On Tuesday, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, Warren Buffett, urged the US Congress to extend aid to small businesses, especially since they are still struggling to survive amid the economic shutdowns.
Buffett said he is very hopeful that the Congress will soon provide new incentives, and specifically asked them to extend the Paycheck Protection Program, which was launched in early 2020 and provides loans to small businesses.
"This is an economic war," Buffett said. "We still need another injection to complete the work. At the moment, the Congress continues to discuss this, and I would really like to hope that they will expand the PPP program and scale it up in order to help the small business people".
According to him, small businesses were the ones who suffered the most during the economic shutdowns.
Many aid programs will expire by the end of this year. However, negotiations for new government aid has been in a stalemate for months.
On Monday, a bipartisan group of lawmakers presented a $908 billion stimulus package. The proposal includes about $300 billion to support small businesses, including restaurants and entertainment venues.
Buffett said that while the Federal Reserve has done an amazing job to bolster the economy, the impact of the pandemic remains uneven.
Small businesses, especially restaurants, have struggled to stay afloat during the pandemic, since social distancing restrictions have forced them to limit capacity. Some businesses have also shut down both temporarily and permanently.
"The shutdowns killed the economy of someone who may have worked with their families for decades to build a business," he said.
As a result, Buffett urged the Congress to finalize their decision before the Christmas break.
