PPP Loans

Our PPP Loan records are sourced from the Small Business Administration's public disclosure of Paycheck Protection Program loans issued under the CARES Act. These records document COVID-19 relief loans to businesses including loan amounts, lenders, and forgiveness status.

NOTE: PPP loan data was released by the SBA following FOIA requests and court orders requiring disclosure. Records include business name, address, loan amount, lender, jobs reported, and forgiveness information. This data represents a snapshot of the PPP program and may not reflect final loan dispositions.

What Are PPP Loans?

The Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) was a federal loan program established under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, signed into law on March 27, 2020. The program was designed to provide rapid financial assistance to small businesses, self-employed individuals, sole proprietors, and certain nonprofit organizations that were struggling to maintain their payrolls during the economic disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Administered by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) and funded by the U.S. Department of the Treasury, the PPP ultimately distributed approximately $800 billion in forgivable loans to over 11.8 million borrowers across the country.

The central feature of the PPP was its loan forgiveness mechanism. Unlike traditional SBA loans, PPP loans were designed to be forgiven entirely if borrowers used the funds for eligible expenses, primarily payroll costs, during a specified covered period and maintained their employee headcount and compensation levels. This structure effectively transformed the loans into grants for businesses that complied with the program's requirements. The interest rate on PPP loans was set at 1%, and the loan term was either two or five years for any portion not forgiven.

The program was unprecedented in its scale and speed of deployment. Traditional SBA loan programs typically take weeks or months to process, but PPP loans were designed to be approved and funded within days. Participating lenders, including banks, credit unions, and fintech companies approved by the SBA, were responsible for processing applications and disbursing funds, with the SBA providing a 100% government guarantee on every loan. This structure allowed the program to reach millions of borrowers in a matter of months, though the speed of deployment also created significant challenges related to fraud prevention and oversight.

What PPP Loan Data Is Public?

The SBA has released comprehensive data on every PPP loan issued through the program. For each loan, the publicly available data includes the borrower name, which is typically the legal name of the business or, for sole proprietors and self-employed individuals, the individual's name. The borrower address includes the street address, city, state, and ZIP code of the business. The loan amount is disclosed as the exact dollar amount approved, ranging from as small as a few hundred dollars to the program maximum of $10 million.

The data also includes the lender name identifying the financial institution that processed and funded the loan, the date approved when the SBA approved the loan guarantee, and the number of jobs reported by the borrower on their application, indicating how many employees the loan was intended to support. The NAICS code (North American Industry Classification System) identifies the industry sector of the borrower's business, such as restaurants, medical offices, construction, or professional services.

For loans that have completed the forgiveness process, the data includes the forgiveness amount (how much of the loan was forgiven by the SBA), the forgiveness date, and the forgiveness status. Additional fields include the loan's draw number (first or second draw), the business type (corporation, LLC, sole proprietorship, nonprofit, etc.), and demographic information about the business owner when voluntarily provided, including race, ethnicity, gender, and veteran status.

How PPP Loan Data Was Released

The release of detailed PPP loan data was not automatic. It was the result of a sustained campaign by journalists, transparency advocates, and members of Congress who argued that the public had a right to know how hundreds of billions of dollars in taxpayer-backed funds were being distributed.

When the PPP launched in April 2020, the SBA initially declined to release borrower-level data, citing borrower privacy and competitive concerns. In the first round of disclosures in July 2020, the SBA released only partial data: for loans of $150,000 and above, it disclosed the business name, address, and a loan amount range (such as "$1-2 million" or "$5-10 million") rather than the exact dollar amount. For loans under $150,000, only aggregate data was released without identifying individual borrowers. This approach covered roughly 660,000 larger loans while leaving the more than 4 million smaller loans anonymous.

Multiple news organizations and advocacy groups filed Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuits against the SBA, arguing that the loan data, backed by a full government guarantee and therefore representing taxpayer exposure, should be fully disclosed. In November 2020, a federal judge ruled in favor of disclosure, and in December 2020, the SBA released more detailed data including exact loan amounts for loans over $150,000. Subsequent court orders and policy changes led to the release of individual borrower data for all loans, including those under $150,000, resulting in the comprehensive dataset that is now publicly available.

The SBA continues to update the PPP dataset periodically to reflect new forgiveness decisions and corrections. The data is available for bulk download from the SBA's website in CSV format, organized by state and loan size. Our database incorporates the complete SBA dataset and presents it in a searchable format alongside other public records.

Understanding PPP Loan Records

Interpreting PPP loan records accurately requires understanding several important distinctions within the data.

Loan approval versus loan forgiveness are two separate stages of the PPP process. A loan being approved and funded means the borrower received the money, but it does not automatically mean the loan was forgiven. Forgiveness required the borrower to submit a separate application demonstrating that they used the funds for eligible purposes (primarily payroll) during the covered period. As of the most recent SBA data releases, the vast majority of PPP loans have been fully forgiven, but some loans were only partially forgiven, and others were not forgiven at all, meaning the borrower is required to repay the remaining balance with interest.

First Draw versus Second Draw loans represent two distinct phases of the PPP. First Draw loans were available during the initial rounds of the program in 2020, open to any eligible business that had not previously received a PPP loan. Second Draw loans became available in January 2021 under the Economic Aid Act, but eligibility was more restricted: borrowers had to demonstrate a 25% reduction in gross receipts in any quarter of 2020 compared to the same quarter in 2019, and the maximum loan amount was $2 million (compared to $10 million for First Draw). A single business could receive both a First Draw and a Second Draw loan, so it is common to see two separate PPP loan records for the same borrower.

Loan amount ranges in the PPP data reflect the diversity of American businesses. The vast majority of PPP loans were relatively small: approximately 70% of all loans were for $50,000 or less, reflecting the program's reach to very small businesses and sole proprietors. The average PPP loan was approximately $67,000, though this average is skewed upward by a relatively small number of very large loans to major employers. The maximum loan amount was $10 million for First Draw loans and $2 million for Second Draw loans, with the actual amount calculated as 2.5 times the borrower's average monthly payroll (or 3.5 times for accommodation and food service businesses applying for Second Draw loans).

How to Interpret PPP Data

Several nuances in the PPP data can affect how records should be interpreted and used.

Business name versus individual name is an important distinction, particularly for sole proprietors and self-employed borrowers. For incorporated businesses, the borrower name is typically the legal business name (which may differ from the trade name or "doing business as" name that customers would recognize). For sole proprietors and independent contractors, the borrower name may be the individual's personal name, since these borrowers often do not have a separate legal entity. This means that PPP loan records can appear in searches for both business names and individual names.

Address matching in PPP data can be complicated by the fact that the address listed is the business address at the time of application, which may be a home address (for home-based businesses), a commercial address, or a registered agent address. Some businesses listed their CPA's or attorney's address rather than their own operating location. For businesses that have moved, closed, or changed addresses since receiving their loan, the address in the PPP data may no longer be current.

Multiple loans to the same borrower are common in the data, but they do not necessarily indicate fraud or abuse. As noted above, the program was explicitly designed to allow eligible borrowers to receive both a First Draw and a Second Draw loan. Additionally, businesses with multiple locations or subsidiaries may have filed separate applications for each entity, resulting in multiple records that are all connected to the same parent organization. When analyzing PPP data, it is important to consider these legitimate explanations before drawing conclusions from multiple loan records associated with a single name or address.

Jobs reported represents the number of employees the borrower reported on their PPP application. This figure reflects self-reported data and was not independently verified for most loans at the time of application. The jobs figure should be treated as an estimate rather than a precise headcount. Some borrowers reported zero jobs (which could indicate a sole proprietor with no employees), while others may have overstated their employee count. Forgiveness applications required more detailed payroll documentation, so the forgiveness data may provide a more reliable picture of actual employment.

PPP Program Timeline

The PPP operated across several distinct phases, each with its own rules and funding levels.

First Round (April-August 2020): The CARES Act initially authorized $349 billion for the PPP. Applications opened on April 3, 2020, and the initial funding was exhausted within just 13 days, by April 16. The rapid depletion of funds, combined with reports that large publicly traded companies had received loans while many small businesses were shut out, generated significant controversy. On April 24, 2020, the Paycheck Protection Program and Health Care Enhancement Act provided an additional $310 billion in funding, bringing the total first-round authorization to $659 billion. Lending continued through August 8, 2020, when the first round officially closed.

Second Round (January-May 2021): The Economic Aid to Hard-Hit Small Businesses, Nonprofits, and Venues Act, signed on December 27, 2020, authorized a second round of PPP funding totaling approximately $284 billion. This round introduced Second Draw loans for previously assisted borrowers who could demonstrate a significant revenue decline. The second round also expanded eligibility to include certain 501(c)(6) organizations, destination marketing organizations, and local newspapers and broadcasters. Applications opened on January 11, 2021, with the program deadline set for March 31, 2021, later extended to May 31, 2021, and ultimately to June 30, 2021 for processing remaining applications.

Forgiveness Process (ongoing through 2022+): PPP borrowers could apply for loan forgiveness after spending their loan funds during the covered period (initially 8 weeks, later extended to 24 weeks). The forgiveness application process was simplified over time, with the SBA introducing a streamlined one-page application (Form 3508S) for loans of $150,000 or less. As of the final SBA reporting, approximately 93% of PPP loan dollars have been forgiven. The remaining loans are either still in the forgiveness review process, were partially forgiven, or were denied forgiveness and converted to standard loans requiring repayment.

Fraud enforcement (ongoing): The unprecedented speed and scale of the PPP program inevitably led to fraud. The SBA Office of Inspector General, the Department of Justice, and various federal task forces have pursued thousands of fraud cases involving individuals who submitted false applications, fabricated payroll records, or used loan proceeds for unauthorized purposes such as luxury purchases, cryptocurrency investments, or personal expenses. As of 2023, federal authorities had charged more than 2,000 individuals with PPP-related fraud, involving over $1.4 billion in allegedly fraudulent loans. The public PPP loan data has been instrumental in identifying suspicious patterns and supporting these investigations.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are PPP loan records public information?

Yes. PPP loan data was released by the SBA following FOIA requests and federal court orders. Because PPP loans are 100% guaranteed by the U.S. government and funded with taxpayer dollars, courts ruled that the public has a right to know who received these funds and how much they received. The complete dataset, including borrower names, addresses, loan amounts, and forgiveness information, is publicly available from the SBA and through data services like ours.

Does receiving a PPP loan mean a business was in financial trouble?

Not necessarily. PPP loans were available to any small business (generally 500 employees or fewer) that certified in good faith that the loan was necessary due to the economic uncertainty caused by COVID-19. Many businesses that were otherwise healthy applied for PPP loans as a precautionary measure to ensure they could maintain payroll during an unpredictable period. The certification requirement was broadly interpreted, and the SBA provided a safe harbor for loans of $2 million or less, meaning it would not question the good-faith certification for smaller loans.

What does it mean if a PPP loan was forgiven?

Loan forgiveness means the SBA determined that the borrower met the requirements for having their loan converted from a repayable loan to a grant. To qualify for full forgiveness, borrowers generally had to spend at least 60% of the loan on payroll costs, with the remaining 40% on other eligible expenses such as rent, utilities, and mortgage interest, during the covered period. Full forgiveness means the borrower does not have to repay any of the loan. Partial forgiveness means only a portion was forgiven, and the remainder must be repaid with 1% interest.

Can an individual's name appear in PPP records?

Yes. Self-employed individuals, sole proprietors, and independent contractors were eligible for PPP loans based on their self-employment income. For these borrowers, the PPP loan record typically lists the individual's name as the borrower name, since there is no separate business entity. Approximately 70% of all PPP loans went to businesses with 5 or fewer employees, and a significant portion of those were sole proprietorships where the business name is the owner's personal name.

Why does the same business appear with two PPP loans?

The PPP program explicitly allowed eligible businesses to receive both a First Draw loan (2020) and a Second Draw loan (2021). Businesses that received a First Draw loan and subsequently experienced a 25% or greater decline in gross receipts could apply for a Second Draw loan of up to $2 million. Both loans appear as separate records in the SBA dataset. Additionally, businesses with multiple subsidiaries or locations may have applied separately for each entity, creating multiple records that are all associated with the same parent organization.

How accurate is the PPP loan data?

The PPP data reflects information submitted by borrowers on their loan applications and processed by participating lenders. While the SBA has made corrections to the dataset over time, some inaccuracies remain. Business names may contain typographical errors, addresses may reflect mailing addresses rather than operating locations, and the jobs reported figure is self-reported and was not independently verified for most loans at the time of application. The loan amounts and forgiveness figures are generally reliable, as they are based on financial records processed through the banking system. Users should treat the data as a good-faith record of program activity rather than a perfectly audited dataset.

← All Data Sources