Susan Collins

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, today, I am pleased to be joined by my colleague from West Virginia, Senator Joe Manchin, in introducing the Advancing Uniform Transportation Opportunities for Veterans Act. Our bill, known as the AUTO Act, would lessen the financial burden for severely disabled veterans who require special adaptive equipment to drive a motor vehicle by increasing the access to the Department of Veterans Affairs automobile grant program. The VA is currently authorized to provide eligible veterans with a one-time grant of approximately $21,400 to be used to purchase a new or used automobile and necessary adaptive equipment, such as specialized pedals or switches. This grant is often used together with the VA special adaptive equipment grants, which help veterans purchase adaptive equipment, such as powered lifts, for an existing automobile or van to make it safe for a veteran's use. Although veterans can receive multiple special adaptive equipment grants over the course of their lives, they are, for some reason, limited to a single grant for the vehicle. The current limitation fails to take into account that a disabled veteran will need more than one vehicle in his or her lifetime. In fact, the Department of Transportation reports that the average useful life of a vehicle is 11.5 years, and a vehicle that has been modified structurally tends to have a shorter useful life. According to the VA Independent Budget prepared by the Disabled American Veterans, Paralyzed Veterans of America, and the Veterans of Foreign Wars, the average cost to replace modified vehicles ranges from $40,000 to $65,000 when the vehicle is new and $21,000 to $35,000 when the vehicle is used. These are significant costs for a severely disabled veteran to bear to replace his or her primary mode of transportation. That is why veterans should be eligible to receive an automobile grant once every 10 years. Our bipartisan bill would do exactly that. One disabled veteran in Maine, Neal Williams, from Shirley, used a VA automobile grant in 1999 to purchase an adapted vehicle--a Ford Econoline van. He has had to purchase several adaptive vehicles since 1999, with each one lasting 250,000 miles, until they were no longer roadworthy. Two hundred and fifty thousand miles is a lot of miles, particularly over Maine's roads and highways. Neal's current vehicle now has over 100,000 miles, and he probably only has a short time before he will need a new one. He told me that purchasing a new van, which he uses for his wheelchair, and then he transfers to the driver's seat--he is such an extraordinary person in what he is able to do, but he has told me that new van will cost him well over $50,000, which is more than he paid for his home in rural Maine. This is an enormous burden on veterans like Neal who need to purchase expensive adaptive vehicles in order to drive safely and, also, in order to maintain their independence. Our Nation owes American veterans our deepest gratitude. We must continue to honor that commitment to our veterans by supporting their needs, including the needs of disabled veterans who need adaptive technology for their vehicles long after they are discharged or retired from Active Duty. The AUTO for Veterans Act is an important step in helping those who have served our Nation so honorably and have sacrificed so much for our freedom. I urge all of our colleagues to join Senator Manchin and me in honoring and supporting our Nation's disabled veterans. I send the bill to the desk.

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that Megan McCulloch, a defense fellow in my office, be granted floor privileges throughout the remainder of this Congress.

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Ms. COLLINS. Madam President, last night, the Senate approved legislation to extended the Paycheck Protection Program, better known as PPP, through August 8, while we continue bipartisan negotiations on a bill to provide additional assistance to our small businesses that have been especially hard hit by COVID-19 mitigation measures. I very much hope that the House of Representatives will act quickly to extend this important lifeline for our small employers, as new PPP loans cannot be issued until the bill that passed the Senate last night is enacted and signed into law, even though approximately $130 billion remains available for the program. Let me, again, commend my partners in this endeavor, Senators Marco Rubio, Ben Cardin, and Jeanne Shaheen, for their continued work on this vital program. Back in March, the four of us formed a small business task force. We looked at ways that we could help our small employers and their employees survive this pandemic. We put forth a bold plan, the Paycheck Protection Program, to help small employers and their employees. Our concept was straightforward: provide forgivable loans to small employers to help them maintain that vital connection with their employees, so that both could rebound and thrive once the pandemic passes. In some cases, that meant that a small business could retain an employee who, otherwise, would have been laid off. In others, it has meant that the small business could recall workers who had already been laid off. And in yet other cases, it allowed employers to continue to send paychecks to employees who had been furloughed so that we could keep that link between employers and their employees, so that when the reopening occurred, they could be reunited quickly and the business could get up and running much more rapidly. The response to this program has been phenomenal. Since its launch in early April, it has provided $518 billion in forgivable loans to 4.8 million small employers across the Nation. According to an ongoing U.S. Census Survey, nearly three out of every four small business respondents reported that they had received assistance under the PPP program. In Maine, nearly 27,000 small businesses have received forgivable loans, totaling more than $2.2 billion. Just to give you an idea of how much of a stimulus that is, that is equal to almost half of the entire State budget. That works out to an average loan size of $83,400, which translates into a small business with approximately seven employees. All told, this program is helping to sustain nearly 200,000 jobs in the State of Maine. As Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin testified last month: The [Paycheck Protection Program] is supporting the employment of approximately 50 million workers and more than 75 percent of small business payroll in all 50 states. This is an extraordinary achievement. It is, indeed. It has made such a difference to our small employers. It has kept our small businesses afloat, prevented them from giving up and shuttering their doors forever, and provided paychecks to their employees. When we first drafted this program in early March, we did not know how long government-ordered closures would last. In fact, most of them had not even gone into effect at the time that we drafted the law. We also did not know how severe the impacts of these government-ordered closures would be. We did not know how long the pandemic would last. How I wish that we could announce today that COVID-19 had been conquered; that America's small businesses were flourishing once again; and that the millions of jobs that they provide had been fully restored. Unfortunately, that is not the case, and we have a long road ahead of us. According to a survey released last week by NFIB, an organization that is dedicated to providing a voice for America's small businesses, half of its members anticipate needing additional financial support in the next 12 months. I fear that, if Congress fails to act, despite our good work to date, millions of our small businesses will be put at risk, and millions of jobs will be lost. A case study of how the pandemic has threatened the viability of small businesses can be found in Maine's tourism sector. Tourism is one of our State's largest economic sectors. It supports 110,000 jobs. That is one out of every six jobs in our State. In 2018, total tourism expenditures exceeded $6.2 billion. That is $7 million per day. In late March, there was the expectation that the 2020 tourism season would certainly be lower than the norm but active enough for the tourism businesses to survive. But, as the Fourth of July draws closer, near empty hotels, inns, B&Bs, and restaurants portend a long-lasting disaster, as many of our State's seasonal businesses rely on the busy summer season and fall season to pay their major bills for the year, including their mortgage and property taxes, not to mention their all-important employees. Two weeks ago, a Maine innkeeper in York County told me that her inn would normally have a 94-percent occupancy rate at this point in the summer. She currently has an occupancy rate of 6 percent. As one observer put it, the word ``Vacationland,'' which appears on our license plates in Maine, might well be replaced with ``Vacancy Land.'' I have heard from so many hotel owners throughout Maine, and their stories all have a familiar theme: Reservations made months ago for July and August are being canceled, and cancelations for the fall are also starting to come in. In addition to putting hotel staff at risk of losing their jobs, or having their hours cut drastically, or not being hired in the first place, the vendors that supply these establishments are losing sales. Local retailers and restaurants are losing summer customers. Planned improvements and expansions are being postponed, causing harm for local tradespeople. I talked to a restaurant owner who operates a wonderful restaurant in Portland. Right now, she has to depend on outside seating and lives in fear of a bad storm, where people won't be able to eat outside. Only slowly is Maine allowing in-restaurant eating to resume in the most populous parts of our State. All of us understand that we have to put the health of people first, but these restaurant owners are getting desperate, and they are trying very hard to comply with all the CDC regulations. There is no doubt that similar disruptions are occurring across the country. That is why it is so important that we reach bipartisan agreement to allow those small businesses that have been especially hard hit by the pandemic to receive an additional forgivable loan. As we continue our bipartisan negotiations on such a plan, I have come to the floor to outline some of my own priorities for a second Paycheck Protection Program loan. First, I do believe that we will achieve bipartisan agreement to allow the hardest hit small business employers--those who have seen their revenues decline by 50 percent or more in any quarter this year compared to the same quarter last year--to receive an additional PPP loan. This is absolutely essential to the ability of these businesses to survive as the fight against COVID-19 continues Second, because we must stretch the $130 billion that remains in the PPP funds as far as we possibly can, I support generally limiting eligibility to entities that have 300, rather than 500 or fewer, employees with a special provision for seasonal employers. Third, I believe that we need to expand forgivable PPP expenses in some commonsense ways. For example, we should allow forgiveness for supplier costs and investments in facility modifications and personal protective equipment that employers are buying to protect their employees and their customers, such as plexiglass shields, patio installations for outdoor dining, masks, gloves--that kind of equipment. It is especially important to restaurants facing dining restrictions and those struggling to get the high-quality food supply that they need. We should also clarify that employer-provided group health benefits are included in forgivable payroll costs. Fourth, we should extend the PPP to small 501(c)(6) organizations that are not lobby organizations. I am talking about local chambers of commerce, business leagues, economic development associations, and boards of trade, which are doing a great job but are struggling to themselves survive. Fifth, we should clarify in statute that forgivable loan funds can be spent through December 31 and allow borrowers to apply for loan forgiveness, at the time of their choosing, after 8 weeks from loan origination. Finally, to ensure transparency in the PPP loan program, we should require the Small Business Administration to comply with data and information requests from the Government Accountability Office or Federal inspectors general within 15 days. There are many other ideas that the four of us who are members of the Small Business Task Force are taking a look at, but today, I just wanted to outline for my colleagues some ideas that I am particularly interested in including in this bill. As the shutdowns have grown longer, it has become clear that millions of small employers need additional help if they are to keep their heads above water and survive. It also has been clear that many of these employers must make substantial investments to modify their operations, to protect their employees and customers, to mitigate the spread of the COVID virus. Most of all, we need to always keep in mind that we are talking about employees. It is the small businesses of our country that employ the majority of the people who are working. We are close to reaching a bipartisan agreement, and I know we are going to be working very hard over the recess to do so. I also know that, for small businesses that are struggling, such an agreement cannot come soon enough. Again, I want to thank my colleagues--Senator Marco Rubio, Senator Ben Cardin, Senator Jeanne Shaheen--for their dedication and good-faith efforts to reach an agreement. I yield the floor.

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I want to commend the Senator from Maryland, the ranking member on the Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee, for bringing this legislation forward this evening. I also want to commend my neighbor from New England, Senator Shaheen. Senator Cardin and Senator Shaheen, along with the chairman of the committee, Senator Rubio, and I crafted the Paycheck Protection Program that has literally been a lifeline to small businesses and their employees throughout this country. More than 4.8 million loans have been made under this program. These are forgivable loans. As long as the small business, the employer, uses the percentage that is established now at 60 percent in order to pay for his or her employees, then the loan, at the end of the day, is forgiven. This has made the difference between a small business shuttering its doors forever, laying off its employees permanently, and surviving this pandemic. Small businesses do not want to lay off their employees. Their employees are their family members, their friends, their neighbors. They are committed to them. They are committed to their communities. Through no fault of their own, the pandemic has led to government- issued orders that have closed businesses down or their customer base has simply dried up. As a result, these small businesses were facing extreme cashflow problems, with no liquidity, and were unable to keep their businesses going without the assistance from the PPP. I am proud of what we have been able to do. I know the difference that it has made in the State of Maine, where more than 26,000 small businesses--that is almost 75 percent of small businesses in our State--have received more than $2.2 billion worth of forgivable loans. That is equal to nearly half of the entire State budget for the State of Maine. Those forgivable loans have sustained paychecks for nearly 200,000 employees in my State. It has allowed small businesses to retain employees; it has allowed them to recall employees; and it has allowed them to send paychecks to employees who have been furloughed due to a lack of work. Most of all, it has kept that bond between the small business employer and his or her employees intact so that, as restrictions are lifted and as the economy reopens, the small business and its workforce can be quickly reunited. That benefits every community in this country. So I am very pleased that the legislation that we brought to the Senate floor under the leadership of Senator Cardin tonight has been approved so that we don't see an interruption in this program. I, too, understand the concerns raised by Senator Scott. In our negotiations on a phase 2 program of the PPP, we are looking at having a revenue test, and I think that is likely to be a provision included in the next stage of this program. But in the meantime, let us make sure that we continue our efforts to keep our small businesses alive and paychecks flowing to their employees. I look forward to continuing the negotiations with my colleagues. I want to thank Senator Cardin, Senator Shaheen, and Senator Rubio for their extraordinary leadership, and it has been a great pleasure to work with them on such a concrete program that has made literally the difference between going out of business and surviving this terrible pandemic. Let me end, as Senator Shaheen did, with a story of a small business in the tourism industry in my State. This is an innkeeper who has run an inn that has been in her husband's family for generations. In the month of June, usually--and last year--her occupancy rate is 94 percent. This June, it was 6 percent--6 percent. When I saw her, she told me that but for the Paycheck Protection Program, her business would not be in operation. She was able to keep all of her year-round staff employed because of the PPP. I think it is obvious that this business, like so many others, is going to need additional help to survive this pandemic. And that is what we must do. I yield the floor.

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I am pleased to join my colleagues in supporting the Great American Outdoors Act, a bill to provide full funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund and to address the deferred maintenance backlog for our national parks. Under the expert leadership of Senators Gardner, Manchin, and Daines, 59 bipartisan Senators have cosponsored this bill that will allow landowners, States, local communities, and conservation partners to plan for the future and to restore our national parks. More than 50 years ago, the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act established America's most successful conservation and outdoor recreation program. There is truly nothing else like it. The fund was designed to ensure that outdoor recreational lands would be secured for future generations. I remember, in one of my first years in the Senate, working with my colleague from Colorado, Senator and later Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar, as we sought to boost the funding for the stateside part of the program. If you look at a map of the United States and put a pin in every place where there was a Land and Water Conservation Fund stateside supported program, you would find that every single county in the country had at least one project. Oftentimes, people do not realize that local ballpark or the trails that run along a local stream or lake are the result of funding from the Land and Water Conservation Fund, and those are projects that are designed by local people, selected by local people, and then the Federal Government helps in the funding to acquire and maintain the land. Just last year, this important program was permanently authorized, and now we have the opportunity to ensure for the American people that this program will have consistent funding to play the strongest possible role in preserving open spaces, special lands, and revitalizing communities for years to come. Investments in this landmark conservation program support access to the outdoors for all Americans, as LWCF, as I have mentioned, has invested in literally every county in our country. Its funding has been used to open up key areas for hunting, fishing, and other recreational access; to support working forests and ranches and protect them from development; to acquire inholdings and protect critical lands in national parks, national wildlife refuges, national forests, Civil War battlefields, and other Federal areas; and, as I mentioned, my favorite part of the program, which is the stateside part of the program, which supports State and local projects, from ballparks to recreational trails. Over the past five decades, Maine has received more than $191 million in funding from LWCF. Examples of this funding include the Cold Stream Forest, a Forest Legacy Program project in Somerset County to preserve a beautiful area that continues the long and proud Maine tradition of conservation, public access to recreation, and working forests. In addition, we have the Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge in southern Maine, where a once-undeveloped 110-acre tract along the coast in Biddeford was preserved for natural habitat and expanded recreational access. Of the more than 850 Land and Water Conservation Fund sites in Maine, 650 are community-based projects, from Riverside Park in Fort Kent in northern Maine to Haley soccer fields in Kittery, right near the New Hampshire border. I want to repeat that statistic again. Out of the 850 Land and Water Conservation Fund sites in the State of Maine, 650 are community-based projects, like the park in Fort Kent that I mentioned and the soccer fields in Kittery. In its more than 50-year history, however, this program has been funded fully only twice at the authorized level of $900 million. I believe that Congress should fully fund this program to deliver on the promise that was made to the American people back in 1964 to take a portion of the proceeds from natural resource development, such as offshore oil drilling, and invest a portion in conservation and outdoor recreation. I do want to recognize two of my colleagues who have other ideas-- Senator Cassidy and Senator Whitehouse--for bringing up the issue of funding for coastal States. Representing a coastal State, I agree that we need to do more for our coastal States, and I support their efforts to ensure additional funding that can be directed to coastal States and coastal communities. I believe, however, that that issue, regrettably, is going to have to be dealt with at a later time, but I do support their effort. Furthermore, another important piece of this bill addresses our deferred maintenance backlog on our Nation's public lands. Now, what I am most interested in here is our national parks. Our national parks have a huge maintenance backlog, and that includes at Acadia National Park, a true gem of a park on the coast of Maine where we have seen record numbers of visitors in recent years. This bill will help Acadia National Park tackle the more than $60 million of maintenance backlog work--on trails, roads, bridges, buildings--to ensure that every visitor can experience the absolute beauty of this true gem of a national park on the Maine coastline. I would urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this important legislation I yield the floor.

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce legislation to allow nonprofit critical access hospitals (as defined by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services) that are undergoing Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganizations to apply for forgivable loans under the Paycheck Protection Program, if they are otherwise eligible. The language of my bill, the ``PPP Critical Access Hospitals Act,'' mirrors language originally introduced by Rep. Golden that was included in the House-passed ``HEROES Act.'' While hospitals are not prohibited from participating in the PPP, those that have previously or are currently under bankruptcy protection have been unable to access PPP funds, due to an interpretation of underlying Small Business Administration 7(a) program rules. While I recognize the importance of protecting taxpayer investments in the SBA 7(a) program, the PPP program, which I coauthored along with Senators Rubio, Cardin, and Shaheen, is by design largely forgivable when used for eligible expenditures. The hospitals that would benefit from this bill are critical infrastructure in the COVID-19 response effort, and many have experienced substantial increases in expenses associated with preparing for and responding to the pandemic. They simultaneously faced sharp declines in revenue associated with declining patient volumes due to the cancellation of routine and elective procedures, in order to protect public health and conserve limited supplies of Personal Protective Equipment, consistent with guidance from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. While these entities are few in number, they are vitally important to the communities they serve, both as frontline health care providers during this public health emergency and as anchor institutions that provide the paychecks and local economic stability that Congress intended the Paycheck Protection Program to preserve. These institutions need temporary financial assistance to weather sharp revenue decreases that have resulted from Federal and State instructions to cancel elective medical procedures as part of COVID-19 response preparedness. Expanding the PPP to include these key employers will allow them to keep their doors open until they can resume normal operations once pandemic-related disruptions to their operations have passed. Two institutions in Maine that would benefit from this bill are Penobscot Valley Hospital in Lincoln, and Calais Regional Hospital, in Calais. Both are in the midst of Chapter 11 proceedings, and both have suffered serious revenue shortfalls due to the cancellation or scaling back of elective procedures during the pandemic. The bill I am introducing today is carefully targeted to address a unique financial situation that frontline critical access hospitals face during this public health emergency. I urge my colleagues to support it.

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the Medicare Mental Health Inpatient Equity Act, legislation that eliminates Medicare's arbitrary 190-day lifetime cap on inpatient services in psychiatric hospitals. This change is long overdue given the steps that Congress has taken to improve coverage of mental health services. I am pleased to be joined by Senator Tina Smith (D-MN), who has been a champion for greater access to mental health care. Left untreated, mental illnesses are some of the most disabling and destructive illnesses afflicting Americans. Unfortunately, our current mental health system is fragmented, and family members with serious mental illness all too often lack access to the care that they need. That is why I have worked consistently and vigorously to improve mental health services across the lifespan. I was an original cosponsor of the Senator Paul Wellstone Mental Health Parity Act, a landmark law that generally prevents group health plans and health insurance issuers that provide mental health or substance use disorder benefits from imposing less favorable benefit limitations on those benefits than on medical and surgical benefits. I was a longtime supporter of the Excellence in Mental Health Act, which increased Americans' access to community mental health and substance use treatment services through the Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic (CCBHC). I have also worked with my colleagues Senator Durbin and Senator Portman to support greater residential treatment options by modifying Medicaid's restrictive Institute of Mental Disease exclusion as part of the Substance Use-Disorder Prevention that Promotes Opioid Recovery and Treatment for Patients and Communities Act (the ``SUPPORT Act''). As chairman of the Aging Committee, I also recognize that seniors have significant unmet mental health needs and that their Medicare coverage can be greatly improved. I was an original cosponsor of the Medicare Mental Health Copayment Equity Act, which was signed into law in 2008, that eliminated higher outpatient copayments for mental health services I have also recently re-introduced legislation with Senator Brown that would update the Medicare program by recognizing clinical psychologists as independent care providers, thus expanding mental health care options and access for Medicare beneficiaries. The legislation I am introducing today breaks down another barrier in Medicare, the 190-day lifetime cap on inpatient services in psychiatric hospitals. No other Medicare inpatient service has these types of arbitrary caps, which is why elimination of Medicare's lifetime cap was a recommendation of the 2016 White House Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Parity Task Force. I recognize that this cap was originally intended to limit the federal government's role in paying for long-term custodial support of the mentally ill. And no one wants to go back to the abusive days of long term institutionalization, which is why l have championed so many measures to help bolster community mental health resources. At the same time, keeping a cap on inpatient days at psychiatric hospitals-- particularly for patients who have been living with serious mental illness from a young age--undermines patient treatment options and can lead to disruptive transitions of care. Many general hospitals lack psychiatric capacity and there are countless examples across the country of psychiatric boarding in emergency departments. Skilled nursing facilities may not be best suited to provide the complex and specialized psychiatric care these beneficiaries need. Finally, too many patients find themselves receiving care in prisons. According to a 2019 Mathematica report commissioned by the Department of Health and Human Services, most fee-for-service Medicare beneficiaries who use inpatient psychiatric facilities have primary diagnoses of schizophrenia, major depressive disorder, and bipolar disorder, but Alzheimer's and related diagnoses are also common. We need to help patients with serious mental illness recover regardless of the setting where they are receiving care. The Medicare Mental Health Inpatient Equity Act is supported by a wide range of mental health groups, including the National Association of Behavioral Healthcare, the American Psychiatric Association, the American Psychological Association, and Mental Health America. I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I rise today at a time of great sorrow, anger, and fear for our Nation. We face the confluence of a health crisis, an economic depression, and a killing that laid bare the racial injustice that still taints our country. The horrific death of George Floyd in Minnesota was reprehensible. It was beyond a tragedy. It was a crime. As Americans, we all need to frankly acknowledge and work to resolve our longstanding, ongoing struggles with racial inequality. The President should help to heal the racial divisions in this country. It is at times like this that a President needs to speak to the Nation to pledge to right wrongs and to calm inflamed passions. The right to gather in protest of injustice is enshrined in our Constitution. The desire for reconciliation is in our national character. We must join together to ensure that the legacy of George Floyd is of progress, not deepening division and hatred. Let me be clear. The vast majority of our law enforcement officers are brave men and women devoted to protecting our families, our belongings, and our communities. They deserve our heartfelt gratitude as they willingly risk their lives for ours when danger strikes. In Maine, we are fortunate to have so many terrific professional law enforcement officers devoted to their duty and devoted to doing what is right. It is, however, imperative that we examine and act on the racial disparities in law enforcement where they occur. I cannot believe that George Floyd would have had his neck stepped on and the life squeezed out of him had he been White. Sadly, there are many other examples as well. I remember our own Senator Tim Scott describing his being stopped by a police officer while driving many times during one year, even though he was abiding by all the traffic laws. That is harassment and simply wrong. In confronting these problems, we would do well to heed the words of Congressman Lewis in response to the violence that overwhelmed peaceful protests in his city of Atlanta last weekend. Of course, we all know that the Congressman is a civil rights icon as well as an extraordinary Member of Congress. He said this: Justice has, indeed, been denied for far too long. Rioting, looting, and burning is not the way. Organize. Demonstrate. Sit-in. Stand-up. Vote. Be constructive, not destructive. History has proven time and again that non-violent, peaceful protest is the way to achieve the justice and equality that we all deserve. Those are powerful words from Congressman Lewis. Those are words that should motivate and guide all of us. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., once said: Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that. By continuing to listen to one another and being guided by the words of Congressman Lewis, Dr. Martin Luther King, and the mayor of Atlanta, we can work toward improving social justice and eliminating racial disparities in this country, and we can drive out the forces of bigotry. Thank you. I yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce, with my colleagues Senator Rubio, Cardin, and Shaheen, legislation to strengthen the Paycheck Protection Program, which has proven to be such an important lifeline to America's small businesses and their employees during this pandemic. Senators Rubio, Cardin, Shaheen, and I worked together as part of the Small Business Task Force to create this program during the development of the CARES Act 2 months ago. Since its launch in early April, this program has provided forgivable loans totaling more than $510 billion to approximately 4.3 million small employers across the country. The overwhelming majority of borrowers are very small employers. In phase 1 of the program, the average PPP loan size nationally was $206,000. That translates to an average employer size of just 18 employees. As more loans have been approved in phase 2, the average loan size nationally has dropped to $118,000, suggesting an average business size of about 10 employees. In Maine, the average loan size is even smaller, with borrowers having an estimated 12 employees in phase 1 and just three employees in phase 2. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, nearly two-thirds of the small businesses in Maine have benefited from PPP loans, and that is, I am pleased to say, among the highest rates in the Nation. In many ways, it is not a surprise. Maine is the State of small businesses. Ninety percent of all the Maine businesses are considered to be small businesses, and they employ approximately 60 percent of all the workers in our State. Overall, in Maine, the funds are sufficient to support approximately 200,000 jobs. Let's think about this. That means that a business that is seeing receipts go down, is in a cash flow problem, liquidity has dried up can still retain employees who otherwise would have been laid off. In more cases, it has allowed a business to call back furloughed employees. And even in cases where the business has been forced to close its doors because of government orders, it has kept alive the connection between the employer and his or her employees. That is so important because, as the economy does open back up, we want to make sure that link between the employer and the employees remains intact so that the workforce can come back to work as soon as possible It is important, as we discuss the economic data behind the PPP, to remember that these are real businesses with real people--people like Larry Geaghan, who owns and runs a craft brewery and pub in Bangor, ME. Larry calls the PPP a ``lifeline bill'' that has made all the difference in helping him to bring back 25 of his employees and reopen for takeout business. Another Maine borrower--the owner of a small marina--told me that the PPP was exactly what he needed at exactly the right time. With the PPP, this marina has been able to keep all of its employees on payroll, and because they weren't worried about whether they would have a paycheck, these employees continued spending as they normally would--exactly what our Maine economy needs. Another example of a small business helped by the PPP is the Frog & Turtle Gastro Pub in Westbrook, ME. This pub just completed an extensive renovation and is hoping to reopen June 1, the first day that sit-down dining service will be allowed again in the State of Maine. The owner of this pub wrote to me to say that the ``PPP program allowed us to bring back our 15 employees and sustain our business during these trying conditions,'' and that taking a PPP loan was the ``right decision'' for his employees and for his small restaurant. When we were initially developing the Paycheck Protection Program, we had no idea how long the pandemic would last. We did not know that there would be virtually universal economic shutdowns, nor did we know how each State would respond to outbreaks in their communities. The bipartisan bill that we are introducing today builds on the success of the PPP by providing small businesses with additional flexibility so that they can more effectively use these funds in conjunction with State reopening plans. And, again, I would remind my colleagues that when we were drafting the first version of this, it was before there were widespread orders shutting down restaurants and bars and retail establishments. Specifically, the Paycheck Protection Program Extension Act that we are introducing today would do the following: It would allow borrowers the flexibility to use their 8 weeks of funding at a point of their choosing within a 16-week period. Small businesses could choose the period that they believe works best to coincide with the reopening of their local economy. So some small businesses took the loans very early, thinking that the shutdowns would not last or that the pandemic would be on the way down by now, which it is in some States, thank goodness, but not in all. Well, this builds in more flexibility. You would have 16 weeks to use the loan funds instead of 8. Second, it extends the deadline to apply for a PPP loan from June 30 to December 31 of this year. Again, this reflects the fact that shutdowns lasted far longer in virtually every State than we anticipated when we were drafting the bill in March. Third, the bill would allow borrowers to use loan funds to purchase personal protective equipment for employees and to pay for adaptive investments needed to reopen safely. Adaptive investments could include modifications to a commercial property to comply with the social distancing regulations or guidelines from the CDC. It could mean creating or expanding a drive-through window service, erected physical barriers such as we see at the grocery stores now, those plexiglass barriers or sneeze guards. It could mean installing ventilation system upgrades or, as many restaurants have mentioned to me, they would like to add an outside patio for outdoor eating, which would allow them to maintain the same number of customers, which they can't do now, and abide by the social distancing guidelines. The bill would also clarify that the current lender hold-harmless provision relates to all Small Business Administration and Treasury guidance regarding PPP loans. A lender that in good faith followed Federal guidance related to PPP would not be later held liable if the guidance subsequently changed. I would like to give a shout-out to our small community banks and credit unions in the State of Maine. They have really stepped up to the plate for this program to serve the small businesses, small employers in our State, for the small nonprofits, and that has made a real difference to the employees of these establishments. And finally, the bill would clarify that borrowers who have maintained payroll for 8 weeks will not lose loan forgiveness due to the extension of the program to 16 weeks. Now, I would hope that that would be obvious, but we wanted to make sure that we were explicit. The Paycheck Protection Program is the single most critical stimulus program protecting Main Street America from the economic devastation of the measures taken to control the spread of COVID-19. The bill we are introducing today strengthens the PPP to reflect the evolving nature of this pandemic, the necessity of regulatory actions that have caused a great deal of economic harm but were necessary to prevent the spread of the virus, and I urge all of my colleagues to support this bill

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce, with my colleagues Senator Rubio, Cardin, and Shaheen, legislation to strengthen the Paycheck Protection Program, which has proven to be such an important lifeline to America's small businesses and their employees during this pandemic. Senators Rubio, Cardin, Shaheen, and I worked together as part of the Small Business Task Force to create this program during the development of the CARES Act 2 months ago. Since its launch in early April, this program has provided forgivable loans totaling more than $510 billion to approximately 4.3 million small employers across the country. The overwhelming majority of borrowers are very small employers. In phase 1 of the program, the average PPP loan size nationally was $206,000. That translates to an average employer size of just 18 employees. As more loans have been approved in phase 2, the average loan size nationally has dropped to $118,000, suggesting an average business size of about 10 employees. In Maine, the average loan size is even smaller, with borrowers having an estimated 12 employees in phase 1 and just three employees in phase 2. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, nearly two-thirds of the small businesses in Maine have benefited from PPP loans, and that is, I am pleased to say, among the highest rates in the Nation. In many ways, it is not a surprise. Maine is the State of small businesses. Ninety percent of all the Maine businesses are considered to be small businesses, and they employ approximately 60 percent of all the workers in our State. Overall, in Maine, the funds are sufficient to support approximately 200,000 jobs. Let's think about this. That means that a business that is seeing receipts go down, is in a cash flow problem, liquidity has dried up can still retain employees who otherwise would have been laid off. In more cases, it has allowed a business to call back furloughed employees. And even in cases where the business has been forced to close its doors because of government orders, it has kept alive the connection between the employer and his or her employees. That is so important because, as the economy does open back up, we want to make sure that link between the employer and the employees remains intact so that the workforce can come back to work as soon as possible It is important, as we discuss the economic data behind the PPP, to remember that these are real businesses with real people--people like Larry Geaghan, who owns and runs a craft brewery and pub in Bangor, ME. Larry calls the PPP a ``lifeline bill'' that has made all the difference in helping him to bring back 25 of his employees and reopen for takeout business. Another Maine borrower--the owner of a small marina--told me that the PPP was exactly what he needed at exactly the right time. With the PPP, this marina has been able to keep all of its employees on payroll, and because they weren't worried about whether they would have a paycheck, these employees continued spending as they normally would--exactly what our Maine economy needs. Another example of a small business helped by the PPP is the Frog & Turtle Gastro Pub in Westbrook, ME. This pub just completed an extensive renovation and is hoping to reopen June 1, the first day that sit-down dining service will be allowed again in the State of Maine. The owner of this pub wrote to me to say that the ``PPP program allowed us to bring back our 15 employees and sustain our business during these trying conditions,'' and that taking a PPP loan was the ``right decision'' for his employees and for his small restaurant. When we were initially developing the Paycheck Protection Program, we had no idea how long the pandemic would last. We did not know that there would be virtually universal economic shutdowns, nor did we know how each State would respond to outbreaks in their communities. The bipartisan bill that we are introducing today builds on the success of the PPP by providing small businesses with additional flexibility so that they can more effectively use these funds in conjunction with State reopening plans. And, again, I would remind my colleagues that when we were drafting the first version of this, it was before there were widespread orders shutting down restaurants and bars and retail establishments. Specifically, the Paycheck Protection Program Extension Act that we are introducing today would do the following: It would allow borrowers the flexibility to use their 8 weeks of funding at a point of their choosing within a 16-week period. Small businesses could choose the period that they believe works best to coincide with the reopening of their local economy. So some small businesses took the loans very early, thinking that the shutdowns would not last or that the pandemic would be on the way down by now, which it is in some States, thank goodness, but not in all. Well, this builds in more flexibility. You would have 16 weeks to use the loan funds instead of 8. Second, it extends the deadline to apply for a PPP loan from June 30 to December 31 of this year. Again, this reflects the fact that shutdowns lasted far longer in virtually every State than we anticipated when we were drafting the bill in March. Third, the bill would allow borrowers to use loan funds to purchase personal protective equipment for employees and to pay for adaptive investments needed to reopen safely. Adaptive investments could include modifications to a commercial property to comply with the social distancing regulations or guidelines from the CDC. It could mean creating or expanding a drive-through window service, erected physical barriers such as we see at the grocery stores now, those plexiglass barriers or sneeze guards. It could mean installing ventilation system upgrades or, as many restaurants have mentioned to me, they would like to add an outside patio for outdoor eating, which would allow them to maintain the same number of customers, which they can't do now, and abide by the social distancing guidelines. The bill would also clarify that the current lender hold-harmless provision relates to all Small Business Administration and Treasury guidance regarding PPP loans. A lender that in good faith followed Federal guidance related to PPP would not be later held liable if the guidance subsequently changed. I would like to give a shout-out to our small community banks and credit unions in the State of Maine. They have really stepped up to the plate for this program to serve the small businesses, small employers in our State, for the small nonprofits, and that has made a real difference to the employees of these establishments. And finally, the bill would clarify that borrowers who have maintained payroll for 8 weeks will not lose loan forgiveness due to the extension of the program to 16 weeks. Now, I would hope that that would be obvious, but we wanted to make sure that we were explicit. The Paycheck Protection Program is the single most critical stimulus program protecting Main Street America from the economic devastation of the measures taken to control the spread of COVID-19. The bill we are introducing today strengthens the PPP to reflect the evolving nature of this pandemic, the necessity of regulatory actions that have caused a great deal of economic harm but were necessary to prevent the spread of the virus, and I urge all of my colleagues to support this bill

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. Madam President, I am pleased to be a cosponsor of the SMART Act, and I want to commend Senator Menendez and Senator Cassidy for their tremendous leadership. Our bill would help offset the collapse of State and local revenues resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. The coronavirus has already claimed the lives of more than 90,000 Americans. As the virus damages our health and deprives us of our loved ones, it has also devastated our communities and our economy. As of last week, nearly 20 percent of Maine's total civilian workforce had filed for unemployment. The tourism sector has been particularly hard hit, and this is so important to my State. But the fact is that no industrial sector has been immune from this disease. Restaurants and hotels in southern Maine face uncertainty, not knowing when or even if they will ever reopen. As a result of having to cancel nonessential surgeries, many hospitals are struggling to stay open. Lobstermen and fishermen have lost major markets. Potato farmers may be unable to sell more than $22 million worth of their 2019 crop. The motor coach industry has been devastated. In short, working families and communities across the State of Maine have been hit hard. Moody's forecasts that Maine may face one of the worst impacts in the entire country in terms of lost revenues. Eighty-five percent of Maine's State revenues are from income and sales taxes. They have plummeted. Gas tax revenues have tanked. These projected shortfalls threaten vital State and local services. One in six Mainers is employed in the public sector. These are the individuals who keep our communities and our citizens safe: the police officers, the firefighters, the EMS personnel. They provide healthcare and education. They maintain our roads and our bridges. When I visited the Orono Fire Department recently to deliver some much needed masks, the town manager told me that the decline in excise taxes has been devastating for this town. Maine communities tell me that they will have no choice but to either increase property taxes, at the worst possible time for working families, or eliminate first responder jobs and slash education funding if they do not receive help. The SMART Act would help to avoid the worst of these consequences by providing $500 billion in Federal relief to State, local, and Tribal governments. Unlike the CARES Act, where only big cities were eligible for assistance, under our bill every county and every community would be eligible for funding. Maine would receive at least $2 billion, including about $330 million for counties and $330 million for communities. And the $1.25 billion that we already appropriated for assistance to State governments under the CARES Act would be made much more flexible so it could be used to offset these dramatic revenue shortfalls. The fallout from the coronavirus is unprecedented. Congress has a tremendous responsibility to help mitigate the impact of this crisis on our States and our local communities and on the families they serve. We must not wait. We should act now. Thank you.

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, throughout America, we set aside Memorial Day to honor those who gave their all for all of us, but this Memorial Day will be very different from those we have celebrated in the past, as we honor our veterans. This Memorial Day, there will be no big parades and no formal ceremonies at State veterans cemeteries. In Bangor, ME, where I live, each year there is a fabulous Memorial Day parade in which veterans from all conflicts and all eras march down Main Street, often with walking sticks that were provided by one of Maine's greatest veterans, Galen Cole, who passed away recently, a World War II veteran who made a pledge that he would always honor our veterans. But despite the absence of big parades and big celebrations of fireworks this year, we should still take the time to honor those who have worn the uniform of our country. From America's founding to our time, the men and women of our Armed Forces have written the history of our freedom. From generation to generation, they add new and inspiring chapters of valor, devotion to duty, and sacrifice. As we honor the fallen, we also honor those who served and returned home and those who serve today, joined together, as we grieve for their fallen comrades. We also thank the families--the husbands, wives, sons and daughters, brothers and sisters, mothers and fathers--who endure the grief that is part of freedom's price. It is significant that a day dedicated to the deepest of human emotions--grief, remembrance, and gratitude--began not by decree from any high authority but in the hearts of everyday people. As the Civil War ravaged the countryside and took on an ever greater and more ghastly toll, widows and grieving mothers on both sides of the conflict began placing wild flowers on the graves of the soldiers, regardless of uniform, who fell in their fields and forests. From those humble beginnings, we have remained true to Memorial Day's original spirit. Memorial Day is a national observance. Yet it remains deeply personal for each of us. For me, it brings back a cherished memory from my early childhood. My father was a World War II veteran who was wounded twice in the Battle of the Bulge. He taught me to honor our veterans and our flag, and each year, as I was growing up, he would take me to the Memorial Day parade in our hometown of Caribou, ME. He would perch me high on his shoulders and there, from the best vantage point, I could see our veterans march by and our flag go by. Memorial Day is all about remembrance. It is also about our resolve to uphold the values that inspire the sacrifice we honor today. This was best articulated in what many regard as the first and finest Memorial Day speech. It was not given on a warm May morning but on a chilly November afternoon, in a place called Gettysburg. These are the words of President Abraham Lincoln: ``That from these honored dead, we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion.'' May those who have fallen rest in peace. May we always remember them this Memorial Day and forever, and may God bless the United States of America.

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I rise to introduce the Promoting Alzheimer's Awareness to Prevent Elder Abuse Act. I am pleased to be joined by my colleagues, Senators Menendez and Grassley, in sponsoring this legislation that seeks to help combat elder abuse perpetrated against those living with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias. An estimated 5.8 million Americans aged 65 and older currently live with Alzheimer's disease. This disease takes a tremendous personal and economic toll on individuals and their families, and the COVID-19 crisis has made many of the challenges they face even more difficult. People living with Alzheimer's and related dementias make up a large proportion of all older Americans who receive adult day services and nursing home care, making them among those most vulnerable to COVID-19. Many of the public health and safety measures put in place to control the spread of COVID-19, including social distancing, also may contribute to social isolation, which is one of the greatest risk factors for elder abuse. This crisis has also given rise to a number of COVID-19-related scams seeking to financially exploit Americans of all ages, including seniors. Individuals with Alzheimer's are at greater risk for elder abuse. According to the National Center on Elder Abuse, approximately one in ten Americans aged 60 and older have experienced elder abuse. For people with Alzheimer's and related dementias, the prevalence is much higher, with some estimates putting it at just over 50 percent. This abuse can take a number of forms. In 2015, the Aging Committee heard from Philip Marshall, the grandson of philanthropist Brooke Astor, who testified that his father neglected his mother's health and safety and mismanaged her assets while she suffered from Alzheimer's disease. More recently, a constituent called the Aging Committee Fraud Hotline after she discovered a contracting scam targeting her aunt and uncle. These scammers repeatedly charged her aunt and uncle, who both have dementia, for the same driveway sealing services and other handyman tasks, stealing $34,000 of their hard-earned savings. Identifying, investigating, and prosecuting elder abuse cases often involve several challenges. Victims may not be able to report the abuse they are experiencing, and prosecutors may need to prove the case without the victim's testimony. When elder abuse victims or witnesses have Alzheimer's or related dementia, these challenges can be exacerbated. Specialized knowledge and training can help address the issues of abuse and fraud. The Elder Abuse Prevention and Prosecution Act, which became law in 2017, required the Department of Justice to develop training materials to help criminal justice, social services, and health care personnel investigate elder abuse cases and assess, respond to, and interact with the victims and witnesses in these cases. The legislation I am introducing today would build on this law by requiring the Department to ensure that these elder abuse training materials incorporate best practices for responding to elder abuse victims and witnesses who have Alzheimer's or other related dementias. This legislation would also require the Department to consult with federal, state, and local partners and stakeholders in developing its elder justice training materials and to update these training materials to reflect new best practices. As Chairman of the Senate Aging Committee, one of my top priorities is protecting seniors against abuse. The Promoting Alzheimer's Awareness to Prevent Elder Abuse Act would help to ensure that the frontline professionals who are leading the charge against elder abuse have the training needed to respond to cases where the victim or a witness has Alzheimer's disease or other forms of dementia. I urge my colleagues to support this bill. Thank you, Mr. President.

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I rise to introduce the Promoting Alzheimer's Awareness to Prevent Elder Abuse Act. I am pleased to be joined by my colleagues, Senators Menendez and Grassley, in sponsoring this legislation that seeks to help combat elder abuse perpetrated against those living with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias. An estimated 5.8 million Americans aged 65 and older currently live with Alzheimer's disease. This disease takes a tremendous personal and economic toll on individuals and their families, and the COVID-19 crisis has made many of the challenges they face even more difficult. People living with Alzheimer's and related dementias make up a large proportion of all older Americans who receive adult day services and nursing home care, making them among those most vulnerable to COVID-19. Many of the public health and safety measures put in place to control the spread of COVID-19, including social distancing, also may contribute to social isolation, which is one of the greatest risk factors for elder abuse. This crisis has also given rise to a number of COVID-19-related scams seeking to financially exploit Americans of all ages, including seniors. Individuals with Alzheimer's are at greater risk for elder abuse. According to the National Center on Elder Abuse, approximately one in ten Americans aged 60 and older have experienced elder abuse. For people with Alzheimer's and related dementias, the prevalence is much higher, with some estimates putting it at just over 50 percent. This abuse can take a number of forms. In 2015, the Aging Committee heard from Philip Marshall, the grandson of philanthropist Brooke Astor, who testified that his father neglected his mother's health and safety and mismanaged her assets while she suffered from Alzheimer's disease. More recently, a constituent called the Aging Committee Fraud Hotline after she discovered a contracting scam targeting her aunt and uncle. These scammers repeatedly charged her aunt and uncle, who both have dementia, for the same driveway sealing services and other handyman tasks, stealing $34,000 of their hard-earned savings. Identifying, investigating, and prosecuting elder abuse cases often involve several challenges. Victims may not be able to report the abuse they are experiencing, and prosecutors may need to prove the case without the victim's testimony. When elder abuse victims or witnesses have Alzheimer's or related dementia, these challenges can be exacerbated. Specialized knowledge and training can help address the issues of abuse and fraud. The Elder Abuse Prevention and Prosecution Act, which became law in 2017, required the Department of Justice to develop training materials to help criminal justice, social services, and health care personnel investigate elder abuse cases and assess, respond to, and interact with the victims and witnesses in these cases. The legislation I am introducing today would build on this law by requiring the Department to ensure that these elder abuse training materials incorporate best practices for responding to elder abuse victims and witnesses who have Alzheimer's or other related dementias. This legislation would also require the Department to consult with federal, state, and local partners and stakeholders in developing its elder justice training materials and to update these training materials to reflect new best practices. As Chairman of the Senate Aging Committee, one of my top priorities is protecting seniors against abuse. The Promoting Alzheimer's Awareness to Prevent Elder Abuse Act would help to ensure that the frontline professionals who are leading the charge against elder abuse have the training needed to respond to cases where the victim or a witness has Alzheimer's disease or other forms of dementia. I urge my colleagues to support this bill. Thank you, Mr. President.

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I see that the Senator from Maryland is on the floor, and I think he arrived a minute or two before me, so if he would like to go first, I would want to give him that opportunity.

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, all across the country, Americans are stepping up in response to the coronavirus pandemic sweeping our Nation. Doctors and nurses are working endless hours and putting themselves at risk to care for the surge in patients. Manufacturers, including many companies in my State, are working overtime and retooling their product lines to produce medical testing swabs, ventilators, and personal protective equipment, all of which are vitally needed. Truckers are going above and beyond, missing time with their families so that they can deliver goods needed to restock depleted grocery shelves. People are looking out for their neighbors in a safe way. They are checking on them. They are making personal sacrifices to help prevent the virus from spreading to the most vulnerable members of our society. Help is on the horizon for small businesses and their employees who are facing economic devastation through no fault of their own. I have talked to small business owners all across our State, including small mom-and-pop operations like a third-generation diner operated and owned by the Simones family in Lewiston, ME. For the first time ever in three generations, they have had to close their doors. They had no choice. As Linda Simones told me in tears earlier this week: We have never been unemployed. Our son is unemployed. Our friends who have worked with us at this diner for years are unemployed. The agreement finally reached today includes a $377 billion small business economic relief plan that Senators Rubio, Cardin, Shaheen, and I authored as members of the Small Business Task Force. It is intended to help workers and small businesses just like the one owned by the Simones family in Lewiston. Our group worked day and night to get this bipartisan package included in the broader legislation. I want to do a shout-out to our staff because I don't think they have been to bed before 4 a.m. in the morning on any day in the last week. That is how hard they have worked too. Under our bipartisan approach, small businesses would be eligible for a 100-percent federally guaranteed emergency loan to cover 8 weeks of payroll, as well as certain expenses like rent, mortgage payments, and utilities. If these businesses keep their employees on the payroll--in other words, they keep issuing those paychecks--their loans would be completely forgiven. Here is how it would work. Small employers with 500 employees or fewer would be eligible to apply for these federally guaranteed loans. The loans would be available immediately through existing Small Business Administration-certified lenders, including certain banks, credit unions, and other financial institutions, and a streamlined process would be created to bring other additional lenders into the program. The size of the loans would be tied to a formula based on the small business's average monthly payroll, and that would go back to February 15 since that is when the coronavirus really started to come to our country and have an impact. The maximum loan amount would be $10 million. As long as these small businesses retain their employees and issue those paychecks--which, keep in mind, also means in many cases that those employees will get their health insurance as well--the portion of the loan used to cover payroll and mortgage interest, rent, and utility payments would also be forgiven. Furthermore--and this is important to States like those of the Presiding Officer's and mine that have large numbers of tourists coming each year--employers with tipped employees would receive forgiveness for the additional wages paid to such employees. In addition, I want to point out that workers who already lost their jobs due to this crisis can be rehired and paid under our program, and that should be our goal. Mr. President, this vital assistance cannot come a moment too soon. There are so many small businesses that have already shut down or are on the verge of doing so. They are trying to hang on just a little longer to avoid laying off their employees, who are like members of their own family. In fact, in many cases, they were members of their own family. Without this package, we face an unemployment tsunami that could reach as high as 20 percent, according to the Secretary of the Treasury. Not only would this cause tremendous harm to millions of families, but it would also take a massive toll on the Federal budget, far exceeding the $377 billion that we are using for this small business assistance program to keep workers paid and employed. What we want is to make sure that those small businesses survive, that they are here when we transcend this crisis, and that their employees are still able to go back to work for them. We don't want to break that link, that connection. We don't want those small businesses to give up and shutter their doors forever, decimating our downtowns and causing permanent job loss for the workers who are so much a part of their business. Larger businesses that are facing cash flow issues would be eligible for certain loans so they can avoid laying off their workers. However, unlike the small business assistance program, where they would have their loans forgiven as long as they keep their workers employed, the larger businesses would be required to repay these loans in full. I want to make clear that these large businesses would be barred from stock buybacks and increasing executive pay for the duration of the loan, and I fully support those restrictions. Of course, many of those small businesses don't have shareholders, so the idea of a stock buyback doesn't exist. Some of them that are subchapter S may, but many of them do not. I am also pleased to say that we would cover the sole proprietor, the independent contractor--those many individuals whom we rely upon to make our economy work. Following my advocacy, along with Members from other coastal States, I am also pleased that the bill includes $300 million to assist workers and businesses in our Nation's fisheries, which support thousands of jobs in the great State of Maine. With this legislation, harvesters, fishing communities, agriculture operations, and other fishery-related businesses would be eligible for this $300 million in assistance, which may include some direct relief payments. This helps protect our food supply chain. This targeted relief will help ensure that the families in coastal communities who depend on our fisheries can emerge from this crisis. Similar assistance is provided to our farmers as well. This bill also provides more than $30 billion for States, school districts, colleges, and universities to help them meet the unexpected expenses that have flowed from the coronavirus crisis. Our K-12 schools will have access to $13.5 billion, which will help them support remote learning and meeting the needs of their students. I want to take a moment to recognize the dedication of those teachers, administrators, school food-service workers, and bus drivers who are not only making sure that students have access to remote learning but are making sure that students have access to meals offsite. This bill provides funding to help them provide those meals in creative but, unfortunately, more costly ways, such as delivering prepackaged meals along bus routes or directly to students in their homes so that they won't be hungry. We all know how important the School Breakfast and School Lunch Programs are to our low-income families. When colleges and universities made the very tough decision to send students home for the semester, I spoke with several presidents in Maine, and they told me about the steps they were taking to make sure that their students could still receive a quality education, albeit online or remotely. They were also taking steps--as well they should-- to reimburse students and their families for room and board and for shortened travel study programs. They are investing in the software and hardware infrastructures to bring classes online quickly. They are doing even more than that. The University of Maine, for example, has partnered with the State to prepare its dorms and its facilities for emergency uses, if necessary. So the direct aid to colleges and universities is needed to help these institutions offset these sudden revenue losses and unexpected costs. There is also temporary flexibility applied to student aid and to student loans that also will be very helpful. This agreement is not only a lifeline for workers, small businesses, and schools, it builds on the previous two packages that Congress has passed to promote the health and safety of Americans. It makes substantial investment in our Nation's health system, biomedical research, and education, including a $130 billion infusion for our hospitals and healthcare providers who are struggling to cope with this influx of patients. It provides $20 billion for additional resources for veterans' healthcare. It authorizes an $11 billion catalyst toward the development of an effective vaccine and therapeutics. It provides $1 billion for community services block grants to support critical social service programs for millions of low-income individuals. It gives the Centers for Disease Control additional funding to enhance its vital work. It assists communities responding to greater demands for services with an increase of $5 billion for community development block grants. That comes from the subcommittee that I chair. It helps with transit systems. There is widespread help for those who are homeless or who are among the most vulnerable in our population. It strengthens the low-income home heating assistance program. That is something Senator Jack Reed and I have long worked together on. We don't want families and seniors making impossible choices between heating their homes and buying food or medicine. This package also contains two additional pieces of legislation that I have introduced and championed. First, it contains provisions from the Mitigating Emergency Drug Shortages, or MEDS, Act--legislation I authored that would help prevent a shortage of vital medication. I was shocked to learn that 72 percent of the facilities that make vital active pharmaceutical ingredients for our market here in America are located overseas. Thirteen percent of these facilities are in China. We just can't have that. We need far greater visibility into that supply system. It also contains a bill I have long advocated for--the Home Health Care Planning Improvement Act. It will allow nurse practitioners, physician assistants, and others to certify patients as needing home health services. Now it is just a physician who can do it even though the physician might not be the primary care provider, particularly in rural areas. That will remove needless delays in getting Medicare patients the home healthcare that they need. That is a critical improvement at a time when our healthcare system is being put to the test and when people are being told they need to stay in their own homes to avoid spreading the virus. The list of benefits that will be felt in communities across the country goes on and on. It is imperative that we pass this bill tonight. Every day, more small businesses are forced to close their doors. Every day, Americans are losing their jobs and their income. Every day, medical professionals are increasingly overwhelmed by the exponential rise in cases. (Mrs. LOEFFLER assumes the chair.) The package we are voting to advance tonight will bolster our healthcare system, infuse funds into biomedical research that will ultimately produce a vaccine and effective treatments, shore up our economy and our businesses, support those who are unemployed, strengthen the link between employers and their employees, save millions of jobs of those employed by small businesses, and help prevent a devastating recession, perhaps even a depression, in this country. Let us not squander this momentum when we are so close to getting this done for the American people. I urge my colleagues to join me in passing this critical legislation. I yield the floor.

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the quorum call be dispensed with.

Ms. COLLINS. This is unbelievable.

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, we are in the midst of a crisis in our country--a crisis caused by the coronavirus. I cannot believe that the answer to this crisis from our friends on the other side of the aisle, as we move to address the economic consequences that are so severe for the people of this country, is delay, delay, delay; no sense of urgency; no hurry. I will tell you, I have had the honor to serve in this body for many years. Never--never--have I seen Republicans and Democrats fail to come together when confronted with a crisis. We did so after 9/11. We did so with the financial meltdown in 2008. Here, we are facing an enemy that is invisible but equally devastating to the health of our people and to the health of our economy. Yet, unbelievably, the Democratic leader objected to my even being able to speak this morning. Is that what we have come to? The Democratic leader objected to our convening at 9 o'clock this morning so that we could begin working in earnest. Is that what we have come to? The fact is, we have been working on a bipartisan effort through task force, with both Republicans and Democrats, making very good progress and putting together a comprehensive package--the third package we have dealt with. This one is to address and prevent the economic devastation that is being caused by this virus. We don't have another day. We don't have another hour. We don't have another minute to delay acting. I have talked with businesses all over my State--small mom-and-pop businesses, like a diner, a third- generation diner operated by the Simones family in Lewiston, ME. For the first time ever, they have had to close their doors. As Linda Simones told me through tears yesterday: This is the first time ever we have been unemployed. Our son is unemployed. Our friends who have worked with us at this diner for years are unemployed. We have a very good plan that we worked on in a bipartisan way-- Senator Marco Rubio and I on the Republican side and Senators Ben Cardin and Jeanne Shaheen, in very good faith, on the Democratic side-- that would help these small businesses and keep their employees paid. It would keep their employees getting paychecks. How can that possibly be controversial? How can any of us want to see millions of Americans lose their paychecks, their health insurance, their contributions to their retirement plans? We have a package that is part of this broader legislation. As the majority leader pointed out just yesterday, had we invoked cloture, that is not the end of the process. There still could have been 30 hours for us to refine this package. Keep in mind that every single one of these task forces have been bipartisan. Do we agree on everything? Of course not, but surely, surely, in this time of extreme crisis for our country--when people are getting sick, when people are dying from the coronavirus, when we are facing unemployment rates which could go as high as 20 percent, according to the Treasury Secretary--surely, we ought to be able to pull together and work quickly to respond to the needs of the American people. I cannot believe the objections to proceeding to this package. Is this package perfect? No. That is why negotiations are still going on. Don't we want to act quickly to provide relief to the American workers? This is disgraceful. We do not have time. Time is not on our side. Let's get the job done for the American people.