Formerly incarcerated business owners are shut out from PPP funds
We’ve written about formerly incarcerated people who open their own food businesses, because it’s nearly impossible for them to find jobs elsewhere. Many employers simply won’t accept applications from people with criminal backgrounds. Now these people are being shut out again. The Intercept reports the Small Business Administration refuses to issue Paycheck Protection Program loans to any business owner who has been convicted of a felony in the last five years, anyone on probation or parole, or even to anyone who’s been charged and is awaiting trial. In the criminal justice system, that latter group is presumed innocent until proven guilty—but not, evidently, in the world of small business.
