On July 28, AGC joined fellow construction employer groups and building trades unions in support of new retirement plans, Composite Plans, which enjoy bipartisan backing in Congress. These groups recognize the importance to preserve lifetime retirement benefits for millions of working men and women and will continue to advocate for pension reform in COVID-19 relief packages. The construction groups and unions take direct aim at opponents of Composite Plans who have failed to provide any legitimate criticism of the composite plan design plan model. An additional Composite Plan resource from June included new analysis that found Composite Plans would have fared better during the coronavirus than traditional multi-employer retirement plans.
One provision that was unfortunately not included in the Senate Republican Health, Economic Assistance, Liability Protection and Schools (HEALS) Act, was the overturning of an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) ruling related to the deductibility of expenses associated with income from Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan forgiveness. Despite clear congressional intent to ensure that PPP loan forgiveness be untaxed, earlier this year the IRS ruled that any expenses associated with PPP loan forgiveness were not deductible. In May, AGC led a coalition effort with 152 trade associations, calling for congressional action to overturn this ruling. The Democratically-introduced and supported HEROES Act, which passed the House of Representatives earlier this year, contained a provision to overturn the IRS ruling. AGC will continue to fight for this provision to be included in any legislation responding to COVID-19.
The Health, Economic Assistance, Liability Protection and Schools (HEALS) Act, introduced on July 27 by Senate Republicans, would allow certain small businesses to apply for a second Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan. To qualify for a “second draw loan” a business would need to meet more restrictive criteria than those for the original PPP. The business would need to meet applicable SBA size standards, have no greater than 300 employees, and demonstrate a greater than 50 percent reduction in wages. The loan size would be capped at $2 million and could not exceed $10 million when combined with a business’s original PPP loan. Additionally, the HEALS Act would modify the existing PPP loan program by allowing loan proceeds to be used for covered supplier costs, covered worker protection and operating expenses (such as cleaning expenses and PPE purchases to meet federal safety guidelines). The legislation would also include a simplified loan forgiveness process for smaller PPP loans under $150,000 and expand eligibility for PPP loans to 501(c)6 organizations.
The Health, Economic Assistance, Liability Protection and Schools (HEALS) Act, introduced on July 27 by Senate Republicans, contains AGC-supported changes to the Employee Retention Tax Credit (ERTC), similar to what was included in the HEROES Act which was passed out of the Democratically-controlled House of Representatives earlier this year. The changes would increase the maximum tax credit available to employers affected by COVID-19 from 50 percent of $10,000 of employee wages (or $5,000), to 65 percent of $30,000 in employee wages over three calendar quarters (or $19,500). The HEALS Act would also ease eligibility for the ERTC and allow larger employers to apply for the full credit. It would also allow employers who applied for and received Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans to also qualify for the ERTC, with restrictions against “double dipping.” Under the CARES Act, which created both programs, employers were restricted from using the ERTC or the PPP, but not both.
Fate of a Bipartisan Agreement on a Final COVID-Relief Bill Uncertain
The COVID-19 response in the Philadelphia region has left young construction professionals working under strict safety protocols, working from home, or even temporarily out of work. In response, GBCA’s CLC moved all its activities, including community service, online.
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