Nearly 60,000 Ohio businesses won $14B in paycheck protection loans

Nearly 60,000 small businesses in Ohio were approved for more than $14 billion in very popular Paycheck Protection Program federal loans, according to the latest Small Business Administration numbers.

In all, 59,800 Ohio small businesses were approved for $14,108,889,927 in loans. The federal loans are to be forgiven to businesses to the extent that they retain workers during the COVID-19 shut-downs and social distancing measures.

For those lucky enough to land the loans, nationally, the average loan size was about $206,000.

The largest industry to receive loans, in terms of dollars approved, was construction, followed by businesses in the professional, scientific and technical services industry, then manufacturing. Health care and social assistance, followed by food services, rounded out the top five industries to be approved for the loans, according to SBA data.

It look less than two weeks for the program’s $349 billion to be exhausted. Congress is stalemated over how to replenish the program, with both parties blaming the other for failing to do that so far. And many small businesses were left out in various ways, with independent contractors and self-employed people not even able to apply until April 10.Some 1.6 million PPP loans were extended as of April 16, according to the government. About three-quarters of the loans were for $150,000 and less.