In efforts to streamline Paycheck Protection Program loan forgiveness the Small Business Administration (SBA) has created a new portal which will allow borrowers to apply for forgiveness directly through the SBA.

The new forgiveness platform, which will go live on August 4th, 2021, was created to help small businesses get relief as fast as possible. The portal can be used by any businesses with loans less than $150,000 provided through participating lenders. According to FederalPay.org, a free public resource for U.S. government employees, businesses that classified themselves as boat dealers accounted for 3,914 PPP loans totaling more than $340 million, as of December 1, 2020. The average PPP loan taken by a business classified as a boat dealer was $86,846, and 84.6 of those businesses received loans amounting to less than $150,000. Furthermore, over 600 banks have opted in to participate in the direct forgiveness program, enabling over 2.17 million borrowers to apply for direct forgiveness.

“It is great to see the SBA doing what they can to take the burden off of small businesses during these difficult times,” said Chad Tokowicz, Government Relations Manager for the Marine Retailers Association of the Americas. “Allowing loan forgiveness to go directly through the SBA and not a bank will save our members and other businesses in the boating industry time, which is at a premium at this point of the season.”

The SBA is also setting up a PPP customer service team to answer any questions and assist borrowers directly with their forgiveness applications. If you are in need of assistance or simply have questions, please call have questions should call (877) 552-2692, available Monday – Friday, 8 a.m. – 8 p.m. EST.

The Direct Forgiveness Portal can be accessed here and additional information and instructions on how to use the portal can be found here.

About the Marine Retailers Association of the Americas
At the Marine Retailers Association of the Americas, we believe that for the marine industry to thrive, the retail organizations that interact with the boaters in their community must thrive. With that in mind, MRAA works to create a strong and healthy boating industry by uniting those retailers, providing them with opportunities for improvement and growth, and representing them with a powerful voice. For more information, contact us at 763-315-8043.

Marine Retailers Association of the Americas member Rick Chapman, General Manager of The Port of Sunnyside Club, Inc., testified this week before the Small Business Subcommittee on Oversight, Investigations, and Regulations and advocated for the passage of the Providing Resources for Emergency Preparedness and Resilient Enterprises (PREPARE) Act.

The hearing, titled “SBA’s Role in Climate Solutions,” explored how the Small Business Administration can facilitate access to capital for climate change mitigation investments and resilience efforts. The hearing highlighted various federal programs and services, which can support small businesses, while also looking at areas in need of improvement. The boating industry is no stranger to these impacts, as facilities like marinas and dealerships are prone to extreme weather events and gradual sea level rise.

“2020 was the sixth-consecutive year in which 10 or more billion-dollar weather and climate disaster events have impacted the United States,” said Marine Retailers Association of the Americas Government Relations Manager Chad Tokowicz. “This increase has a direct impact on the small businesses that help drive economic recovery. Now, more than ever, it is imperative that those small businesses are equipped to protect themselves from the existential threat that disasters pose.”

During the hearing, Chapman highlighted how investment in the resilience of marine business is critical for his marina, which is based on the St. Croix River in Stillwater, Minn., to stand the test of climate change. He highlighted how Minnesota is impacted by a variety of extreme weather ranging from drought and floods, to extreme heat and tornados, while underscoring the need to address these weather events before they happen and build resilient business infrastructure.

“To accomplish this, Congress should include language from the Providing Resources for Emergency Preparedness and Resilient Enterprises (PREPARE) Act in the resiliency title of any infrastructure package that moves forward to allow small businesses to access much-needed capital to invest in disaster-resilient infrastructure” Chapman noted in his testimony. “This landmark legislation would allow the SBA to make low-interest, fixed-rate loans of up to $500,000 to small businesses to invest in their properties to protect facilities, real estate, and contents from natural disasters.”

While the SBA does have disaster loans for businesses to use after extreme weather or natural disasters, there are currently no programs to help businesses to protect their businesses in preparation of these types of events. This legislation will be instrumental in helping the boating industry, as well as others in the outdoor recreation space, protect their businesses and investments from climate change. Please head to the Boating United Action Alert and ask your representative to cosponsor this important piece of legislation.

About the Marine Retailers Association of the Americas
At the Marine Retailers Association of the Americas, we believe that for the marine industry to thrive, the retail organizations that interact with the boaters in their community must thrive. With that in mind, MRAA works to create a strong and healthy boating industry by uniting those retailers, providing them with opportunities for improvement and growth, and representing them with a powerful voice. For more information, contact us at 763-315-8043.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) updated its guidance in June on ways to mitigate and prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the workplace.

With just under half the U.S. population fully vaccinated, the updated guidance focuses on protections for unvaccinated and otherwise at-risk workers.

“At-risk workers” are any employees who may have a condition that affects their ability to have a full immune response to the vaccination and those who cannot be protected through a vaccine, who cannot get vaccinated, or who cannot use a face covering.

The recommendations center on reducing the likelihood that an unvaccinated or at-risk worker comes into contact with COVID-19. The full set of recommendations can be found here. The first three recommendations are:

1. Grant paid time off for employees to get vaccinated.
2. Instruct any workers who are infected, unvaccinated workers who have had close contact with someone who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, and all workers with COVID-19 symptoms to stay home from work.
3. Implement physical distancing for unvaccinated and otherwise at-risk workers in all communal work areas.

“Boat retailers have been focused on the safety of their customers and staff throughout the pandemic, and it is encouraging to see OSHA provide updated guidance to assist employers,” said Chad Tokowicz, Government Relations Manager for the Marine Retailers Association of the Americas.

Since the guidance is not a standard or regulation and only contains recommendations, there is no legal obligation follow the guidelines. Instead, it is intended to assist employers in identifying hazards likely to cause death or harm to their employees. Therefore, it is not required that you follow or institute these recommendations, instead they are suggestions to assure you are providing a safe workplace for all of your employees.

About the Marine Retailers Association of the Americas
At the Marine Retailers Association of the Americas, we believe that for the marine industry to thrive, the retail organizations that interact with the boaters in their community must thrive. With that in mind, MRAA works to create a strong and healthy boating industry by uniting those retailers, providing them with opportunities for improvement and growth, and representing them with a powerful voice. For more information, contact us at 763-315-8043.

The Marine Retailers Association of the Americas wants to remind businesses in the marine industry who utilized Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) Loans that the deadline to apply for forgiveness is fast approaching.

PPP loans provided a major relief to small businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic, giving businesses additional funds for payroll and other expenses. To further reduce the burden on small businesses, the loans, if used correctly, may be forgiven altogether.

“We want to remind our members and others in the marine industry to, if eligible, apply for PPP Loan forgiveness,” said Chad Tokowicz, Government Relations Manager for the Marine Retailers Association of the Americas. “While the PPP loans were helpful in injecting capital into many industry businesses, forgiveness is another important aspect of the program.”

In order to be forgiven, 60 percent of a PPP loan must be spent on payroll and the remaining 40 percent spent on other eligible expenses. The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 (the second stimulus bill) expanded eligible expenses from rent, utilities and the interest portion of any mortgage payment to include:

• Operating Expenditures
• Property damage costs
• Supplier costs
• Worker protection expenditures

Timing and expenses are two of the most important aspects for PPP forgiveness. You must only spend the loan on eligible expenses and your application for forgiveness must be completed within the specified timeline. Borrowers can apply for forgiveness once all loan proceeds for which the borrower is requesting forgiveness has been used. Borrowers can also apply for forgiveness any time up to the maturity date of the loan.

Resources to complete the PPP Forgiveness application can be found here while the applications can be found here.

About the Marine Retailers Association of the Americas
At the Marine Retailers Association of the Americas, we believe that for the marine industry to thrive, the retail organizations that interact with the boaters in their community must thrive. With that in mind, MRAA works to create a strong and healthy boating industry by uniting those retailers, providing them with opportunities for improvement and growth, and representing them with a powerful voice. For more information, contact us at 763-315-8043.

The Marine Retailers Association of the Americas submitted comment to a newly proposed policy statement on repair restrictions by manufacturers and sellers by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

Following President Joe Biden’s July 9 Executive Order, Promoting Competition in the American Economy, the FTC announced an open meeting of the Commission on July 21. Before the Commission are three items of business, of which the proposed policy statement on repair restrictions imposed by manufacturers and sellers, or in layman’s terms “Right to Repair,” is of particular interest to the MRAA.

MRAA has long been involved in pushing back against state-level “Right to Repair” legislation, which aims to give unrestricted access to a machine’s embedded software and digital componentry. While Right to Repair advocates are oftentimes focused on having the ability to repair their own iPhone, computers, and other similar tech devices, these sweeping changes would encompass everything from boat engines and radar to medical devices and farm equipment.

“While we appreciate the opportunity to provide input on the proposed policy statement, we hope that the Commission takes into account the outcry and discontent from various stakeholders as well,” said Chad Tokowicz, Government Relations Manager at the MRAA. “Although we support giving recreational boaters the tools and know-how to fix their own vessels, we cannot ignore glaring safety and emissions concerns and hope the Commission will work with the industry to remedy these issues.”

MRAA has been working closely with the Coalition Opposed to Illegal Tampering over the past two years and has weighed in on Right to Repair legislation in at least four states. Although Right to Repair legislation was introduced in 14 states in 2021, the bills faced stiff criticism and not a single iteration passed into law. With the recent Executive Order, various state bills, and even Federal legislation, MRAA asks the Commission to include the association in their rulemaking process to address concerns from the marine industry and others.

“The Coalition Opposed to Illegal Tampering supports end-users repairing their own equipment, but we cannot stand by as legislation, executive orders, and regulation is proposed which would encourage and foster illegal tampering of safety and emissions standards,” said Josh Evans, Vice President of Government Relations and General Counsel for the Equipment Dealers Association. “We must educate our government and the public on the consequences of this type of legislation. To date, the bills and regulation introduced would compromise consumer safety and the environment under the guise of saving a few dollars.”

About the Marine Retailers Association of the Americas
At the Marine Retailers Association of the Americas, we believe that for the marine industry to thrive, the retail organizations that interact with the boaters in their community must thrive. With that in mind, MRAA works to create a strong and healthy boating industry by uniting those retailers, providing them with opportunities for improvement and growth, and representing them with a powerful voice. For more information, contact us at 763-315-8043.

Our friends at Boating Ontario, have reported some fabulous news about the Ontario, Canada, regarding its “Roadmap to Reopening” plan. Ontario is entering Step Three of its reopening efforts at 12:01 a.m., Friday, July 16.

“Thank you members for working tirelessly to keep your families, staff and customers safe, all of your hard work is finally paying off! We can’t wait to reunite with you all!,” – Boating Ontario shared in its news about the reopening plan.

It was reported the public health and health care indicators are improving and vaccination rates have surpassed targets from Ontario’s Roadmap to Reopen model, so the provincial government, with consult from the Chief Medical Officer of Health, is moving the province into Step Three tomorrow.

Read the full release from Ontario Newsroom.