Rep. Marshall Says Liability Protection, Unemployment Insurance Top Two Issues
As part of NFIB’s Virtual Fly-In, Kansas Rep. Roger Marshall promised to help Kansas small business owners by pushing through important reforms during this unprecedented time. Rep. Marshall told NFIB members that liability protection and changing unemployment insurance are what he’s focusing on.
After one member shared her story about how the $600/week federal unemployment insurance was keeping Kansans at home because they were making more money there than going back to work, Rep. Marshall told NFIB members that he’s working on a compromise to get that number down. Marshall said he’s told Speaker Pelosi that $25/hour in Kansas is well above what most Kansans make at work and it’s preventing a lot of people from returning to their jobs.
“Small businesses across Kansas have faced the challenges of this pandemic head on, but as this health crisis continues many are still in need of support,” said Congressman Roger Marshall, M.D. “I appreciate NFIB’s continued support for small businesses and advocacy on their behalf. Conversations like the one they facilitated on Tuesday are vitally important as we continue to respond to the needs of businesses in future coronavirus response packages.”
Rep. Marshall also told NFIB members that closer to home in Kansas, he’s pushing for more flexibility with how the federal money that was given to Kansas for the COVID-19 response is used, saying he’d like more of the $1.25 billion allocated to the state to go to funding for Main Street small business owners and to help get kids back to school safely.
As for the Paycheck Protection Program, Rep. Marshall called it the most success federal program he’s ever seen, saying it saved 500,000 jobs in Kansas. After one Kansas member expressed frustration about the complexities of applying for forgiveness for the PPP, Rep. Marshall acknowledged his struggles and said one of the things he’s working on moving forward is total forgiveness for anyone that has a loan under $150,000.
Rep. Marshall left NFIB members with a message of hope, telling them that we are winning the war on COVID-19. He stressed that our country has the best healthcare in the world and expressed hope that we would have a vaccine by the end of the year. Finally, Rep. Marshall stressed that he sees a light at the end of the tunnel, saying the if we work together we can get through this and get not only Kansas – but the entire country’s economy back to where it should be.
