Hill proposes more small-business aid
WASHINGTON -- U.S. Rep. French Hill, R-Ark., introduced legislation last week that would tweak one of the key covid-19 relief programs, allowing more small businesses to qualify for assistance.
The Little Rock lawmaker's legislation is officially known as the Paycheck Protection Program Revenue Adjustment Calculation to Increase Capital Accessibility Long-term Act. An acronym makes it easier to remember: the PRACTICAL Act.
Created in March 2020 as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Securities (CARES) Act, the Paycheck Protection Program has been a lifeline for thousands of Arkansas small businesses.
Eligibility for continued assistance is tied to businesses' previous quarterly revenue.
But the pain from covid-19, Hill notes, didn't start on April 1, 2020. For many Arkansas businesses, it started in mid-March. It got worse on March 19, 2020, the day the state's restaurants, bars and gymnasiums were ordered to close.
Others also faced covid-19-related challengers that weren't neatly tied to a quarterly calendar.
If Hill's legislation passes, businesses could calculate their revenue based on another 90-day-earning period.
Revisiting the Paycheck Protection Program is appropriate, he said during an interview earlier this month.
"We need to always be asking ourselves, 'What have we done, what have we implemented in Congress and is it working?'" he said.
His bipartisan measure focuses on "fixing the paycheck program to make it more effective, particularly for our restaurants and retailers," he added.
Cotton bill targets foreign detainers
Legislation introduced by U.S. Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., aims to punish foreigners involved in the "wrongful detention" of American citizens.
The Global Hostage Act of 2021 would trigger sanctions on foreigners who deprive law-abiding Americans of their liberty or hold them hostage.
Filed on Thursday, the bill is co-sponsored by U.S. Sens. Ted Cruz, R-Texas; Todd Young, R-Ind.; and Rick Scott, R-Fla.
Among other things, sanctioned individuals and their family members would be denied visas to enter the United States.
It also "creates a mechanism for Congress to require that the executive branch review specific foreign government officials for hostage-taking sanctions eligibility," according to a summary of the legislation.
"If you take an American hostage -- it won't only be the hostage that will suffer. America must never accept extortion by hostage-taking as the cost of doing business. It warrants severe consequences, and that's what this bill delivers," Cotton said in a news release.
The lawmaker from Little Rock has previously accused Syria, Iran and China of wrongfully holding American citizens.
Like the Global Hostage Act of 2019, also sponsored by Cotton, the new piece of legislation was assigned to the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee.
Westerman joins in rural roads bill
U.S. Rep. Bruce Westerman, R-Ark., joined U.S. Rep. Tom O'Halleran, D-Ariz., in introducing the High Risk Rural Roads Safety Grant Program Act of 2021.
It would authorize $750 million per year for five years to pay for rural road safety improvements; $150 million would be earmarked for tribal governments.
O'Halleran has several American Indian reservations in his largely-rural district, which covers most of eastern Arizona.
Westerman, who is co-chairman of the bipartisan Congressional Road Safety Caucus, said the bill is bipartisan and common-sensical.
"Rural infrastructure is a critical facet of economic growth and quality of life for those who live in rural and tribal communities," the lawmaker from Hot Springs said. "All Americans rely on safe roads to go about their daily lives, and in rural areas, dangerous roads often cannot be avoided. Investing in road safety has significant potential to save lives."
Like Arizona's first congressional district, Arkansas' fourth congressional district is large geographically, covering all of Southwest Arkansas and stretching from Texarkana to Pine Bluff, with a sliver of Northwest Arkansas also included.
Much of the district is rural.
Westerman also announced last week that he is co-sponsoring legislation known as the American Critical Mineral Independence Act. Among other things, it would streamline the mining permit process and prohibit the Interior Department "from imposing any kind of moratorium or ban on critical minerals mining without congressional approval," according to a summary of the legislation.
Planning to visit the nation's capital? Know something happening in Washington, D.C.? Please contact Frank Lockwood at (501) 908-5204 or flockwood@adgnewsroom.com. Want to get the latest from the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette's Washington bureau? It's available on Twitter, @LockwoodFrank.