CEOs to Congress: Small businesses will fail without new aid

WASHINGTON _ The top executives of more than 100 companies – including Starbucks, Microsoft and Mastercard – and trade groups are calling on Congress to backstop small businesses facing economic calamity.

In a letter dated Monday and addressed to congressional leaders of both parties, the executives painted a dire picture: mass business closures as coronavirus cases surge and the recession deepens.

The effort spearheaded by former Starbucks chairman and CEO Howard Schultz calls for federally guaranteed loans to last into 2021; flexibility in how that money is put to use; at least partial loan forgiveness for the hardest-hit companies; and heightened attention on businesses owned by people of color, who historically have less access to business funding.

More than 4 million businesses have received emergency loans from the Small Business Administration after Congress approved $700 billion to support them in May.

But for the nation’s 30 million small businesses, the relief was too limited and short-lived, business leaders say. The letter calls for a more robust and sustained effort from the federal government.

“We cannot stress enough the urgent need to act,” the letter states. “Every day that passes without a comprehensive recovery program makes recovery more difficult.”

Small businesses have been ravaged by the coronavirus pandemic, which forced businesses across the country to temporarily shut down and kept consumers largely confined to their homes. Unlike large, well-capitalized companies that