News Corona crisis
Largest US companies appropriate most aid
The support package that US President Donald Trump has prepared for farmers struggling during the corona crisis is reportedly not being distributed evenly. Most of the available financing goes to the large companies, many small companies are not eligible for subsidy.
The $16 billion in direct payments from the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program will not be distributed evenly, NBC News reports. The vast majority of available funding goes to the larger companies, while the smaller companies receive only minimal support.
When looking at company size, the 10% largest companies receive about 60% of the total available financing. In fact, the top (1% of aid recipients) claimed more than 20% of the funding. The top 10% of companies each received an average of nearly $95.000 in funding.
The smallest companies, the bottom 10%, claim only 0,26% of the available support. They were each awarded an average of only $300 in funding. It seems that many farmers struggling to keep their businesses running are still not eligible for the fund.
Maximum of $250.000
The payment limit per company is initially set at $250.000. However, due to a loophole, there are companies that have received higher amounts. For companies structured as general partnerships, there is actually no payment limit.
For example, companies with more than 1 shareholder could receive higher amounts if all shareholders worked more than 400 hours in the company. For each shareholder who works more than 400 hours, a grant of $250.000 could be received. For example, some companies have even been able to receive more than $1.000.000.
Deadline
The deadline for subscribing the fund has been postponed. Earlier it was announced that the deadline for aid applications for British dairy farmers was extended due to the low number of grant applications. The United States Department of Agriculture has also extended the deadline to September 11. For example, the ministry wants to give smaller companies more opportunity to apply for aid.
Chanti Oussoren
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