The Internal Revenue Service yesterday launched a second online tool that enables consumers who have previously filed a tax return to check the status of their economic impact payment. Using the Get My Payment tool—available at IRS.gov—consumers can see the date their payment is scheduled to be deposited in their bank account or mailed to them and provide their bank account information to receive direct deposit if it is not currently on file with the IRS.

Taxpayers accessing the secure site will be asked to provide their Social Security number, date of birth and the mailing address used on their tax return. Taxpayers who need to add their bank account information will also need to provide their adjusted gross income for their most recent tax return submitted, the refund or amount owed from their last filed tax return, their bank account type, account and routing numbers.

The $349 billion authorized for Paycheck Protection Program loans has been exhausted, the Small Business Administration said today, and the SBA is no longer accepting applications for PPP loans. Loan applications received by banks but not yet submitted to SBA will not be able to be completed, and the agency will not maintain a queue for PPP applications once additional funds are authorized. Any loan applications that have received an SBA authorization number will receive an SBA guaranty.

South Dakota banks have made 7,986 Paycheck Protection Program loans totaling almost $1.2 billion. Thank you to all of the bankers who have burned the midnight oil in support of small business owners and their employees!

The SDBA is seeking bankers to serve on four standing committees and two work groups for 2020-2021: Agricultural Credit, Credit Card, Legislative and Trust committees and Education and Technology work groups. Terms are one year beginning May 1, 2020, and ending April 30, 2021, except for the Legislative Committee which is a three-year term. Legislative committee members can serve two, consecutive three-year terms.

As banks manage the risks associated with physical transmission of the coronavirus, ABA SVP Paul Benda has authored a paper summarizing the current science on the risk of transmission through contaminated surfaces, such as ATM keypads and U.S. currency.

As the coronavirus pandemic continues, banks must ensure that their balance sheet is positioned to face liquidity challenges that could arise. In a webinar Thursday, April 9, at noon CDT—the latest of several ABA has produced on the coronavirus in recent weeks—bankers will hear insights from Keith Reagan, managing director of Darling Consulting Group, on liquidity risk modeling and analytics.

Also participating in the webinar will be Laura Lipscomb, assistant director of the Federal Reserve's Division of Monetary Affairs, who will explain the liquidity tools available through the Fed discount window. The presentations will address strengthening the bank’s core liquidity position; monitoring early warning and key performance indicators; developing a thoughtful framework for forecasting and stress testing during the pandemic; contingency funding plans; and setting up borrowing agreements and placing collateral with the Federal Reserve Banks.

The webinar will be recorded, and members will be able to access the recording on Friday. Register now. Bankers can also find recordings of previous webinars, as well as the latest updates on the coronavirus pandemic, at aba.com/coronavirus. Register for the webinar.

The Treasury Department yesterday updated its frequently asked questions on the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program to address several questions raised by ABA and member banks. Bankers should bookmark the Treasury FAQs, which will be regularly updated as Treasury addresses questions.

Among other topics, the newly added answers clarify:

• That lenders may rely on borrower certifications as to the applicability of affiliation rules.
• That lenders do not need to re-verify beneficial ownership information for existing customers. (If participating depository institutions have not yet collected beneficial ownership information on existing customers, they are not required to do so for those customers applying for PPP loans.)
• How payroll is defined under the CARES Act, including the calculation of non-cash benefits and coverage of paid leave.
• Methods for determining payroll to calculate maximum loan amounts.
• That lenders who processed applications based on the April 2 interim final rule may rely on the laws, rules and guidance available at the time.

ABA continues to seek guidance from Treasury and SBA, including on the use of promissory notes and the eligibility of bank directors for PPP loans, and will share updates with members as they become available. ABA has set up a dedicated email address, [email protected], for bankers to submit questions they may have about the PPP that are not addressed in the FAQs, or to report challenges they may be experiencing accessing SBA systems. Read the Treasury FAQs.

Sen. Mike Rounds, Sen. John Thune and Congressman Dusty Johnson last week helped secure support for South Dakota’s farmers and ranchers in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act, which was signed into law on Friday, March 27. The bill provides $14 billion to replenish the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Commodity Credit Corporation and will also provide $9.5 billion in emergency funding to support certain producers, including livestock producers, affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Treasury Department on Tuesday issued much-anticipated guidance for the Paycheck Protection Program, which starting this week will provide up to $350 billion in fully-forgivable loans to help small businesses maintain payrolls during the coronavirus pandemic. The loans are fully guaranteed by the Small Business Administration, but the SBA will waive all SBA guaranty fees. PPP loans are made for two years at a 0.5% fixed rate with payments deferred for six months.‌

COVID-19 is causing many concerns with consumers, but access to your money shouldn’t be one of them. Banks are considered an essential service, so they will continue to operate and you will have uninterrupted access to your money. Here are the top five things to know about your money and South Dakota banks:

1. You have continued access to your funds and bank services. 
Banks are considered an essential service, which means you continue to have access to your funds through in-person services and self-service tools, such as mobile or online banking. 

As part of its suite of resources helping banks respond to the coronavirus pandemic, ABA will host two additional free member webinars this week:

Business Continuity With Core Providers: On Wednesday, April 1, at 1 p.m. CDT, the four major core providers will speak on business continuity and digital banking. Joined by two community bank executives, representatives from FIS, Fiserv, Finastra and Jack Henry will discuss how they are supporting banks’ business continuity and resilience efforts, as well as strategies banks can use to run a successful digital bank during this time when consumers cannot rely as much on in-person banking services. Register for the webinar.

The CARES Act—the new coronavirus relief law signed by President Trump last week—provides an unprecedented amount of relief to consumers and businesses hit by the economic repercussions of the coronavirus pandemic. The legislation anticipates that banks of all sizes will serve as the delivery mechanism for much of that relief. Key provisions affecting banks and their ability to work with customers include:

• A 100% guarantee of loans made for a new SBA 7(a) Payment Protection Program.
• Temporary relief from troubled debt restructuring categorizations and an option to delay the implementation of the current expected credit loss standard.
• A lower community bank leverage ratio of 8%.
• $500 billion for the U.S. Treasury’s Exchange Stabilization fund to provide sufficiently collateralized loans, loan guarantees and other investments to eligible entities.
• Authority for the FDIC to establish a temporary program to guarantee bank debt.
• Forbearance policies for loans backed by federal government agencies or GSEs.

The ABA will host a webinar today at 1 p.m. CDT with ABA President and CEO Rob Nichols and a panel of ABA experts who will offer an overview of these and other provision, followed by a moderated banker Q&A. Register for the webinar.

As the coronavirus pandemic continues, scammers are exploiting consumers’ fears and uncertainties about the virus to perpetrate a range of fraud scams. ABA has published a list of common scams associated with the coronavirus, as well as 10 tips for consumers to follow to protect themselves and their finances. Bankers are welcome to use these tips freely to educate their customers. Read more.

The SDBA will hold a member COVID-19 update conference call on Friday, March 27, at 11 a.m. CDT (10 a.m. MDT). 

During the call, Bret Afdahl, director of the South Dakota Division of Banking, will discuss COVID-19 public health concerns, best practices and regulatory guidance. SDBA President Curt Everson will discuss state and local government issues and federal economic stimulus legislation. There will also be time for Q&A from bankers. 

In a unanimous vote late last night, the Senate passed a sweeping $2 trillion stimulus package to provide relief to American consumers and businesses struggling as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. Once approved by the House and signed into law by President Trump, this legislation—which reflects days of bipartisan negotiations by Senate leadership and the White House—will help ensure banks have additional tools to help their customers and communities, and the nation’s economy, through the crisis.

Dear SDBA Member CEOs and SDBA Board Members:

Like all of you, in recent days all of us at the SDBA have been absorbing and adjusting to COVID-19 related news and long list of changes to our daily work and personal routines which we all hope will be relatively short-lived. Rather than trying to layer individual phone calls of conference calls on top of what I know are very busy days and nights, we have tried to focus on building a robust COVID-19 resource page on our website as follows:  https://www.sdba.com/covid-19. This pandemic situation is very fluid, prompting reactions and release of information by a host of public and private sources. We will strive to keep the information as fresh and content rich as possible.

In response to the coronavirus pandemic, the Small Business Administration yesterday revised its criteria for states or territories seeking an economic injury declaration. This action will create a faster, easier qualification process for states seeking SBA disaster assistance as a result of the pandemic, while expanding statewide access to SBA disaster assistance loans, which offer up to $2 million for each affected small business.

The Federal Reserve, FDIC and OCC on Tuesday issued a statement calling on banks to use their capital and liquidity buffers to help meet the needs of households and businesses as the coronavirus pandemic continues. The agencies noted that banks have “built up substantial levels of capital and liquidity in excess of regulatory buffers and minimums” in the years since the financial crisis.