conditions of a PPP loan are, on its surface, very attractive to most small business
owners. If spent correctly, the loan turns into a forgivable grant given certain conditions. Not
surprisingly, the loan program is very popular among small business owners with 77% of NFIB members
having successfully submitted a PPP loan application. Most of the applications were submitted before
the program was suspended for lack of funding on April 16. About 84% of the applications were
submitted before April 17 and 16% of applications were submitted after April 17. Half of applicants
submitted their application through a small or local, community bank. Another 18% submitted their
application through a medium size bank and 14% through a large bank. Approximately 4% submitted
their application through a financial technology (FinTech) lender.

 About 61% of PPP loan applicants have received their loan. This is a significant increase from the last
survey conducted on April 16 when 20% of applicants had received their loan. Forty percent of
applicants are still waiting, but just under half of those waiting (45%) have received notice that their
loan is approved. Once the loan is approved, the bank is required to close the loan within 10 days.
Presumably, these applicants will receive their loan within the next week or so. However, just over half
(55%) of applicants who have not received a loan are still waiting to hear from their financial institution
about their loan status. About 9% of small business owners who have not submitted a PPP loan
application were in the process of applying. The remaining small businesses that have not applied, or are
in the process of applying, might be on the sideline for a variety of reasons. Such reasons may include
lack of interest in a loan, do not or do not believe they qualify, or cannot find a financial institution to
submit their application.
About 40% of respondents have submitted a loan application for an EIDL and 60% of them applied
before April 1. The other 40% applied in April before the program closed to new applicants on April 16.
The vast majority (75%) of EIDL applicants also requested the EIDL Emergency Grant. However, 18% of
applicants were not sure whether they had or not. Almost half of those who requested the EIDL
Emergency Grant have received the funds, many more than the 10% who had received the grant as of
April 16. But still, very few EIDL applicants have received the loan itself. Ten percent have received the
EIDL and 90% of applicants are still waiting.
About three-fourths of respondents are classified as an essential business and 22% classified as nonessential. Five percent of respondents were not sure which category they fell into. However, even
though essential businesses are permitted to operate, many are restricted to limited operations,
restaurants open only for pick-up and delivery, for instance. Re-opening the economy will involve many
challenges including general health risks, supply shortages of personal protective equipment (PPE)
products, and regaining consumer confidence.

 Small business owners have many concerns about re-opening despite half favoring an immediate lifting
of non-essential business restrictions and stay-at-home orders. Owners are most concerned with getting
customers back to their business with 43% saying they are very concerned, and another 30% moderately
concerned. Another significant concern for many small business owners is increased liability. Virtually all
small business owners are, to some degree, concerned about increases in liability claims with 38% very
concerned about increased liability when re-opening their businesses. Only 6% are not at all concerned.
Thirty-eight percent of small business owners are very concerned about their ability to stock up on hand
sanitizer and disinfectant supplies, and 31% are very concerned about their ability to adequately supply
face coverings. Thirty-one percent are also very concerned about their ability to comply with new
federal paid sick leave and emergency family medical leave mandates. The health and safety of
employees and customers are also significant concerns with about two-thirds of owners “very” or
“moderately” concerned about managing both as the economy re-opens.
Fewer small business owners are concerned about finding workers to fill open positions or accessing
credit or loan programs as many have likely already applied to either the PPP or EIDL program.
While most small business owners want the non-essential and stay-at-home orders lifted immediately or
in the next 30 days, most are not expecting the economy to fully rebound until sometime in 2021 or
later.
The PPP and EIDL Emergency Grants are finally starting to reach the small business sector in large
numbers. Small business owners have been eagerly waiting for financial assistance and many are now
starting to receive it. However, the EIDL has yet to be widely disbursed in any meaningful way as most
applicants are still waiting. These loans will continue to be crucial for small businesses in offering much
needed help getting to the other side of the economic disruption. For most small business owners, the
move towards re-opening the economy in many states is a welcome development. However, as state
governments slowly start re-opening their economies, officials should pay close attention to the
concerns of small businesses who are on the front lines of the transition.

Methodology
This survey was conducted with a random sample of NFIB’s membership database of about
300,000 small business owners. The survey was conducted by email on May 1, 2020. NFIB
collected 842 usable responses.

Questionnaire
1. Have you submitted an application for a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan?
77% 1. Yes
23% 2. No
2. Approximately when did you submit your application?
17% 1. Before April 3rd
54% 2. April 3-10th
13% 3. April 11-17th

 9% 4. April 18-24th
7% 5. After April 24th
3. What type of financial institution did you submitted your application?
14% 1. Large size bank (e.g., BoA, Citi, Chase, Wells Fargo)
18% 2. Medium size bank (e.g., Fifth-Third, BB&T, Capital One, SunTrust)
25% 3. Small size bank (e.g., Bank of California, Bank of the Ozarks, etc.)
35% 4. Local, community bank (1 to 5 branches)
4% 5. PayPal, Kabbage, Intuit QuickBooks (or similar)
5% 6. Other
4. Has the loan been deposited to your bank account yet?
61% 1. Yes
40% 2. No
5. If not, have you received confirmation that your loan has been approved?
45% 1. Yes
55% 2. No
6. If you have not submitted an application yet, are you in the process of applying for a PPP
loan?
9% 1. Yes
91% 2. No
7. Have you submitted an application for an SBA Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL)?
40% 1. Yes
60% 2. No
8. Approximately when did you submit your application?
2% 1. Before March
16% 2. March 1-15th
42% 3. March 16-31st
32% 4. April 1-10th
8% 5. April 11-16th
9. Did you request the Emergency Grant when you applied for the EIDL loan?
75% 1. Yes
7% 2. No
18% 3. I don’t know.
10. Has the EIDL Emergency Grant been deposited to your bank account yet?
48% 1. Yes
52% 2. No

 11. Has the EIDL loan been deposited to your bank account yet?
10% 1. Yes
90% 2. No
12. Is your business considered a non-essential or essential business as it relates to the state’s
Covid-19 order?
73% 1. Essential
22% 2. Non-essential
5% 3. I don’t know.
13. How concerned are you about the following when your state re-opens the economy and lifts
business restrictions?
a. Managing employees’ health and safety concerns
24% 1. Very concerned
40% 2. Moderately concerned
26% 3. Not too concerned
11% 4. Not at all concerned
b. Managing customers’ health and safety concerns
27% 1. Very concerned
39% 2. Moderately concerned
25% 3. Not too concerned
10% 4. Not at all concerned
c. Getting customers back
43% 1. Very concerned
30% 2. Moderately concerned
19% 3. Not too concerned
8% 4. Not at all concerned
d. New workplace safety regulations
29% 1. Very concerned
37% 2. Moderately concerned
27% 3. Not too concerned
8% 4. Not at all concerned
e. Increased liability
38% 1. Very concerned
30% 2. Moderately concerned
26% 3. Not too concerned
6% 4. Not at all concerned
f. Being able to stock up on hand sanitizer and disinfectant supplies

 38% 1. Very concerned
34% 2. Moderately concerned
20% 3. Not too concerned
8% 4. Not at all concerned
g. Being able to stock up on face coverings
31% 1. Very concerned
30% 2. Moderately concerned
27% 3. Not too concerned
12% 4. Not at all concerned
g. Finding workers to fill open positions
17% 1. Very concerned
20% 2. Moderately concerned
30% 3. Not too concerned
33% 4. Not at all concerned
h. Accessing credit or loan programs
24% 1. Very concerned
24% 2. Moderately concerned
32% 3. Not too concerned
20% 4. Not at all concerned
i. Complying with the new federal paid sick leave and emergency family medical leave mandates
31% 1. Very concerned
27% 2. Moderately concerned
24% 3. Not too concerned
18% 4. Not at all concerned
14. When do you think is the appropriate time to lift the non-essential business and stay-athome restrictions in your state or city?
46% a. Immediately
31% b. In the next 30 days
7% c. 1-2 months
1% d. 3-4 months
17% e. Whenever health experts believe it’s safe
15. How long do you think it will take before your local economy is back to near pre-crisis levels
of economic activity?
1% 1. It is now
13% 2. By July
20% 3. By December
40% 4. Sometime in 2021
19% 6. Between 2022-2024

 2% 7. After 2024
5% 8. Other ______________
16. Please classify your major business activity, using one of the categories of examples below.
12% 1. Construction (general contractor, painting, carpentry, plumbing, electrical, etc.)
9% 2. Manufacturing and mining (dairy processor, printer, publisher, etc.)
5% 3. Transportation, communication, public utilities (truckers, movers, broadcasters, etc.)
5% 4. Wholesale (grain elevator, equipment distributor, manufacturer's rep., etc.)
22% 5. Retail and Restaurants (restaurant, bar, drug store, apparel, etc.)
5% 6. Agriculture (veterinarian, forestry, landscaping, fisheries, etc.)
5% 7. Financial, insurance, real estate
23% 8. Services (auto repair, house cleaning, salon, etc.)
12% 9. Professional services (attorney, physician, skilled nursing, etc.)
2% 10. Other (please describe) ______________________

17. Number of Employees
7% 1. No employees
14% 2. 1-2 employees
25% 3. 3-5 employees
20% 4. 6-9 employees
17% 5. 10-19 employees
12% 6. 20-49 employees
5% 7. 50-199 employees
1% 8. 200-499 employees