II 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 4471 

To provide relief for small businesses suffering extraordinary losses due to 

the COVID–19 pandemic. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 23, 2022 

Mr. CARDIN introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

to the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship 

A BILL 

To provide relief for small businesses suffering extraordinary 

losses due to the COVID–19 pandemic. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Hardest-Hit Small 

5 Business COVID Relief Act of 2022’’. 

6 SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

7 The table of contents for this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title. 

Sec. 2. Table of contents. 

Sec. 3. Definitions. 

Sec. 4. Hardest-Hit Small Business Relief Fund. 

Sec. 5. Grants from Fund. 

Sec. 6. Data transparency and customer service. 

Sec. 7. Business identifiers. 


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Sec. 8. Oversight and audits. 

Sec. 9. Gross receipts. 

Sec. 10. Rules. 

Sec. 11. Transfer of funds. 

1 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

2 In this Act: 

3 (1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis4 trator’’ means the Administrator of the Small Busi5 ness Administration. 

6 (2) COVERED MORTGAGE OBLIGATION; COV7 ERED RENT OBLIGATION; COVERED SUPPLIER COST; 

8 COVERED UTILITY PAYMENT; COVERED WORKER

9 PROTECTION EXPENDITURE.—The terms ‘‘covered 

10 mortgage obligation’’, ‘‘covered rent obligation’’, 

11 ‘‘covered supplier cost’’, ‘‘covered utility payment’’, 

12 and ‘‘covered worker protection expenditure’’ have 

13 the meanings given the terms in section 7A(a) of the 

14 Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 636m(a)). 

15 (3) COVERED PERIOD.—The term ‘‘covered pe16 riod’’ means the period— 

17 (A) beginning on March 1, 2020; and 

18 (B) ending on March 31, 2023, or a date 

19 to be determined by the Administrator that is 

20 not later than 2 years after the date of enact21 ment of this Act. 

22 (4) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible enti23 ty’’— 


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1 (A) means a small business concern (as de2 fined in section 3 of the Small Business Act (15 

3 U.S.C. 632)) that has experienced substantial 

4 losses resulting from the COVID–19 pandemic, 

5 as determined by the Administrator; 

6 (B) may include— 

7 (i) a Tribally-owned concern; 

8 (ii) a sole proprietorship; 

9 (iii) an independent contractor; and 

10 (iv) an eligible self-employed indi11 vidual; and 

12 (C) does not include— 

13 (i) an entity described in subpara14 graph (A) that— 

15 (I) is a State or local govern16 ment-owned or operated business; and 

17 (II) has a pending application for 

18 or has received a grant under— 

19 (aa) section 324 of the Eco20 nomic Aid to Hard-Hit Small 

21 Businesses, Nonprofits, and 

22 Venues Act (15 U.S.C. 9009a); 

23 or 


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1 (bb) section 5003 of the 

2 American Rescue Plan Act of 

3 2021 (15 U.S.C. 9009c); 

4 (ii) a publicly-traded company; 

5 (iii) an entity that is owned or oper6 ated by a private equity fund; 

7 (iv) an entity that was not in oper8 ation before March 1, 2020; or 

9 (v) an entity that is not in operation 

10 on, and does not intend to reopen on or be11 fore the date that is 180 days after, the 

12 date on which the entity applies for a 

13 grant. 

14 (5) ELIGIBLE SELF-EMPLOYED INDIVIDUAL.— 

15 The term ‘‘eligible self-employed individual’’ has the 

16 meaning given the term in section 7002(b) of the 

17 Families First Coronavirus Response Act (26 U.S.C. 

18 1401 note). 

19 (6) EXCHANGE; ISSUER; SECURITY.—The terms 

20 ‘‘exchange’’, ‘‘issuer’’, and ‘‘security’’ have the 

21 meanings given those terms in section 3(a) of the 

22 Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78c(a)). 

23 (7) FUND.—The term ‘‘Fund’’ means the 

24 Hardest-Hit Small Business Relief Fund established 

25 under section 4(a). 


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1 (8) NATIONAL SECURITIES EXCHANGE.—The 

2 term ‘‘national securities exchange’’ means an ex3 change that is registered in accordance with section 

4 6 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 

5 78f). 

6 (9) PAYROLL COSTS.—The term ‘‘payroll costs’’ 

7 has the meaning given the term in section 

8 7(a)(36)(A) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 

9 636(a)(36)(A)), except that such term shall not in10 clude— 

11 (A) qualified wages (as defined in sub12 section (c)(3) of section 2301 of the CARES 

13 Act (26 U.S.C. 3111 note)) taken into account 

14 in determining the credit allowed under such 

15 section 2301; or 

16 (B) premiums taken into account in deter17 mining the credit allowed under section 6432 of 

18 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 

19 (10) PRIVATE EQUITY FUND.—The term ‘‘pri20 vate equity fund’’ has the meaning given the term 

21 in section 225.173(a) of title 12, Code of Federal 

22 Regulations, or any successor regulation. 

23 (11) PUBLICLY-TRADED COMPANY.—The term 

24 ‘‘publicly-traded company’’ means an entity that is 

25 majority owned or controlled by an entity that is an 


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1 issuer, the securities of which are listed on a na2 tional securities exchange. 

3 (12) TRIBALLY-OWNED CONCERN.—The term 

4 ‘‘Tribally-owned concern’’ has the meaning given the 

5 term in section 124.3 of title 13, Code of Federal 

6 Regulations, or any successor regulation. 

7 SEC. 4. HARDEST-HIT SMALL BUSINESS RELIEF FUND. 

8 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the 

9 Treasury of the United States a fund to be known as the 

10 Hardest-Hit Small Business Relief Fund. 

11 (b) FUNDING.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Fund shall consist of— 

13 (A) amounts transferred under section 11; 

14 and 

15 (B) other amount appropriated to the 

16 Fund. 

17 (2) ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.—Of the 

18 amounts transferred under section 11, $80,000,000 

19 shall be for administrative expenses to carry out the 

20 program under this Act, of which $20,000,000 shall 

21 be for the Inspector General of the Small Business 

22 Administration for necessary expenses of the Office 

23 of Inspector General. 


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1 SEC. 5. GRANTS FROM FUND. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection 

3 (c)(4), the Administrator shall make grants under this 

4 section to eligible entities in the order in which applica5 tions are received by the Administrator. 

6 (b) APPLICATIONS.— 

7 (1) CERTIFICATION.—An eligible entity apply8 ing for a grant under this section shall make a good 

9 faith certification that— 

10 (A) the uncertainty of current economic 

11 conditions makes necessary the request for the 

12 grant to support the ongoing operations of the 

13 eligible entity; 

14 (B) the eligible entity does not have a 

15 pending application for, and has not received, a 

16 grant under— 

17 (i) section 324 of the Economic Aid to 

18 Hard-Hit Small Businesses, Nonprofits, 

19 and Venues Act (15 U.S.C. 9009a); or 

20 (ii) section 5003 of the American Res21 cue Plan Act of 2021 (15 U.S.C. 9009c); 

22 and 

23 (C) contains any other information that 

24 the Administrator may require. 

25 (2) VERIFICATION MATERIALS.—The Adminis26 trator shall use tax records and may, in addition, 


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1 use other reliable sources such as certified account2 ing statements with respect to an applicant for a 

3 grant to determine— 

4 (A) the eligibility of the applicant for that 

5 grant; and 

6 (B) the amount of that grant to the appli7 cant. 

8 (3) ACCEPTANCE OF APPLICATIONS.—Not later 

9 than 90 days after the date of enactment of this 

10 Act, the Administrator shall begin accepting applica11 tions for grants under this section. 

12 (c) AMOUNT OF GRANT.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (4), 

14 the amount of a grant under this section made to an 

15 eligible entity shall be determined based on a for16 mula to be established by the Administrator. 

17 (2) REDUCTION.—Any formula established by 

18 the Administrator to determine grant amounts 

19 under paragraph (1) shall reduce awards by 

20 amounts a recipient has received under— 

21 (A) section 1110 of the Coronavirus Aid, 

22 Relief, and Economic Security Act (15 U.S.C. 

23 9009); 


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1 (B) section 331 of the Economic Aid to 

2 Hard-Hit Small Businesses, Nonprofits, and 

3 Venues Act (15 U.S.C. 9009b); or 

4 (C) section 5002 of the American Rescue 

5 Plan Act of 2021 (15 U.S.C. 9009 note). 

6 (3) DETERMINATION OF REVENUE.— 

7 (A) IN GENERAL.—When calculating the 

8 revenue of an entity for purposes of deter9 mining the eligibility of the entity for a grant 

10 under this section or the amount of such a 

11 grant, the Administrator shall treat as rev12 enue— 

13 (i) any amounts received from a cov14 ered loan made under paragraph (36) or 

15 (37) of section 7(a) of the Small Business 

16 Act (15 U.S.C. 636(a)), in 2020 or 2021; 

17 and 

18 (ii) the amount by which the total of 

19 all remunerative payments made to an in20 dividual, including any annual salary paid 

21 to an employee, in 2020, or 2021, exceeds 

22 $250,000. 

23 (B) ADMINISTRATOR AUTHORITY.—The 

24 Administrator may determine the types of payVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:19 Jun 29, 2022 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4471.IS S4471

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1 ments and individuals to which subparagraph 

2 (A)(ii) applies. 

3 (4) INSUFFICIENT FUNDING.— 

4 (A) IN GENERAL.—If the Administrator 

5 determines that the amounts made available to 

6 carry out this section are insufficient to make 

7 grants to each eligible entity in the amount pro8 vided under paragraph (1), the Administrator 

9 shall distribute grants to all eligible applicants 

10 that submit an application during the 21-day 

11 period beginning on the date on which the Ad12 ministrator begins accepting those applications 

13 on either— 

14 (i) a pro rata basis; or 

15 (ii) based on a formula to be deter16 mined by the Administrator. 

17 (B) RESERVING FUNDS.—Nothing in sub18 paragraph (A) shall prevent the Administrator 

19 from— 

20 (i) reserving funding for applicants 

21 that may be determined to be eligible for 

22 a grant upon reconsideration; or 

23 (ii) making partial awards to eligible 

24 entities on a preliminary basis until the 

25 amount of funding required to fund grants 


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1 to all eligible entities that submit applica2 tions is established upon the completion of 

3 the reconsideration process. 

4 (d) USE OF FUNDS.—During the covered period, an 

5 eligible entity that receives a grant under this section may 

6 use amounts received for the following expenses incurred 

7 as a direct result of, or during, the COVID–19 pandemic: 

8 (1) Payroll costs. 

9 (2) Payments to independent contractors, as re10 ported on Form 1099–MISC, except that each pay11 ment under this paragraph shall be in an amount 

12 that is not more than $100,000. 

13 (3) Scheduled payments of interest or principal 

14 on any covered mortgage obligation (which may not 

15 include any prepayment of principal on a covered 

16 mortgage obligation). 

17 (4) Payments on any covered rent obligation 

18 and common area maintenance charges under a 

19 lease agreement. 

20 (5) Covered utility payments. 

21 (6) Maintenance expenses. 

22 (7) Covered worker protection expenditures. 

23 (8) Supplies, including protective equipment 

24 and cleaning materials. 


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1 (9) Expenses that were within the scope of the 

2 normal business practice of the eligible entity before 

3 the covered period. 

4 (10) Covered supplier costs. 

5 (11) Operational expenses. 

6 (12) Paid sick leave. 

7 (13) Any other expenses that the Administrator 

8 determines to be essential to maintaining the eligible 

9 entity. 

10 (e) RETURNING FUNDS.—If an eligible entity that re11 ceives a grant under this section fails to use all of the 

12 amounts received under the grant on or before the last 

13 day of the covered period or permanently ceases operations 

14 on or before the last day of the covered period, the eligible 

15 entity shall return to the Treasury any funds that the eli16 gible entity did not use for the allowable expenses under 

17 subsection (d). 

18 SEC. 6. DATA TRANSPARENCY AND CUSTOMER SERVICE. 

19 The Administrator shall— 

20 (1) on a biweekly basis until the amounts made 

21 available under this Act are fully expended, publish 

22 data that shows, for the period beginning on the 

23 date of enactment of this Act and ending on the 

24 date on which the information is published— 


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1 (A) with respect to applications for grants 

2 under this Act, the number of those applica3 tions— 

4 (i) that the Administrator has re5 ceived; 

6 (ii) that the Administrator has re7 viewed or is in the process of reviewing; 

8 and 

9 (iii) with respect to which the Admin10 istrator has made a decision; and 

11 (B) the number and dollar amount of 

12 grants— 

13 (i) that are awarded; and 

14 (ii) that are disbursed; 

15 (2) on a weekly basis until the amounts made 

16 available under this Act are fully expended, publish, 

17 with respect to the period beginning on the date of 

18 enactment of this Act, and ending on the date on 

19 which the information is published— 

20 (A) with respect to each entity to which a 

21 grant under this Act has been made— 

22 (i) the name of the entity, including 

23 the name under which the entity does busi24 ness if that name is different from the 

25 name of the entity; 


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1 (ii) the address of the entity; and 

2 (iii) if the physical location for the eli3 gible business listed on the application is 

4 different from the address of the entity, 

5 the address of such physical location; and 

6 (B) the amount of each grant described in 

7 paragraph (1); and 

8 (3) with respect to an applicant that applies for 

9 a grant under this Act and is denied by the Admin10 istrator— 

11 (A) make available to the applicant a brief 

12 explanation identifying the reason why the Ad13 ministrator denied the application of the appli14 cant, which shall include, where applicable, a ci15 tation to the statutory, regulatory, or guidance 

16 provision with which the applicant failed to 

17 comply and that was the basis for the denial; 

18 and 

19 (B) establish a reconsideration process 

20 through which the applicant may— 

21 (i) submit to the Administrator addi22 tional clarifying information the applicant 

23 determines to be relevant to whether the 

24 applicant is eligible for the grant; and 


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1 (ii) receive a second review of the ap2 plication submitted by the applicant. 

3 SEC. 7. BUSINESS IDENTIFIERS. 

4 In accepting applications for grants under this Act, 

5 the Administrator shall prioritize the ability of each appli6 cant to use the existing business identifier of the applicant 

7 over requiring other forms of registration or identification 

8 that may not be common to the industry of the applicant, 

9 which may impose additional burdens on the applicant. 

10 SEC. 8. OVERSIGHT AND AUDITS. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall institute 

12 an oversight and audit plan with respect to entities receiv13 ing grants under this Act, which shall include— 

14 (1) documentation requirements that are con15 sistent with the eligibility and other requirements, 

16 including by requiring an entity that receives a grant 

17 under this Act to retain records that demonstrate 

18 compliance with those requirements; and 

19 (2) reviews of the use by entities of grants 

20 under this Act to ensure compliance with the re21 quirements under this Act, which shall include— 

22 (A) the review and audit, by the Adminis23 trator, of grants made under this Act; and 


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1 (B) in the case of fraud or other material 

2 noncompliance with respect to a grant made 

3 under this Act— 

4 (i) a requirement that the applicable 

5 entity repay to the Administrator the 

6 amount of the misspent funds; or 

7 (ii) the pursuit, by the Administrator, 

8 of legal action to collect the misspent 

9 funds. 

10 (b) SUBMISSION OF PLAN.—Not later than 90 days 

11 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator 

12 shall submit to the Committee on Small Business and En13 trepreneurship of the Senate and the Committee on Small 

14 Business of the House of Representatives the plan re15 quired under subsection (a), which shall describe— 

16 (1) the policies and procedures of the Adminis17 trator for conducting oversight and audits of grants 

18 under this Act; and 

19 (2) the metrics that the Administrator will use 

20 to determine which grants will be audited under that 

21 plan. 

22 (c) REPORTS.—Not later than 90 days after the date 

23 of enactment of this Act, once every 30 days thereafter 

24 until the date that is 180 days after the date on which 

25 all amounts made available to carry out this Act have been 


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1 fully expended, and upon request thereafter, the Adminis2 trator shall submit to the Committee on Small Business 

3 and Entrepreneurship of the Senate and the Committee 

4 on Small Business of the House of Representatives a re5 port on the oversight and audit activities of the Adminis6 trator under this section, which shall include— 

7 (1) the total number of grants under this Act 

8 approved and disbursed; 

9 (2) the total amount of each grant under this 

10 Act received by each entity that received such a pay11 ment; 

12 (3) the number of active investigations and au13 dits of grants made under this Act; 

14 (4) the number of completed reviews and audits 

15 of grants under this Act, including a description 

16 of— 

17 (A) any findings of fraud or other material 

18 noncompliance; 

19 (B) questionable costs identified by the 

20 Administrator; and 

21 (C) the total amount recouped from ineli22 gible recipients; and 

23 (5) a description of any substantial changes 

24 made to the plan required under subsection (a). 


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1 SEC. 9. GROSS RECEIPTS. 

2 The Administrator may authorize applicants for 

3 grants under this Act to measure annual gross receipts 

4 using either the calendar year or fiscal year. 

5 SEC. 10. RULES. 

6 Not later than 60 days after the date of enactment 

7 of this Act, the Administrator shall issue rules to carry 

8 out this Act, without regard to the notice requirements 

9 under section 553(b) of title 5, United States Code. 

10 SEC. 11. TRANSFER OF FUNDS. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—The unobligated balances of 

12 amounts made available under the heading ‘‘Small Busi13 ness Administration—Business Loans Program Account, 

14 CARES Act’’ in section 323(d)(1)(A) of division N of the 

15 Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (Public Law 116– 

16 260; 134 Stat. 2019) for the cost of guaranteed loans as 

17 authorized under paragraphs (36) and (37) of section 7(a) 

18 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 636(a)) shall be 

19 transferred to the Fund. 

20 (b) CARES ACT.—The unexpended balances of 

21 amounts made available under the heading ‘‘Small Busi22 ness Administration—Business Loans Program Account, 

23 CARES Act’’ in section 1107(a)(1) of the Coronavirus 

24 Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (15 U.S.C. 

25 9006(a)(1)) shall be transferred to the Fund. 


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1 (c) SHUTTERED VENUES.—The unobligated balances 

2 in the account appropriated under the heading ‘‘Small 

3 Business Administration—Shuttered Venue Operators’’ 

4 shall be transferred to the Fund. 

5 (d) AMERICAN RESCUE PLAN ACT.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—If the Administrator submits 

7 to Congress a certification described in paragraph 

8 (2), effective on the date of the certification, the un9 obligated balances of amounts made available under 

10 section 5002(b) of the American Rescue Plan Act of 

11 2021 (15 U.S.C. 9009 note), including any of such 

12 balances that were transferred under section 

13 90007(b)(2) of the Infrastructure Investment and 

14 Jobs Act (Public Law 117–58; 135 Stat. 1347), 

15 shall be transferred to the Fund. 

16 (2) CERTIFICATION OF SUFFICIENCY OF FUNDS

17 FOR EIDL PROGRAM.—A certification described in 

18 this paragraph is a certification that, if the balances 

19 described in paragraph (1) are transferred, the Ad20 ministrator will still have sufficient funds to make 

21 loans described in section 7(b)(2) of the Small Busi22 ness Act (15 U.S.C. 636(b)(2)) to each entity de23 scribed in section 1110(b) of the CARES Act (15 

24 U.S.C. 9009(b)) that submitted— 


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1 (A) an application for such a loan on or 

2 before December 31, 2021; or 

3 (B) a request for a modification, rehearing, 

4 or appeal in connection with an application for 

5 such a loan on or before May 6, 2022. 

Æ 


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