Under the stimulus bill recently approved by Congress, there are quite a few expenses that are considered “forgivable” for a time-limited period under the new $350B SBA loan program, including utility expenses. One of the keys is that companies must have fewer than 500 employees in order to qualify. The loans allow a customer to borrow an amount equal to 2.5 times their average monthly payroll (not to exceed $10M). To the extent businesses use these loans to keep people employed and paid, those loans will be forgiven. Other qualified expenses include rent, interest on existing mortgage loans, and paying utility bills.
We are already seeing an increase in customer communications requesting forgiveness or extended payment options for the balances they owe. These government loans are absolutely available and should be considered by many businesses who are experiencing financial difficulties resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.
The link below provides more information. Rocky Mountain Power certainly wants to work with our customers during these difficult times and hopefully they will educate themselves and take advantage of the resources that are out there for them.