More than 6,300 businesses in Riverside and San Bernardino counties received federal loans greater than $150,000 this spring to support operations during the coronavirus pandemic, according to data released this week by the U.S. Treasury Department.
In all, north of 650,000 small businesses nationwide received such financial assistance through the Paycheck Protection Program, which originated from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security, or CARES, Act and saw the government distribute $521 billion as part of a $2 trillion rescue package.
Data released Monday, July 6, does not show exact loan amounts, however, only ranges.
Also, only businesses and organizations that received more than $150,000 were named, leaving 85% of the nearly 5 million loan recipients anonymous.
While the vast majority of Inland Empire businesses received no more than $1 million to help pay their employees, rents and utilities, 22 businesses – 11 in Riverside County and 11 in San Bernardino County – received loans between $5 million and $10 million, including Riverside-based law firm Best, Best and Krieger, the Diocese of San Bernardino, the San Manuel Indian Health Clinic in Grand Terrace and LifeStream Blood Bank.
“What we’re hoping is the money is able to help us until our business gets back to where it was prior to the pandemic,” Dr. Rick Axelrod, LifeStream president and CEO, said by phone Wednesday, July 8. “This was a lifesaver. A lifesaver for our organization and our employees.”
As hospitals canceled elective surgeries – and reduced their usage of blood products – at the outset of the coronavirus pandemic, LifeStream lost $1.5 million in revenue in a single month, Axelrod said. As a result, a plan was put in place to lay off 100 employees, or 25% of the company’s workforce.
The $5 million LifeStream received in federal assistance “was an absolute lifeline,” Axelrod said. “Moving forward, we’re able to use the money to finance our employees.”
About 200 Inland Empire businesses received loans up to $5 million, data show, while more than 500 were given upwards of $2 million.
Sectors assisted with federal money include construction, finance, food services, health care, manufacturing, real estate, retail and transportation, among others.
The loans, which, according to the Small Business Administration, will be fully forgiven if at least 60% of funds are used for payroll, were expected to help small businesses and nonprofits in the region retain hundreds of thousands of jobs.
What qualifies as a “small business” varies by industry, but is commonly defined by number of employees or average annual receipts. Most non-manufacturing businesses with average annual receipts under $7.5 million qualify as small businesses, according to federal officials.
San Bernardino’s beloved Laymon Candy Company fit the bill.
“We might have survived without it,” co-owner Tim Applen said of the $200,000 or so his regional candy retailer, manufacturer and distributor received, “but it would have been a struggle.”
As with LifeStream Blood Bank, the Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Redlands-Riverside lost hundreds of thousands of dollars in revenue when the coronavirus crisis shut down traditional springtime programming.
This spring, the federal loan helped the Redlands-based club, which was primed to furlough employees if not for $545,000 in assistance, backfill its coffers and continue to pay workers their average hours, even though they were working virtually and on reduced schedules.
“We went from looking at furlough letters to paying our employees their average hours,” P.T. McEwen, club president and CEO, said Wednesday. “It was good for our employees and good for the kids and families we serve.”
Riverside and Corona led Riverside County cities in loans received with 693 and 566, respectively. More than 360 Temecula businesses were given relief.
Ontario paced San Bernardino County, the largest county in the continental U.S., with 579 loans, followed by Rancho Cucamonga (408), Chino (311), San Bernardino (239) and Fontana (235).
Meanwhile, an analysis conducted by the Southern California News Group found that Riverside and San Bernardino county businesses received about 20,300 and 17,100 loans, respectively, totaling less than $150,000 each.
In total, the smaller loans were expected to protect more than 210,000 local jobs.
Initially set to expire June 30, the Paycheck Protection Program has been extended to Aug. 8.
Staff writer Nikie Johnson contributed to this report.
