When the Wuhan coronavirus pandemic hit, small businesses across the nation were ravaged. Suddenly business owners were forced to decide whether to try to weather the storm or close their doors for good. Thanks to the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), business owners could take out a loan to keep them afloat while they had to shut their doors.
For Kerbey Lane Cafe in Austin, Texas, PPP funding was vital to their survival.
"Congressman Roy, this is Mason Ayer standing in front of Kerbey Lane Cafe here in Austin, Texas. I want to thank you for the great work you've done on providing much-needed fixes to the PPP. It's so impressive that you were able to reach broad consensus and reach across the aisle and find an issue that all of Washington can agree on," the small business owner explained. "If you look behind me, you can see we have a thriving patio here at Kerbey. It's great to see that."
"We're in a situation where we've actually been able to rehire a good portion of our laid-off workforce, and they're thrilled to be back at work," Ayer said. "I've actually never seen team members so excited to work before in my time at Kerbey."
The constituent went on to say he's thankful for Congressman Chip Roy's (R-TX) leadership throughout the PPP process.
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"We're so grateful that we're in a situation where things are getting somewhat back to normal," he explained. "We have guests coming and going, and it's starting to feel like pre-COVID again."
Ayer applauded Roy and the Texas Restaurant Association (TRA) for helping to get the cafe reopened.
Very happy to see my Paycheck Protection Flexibility Act is already making a difference for places like @kerbeylanecafe in #ATX! #PPPFlexibility pic.twitter.com/kn33ixskE6
— Chip Roy (@chiproytx) June 9, 2020