By Rep. Steve Chabot Back in March, as state after state closed nonessential businesses and implemented stay-at-home orders to help prevent the spread of COVID-19 and flatten the curve, most everyone in Congress knew we had to act quickly to help the American people deal with the pandemic. Moreover, we knew if we didn't act rapidly enough, we faced the potential of an economic catastrophe. As ranking member of the House Small Business Committee, my focus was helping small businesses survive the government-mandated closures, while continuing to pay their employees. I worked closely with Democratic Chairwoman Nydia Velazquez, and our counterparts in the Senate. The result -- the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) -- has saved millions of American jobs. The Paycheck Protection Program became law on March 27, as part of the CARES Act. A week later, the Small Business Administration (SBA) and the Department of the Treasury had issued guidelines for the program, and banks and credit unions began to process loans. Within two weeks, the initial $350 billion was exhausted, so Congress authorized another $310 billion for the program in order to help more small businesses and more American workers. Given the breakneck pace under which we were operating, we knew that the program wouldn't be perfect, and that there'd be glitches along the way. But, we also knew speed was the key. We had to get money into the hands of small businesses, who were shut down through no fault of their own, to help them survive and pay their employees until the economy could reopen. So we made adjustments along the way, and Congress is now conducting vigorous oversight of the program. As we've moved into the oversight process, what's been most surprising is not the instances of the program being abused, but rather how well the program worked. A lot of credit needs to go to the banks and the small business owners themselves for handling this rather complicated process professionally. The PPP loan data released last week by the SBA on its website is staggering. We've known for months that the program was critically important for both the local and national economies, but now we're beginning to realize the true impact of these vital loans. Nationally, there have been nearly 5 million loans totaling over $500 billion issued to businesses employing over 50 million Americans. According to the SBA, PPP loans helped preserve 84% of all small business jobs in America. In Ohio, more than 140,000 businesses received over $18 billion, helping them to pay nearly 2 million Ohioans -- an amazing 90% of those employed by small businesses in the state. In the First Congressional District, which I have the honor to represent, and in Greater Cincinnati overall, the numbers are even better. According to SBA calculations, more jobs were saved in our district than anywhere else in Ohio. Over 17,000 businesses in Hamilton and Warren counties received PPP loans, and those loans saved over 250,000 jobs. In many cases, these loans were the difference between small business owners staying in business and paying their employees, or closing their doors forever. While the numbers are impressive, what's really important is the hundreds of thousands of lives positively impacted by this program. What's absolutely certain is just how critically important the Paycheck Protection Program has been to the American people and our economy. It has extended an essential lifeline to families and businesses across the country, and right here in Greater Cincinnati. Congressman Steve Chabot, R-Westwood, represents Ohio's 1st District in the United States House of Representatives and is the ranking member of the House Committee on Small Business.

Since COVID-19 first hit our shores, as the ranking member of the House Small Business Committee, I've heard from thousands of small businesses from all across the country. Locally, I've talked with people who run restaurants, hair salons and retail shops (just to name a few); dozens of hospitals and health care providers; police, firefighters and other first responders; and state and local government officials. The message has been consistent: Everyone needs help dealing with the unprecedented challenges presented by the coronavirus. Four weeks ago, Congress passed the largest economic recovery bill in our nation's history. This legislation provided $100 billion to help hospitals and health care providers; $150 billion for state and local governments to deal with virus-related expenses; and $500 billion in loans to help larger businesses forced to shutter due to quarantine orders. The Treasury Department recently began issuing stimulus checks of up to $2,400 (plus $500 per child) to American families, with an estimated 80 million checks delivered in the first week. While these efforts are helping Americans survive this incredibly difficult period, perhaps none has been as successful, or as impactful, as the Small Business Administration's Paycheck Protection Program. Many small businesses are struggling. Social distancing and other measures designed to prevent the spread of COVID-19 have forced small-business owners to make gutwrenching decisions to cut hours, lay off employees and even close up shop after years of operation. That's why I've worked closely with Democratic committee Chairwoman Nydia Velázquez and our counterparts in the Senate to craft the bipartisan Paycheck Protection Program. Loans under this program are 100% federally guaranteed and will help small-business owners continue to meet their financial obligations and pay their employees while they're forced temporarily to suspend operations. These loans are forgivable if a business employs the same number of people over the eight-week period covered by the loan. In less than two weeks, $350 billion in loans have been approved, providing assistance to more than 1.6 million small businesses. Here in Ohio, more than $14 billion have been approved for nearly 60,000 small businesses. Yet there are more businesses and more American families who need help. I've heard from dozens of Cincinnati area companies that weren't able to get loans approved before the initial money ran out. That's why we've been working so diligently to replenish the Paycheck Protection Program. By providing more money for this program, we can help companies remain in business and continue to pay their employees. Last week, Congress reached an agreement to provide an additional $310 billion in loans, bringing the total to $660 billion, to help provide American families and small businesses some semblance of financial security. The legislation also provided another $75 billion for hospitals, $25 billion for testing and $60 billion for economic disaster loans and grants. If you own a small business and you need help, contact your local bank or credit union and find out how the Paycheck Protection Program can help you maintain your workforce and continue to make ends meet. But don't wait, because there's no telling for sure just how long these additional funds will last.

By Rep. Steve Chabot In recent years, opioid addiction has claimed tens of thousands of American lives and shattered families across our nation. That's why we must work together to redouble our efforts to combat this deadly epidemic. Opioids, when used properly, can be an effective medical tool for pain relief. However, when opioids are abused, they're extremely dangerous. While fatalities from prescription opioids have been declining over the last few years, fatalities from other forms of opioids, such as fentanyl, have been increasing at an alarming rate. In searching for answers to this plague, I've worked with local and national drug experts. I've also worked with local law enforcement, medical personnel and community leaders and discussed with them the tools they need to effectively fight this battle. And as a member of the Bipartisan Opioid Task Force, I've worked closely with my colleagues from across the country focused on finding legislative solutions to this ongoing problem. Given the complex nature of the epidemic, we need to fight a two-front war on opioids -- both to reduce the supply and to eliminate the demand. To help reduce the demand, Congress passed two major bills -- the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act and the SUPPORT for Patients and Communities Act signed into law by President Obama and President Trump respectively. Those laws largely focused on increasing public awareness and education regarding the dangers of opioids, and supporting innovative drug treatment and prevention programs. They also included efforts to reduce the supply of illegal opioids, but that's an increasingly complex issue. Recently, there's been a massive influx into the country of cheap but incredibly powerful opioids, such as fentanyl, from China and other foreign sources. A lot of these illegal drugs enter via our southern border, so securing that border is critical. Giving law enforcement the tools they need to combat these dangerous drugs is just as important. A drug as deadly as fentanyl has no place in our communities. It's at least 50 times more potent than heroin, and ingesting even a minuscule amount can be fatal. That's why, under current law, fentanyl is a controlled substance, just like cocaine, heroin or LSD. That means it's illegal to possess, distribute or manufacture fentanyl, and doing so carries stiff penalties. However, to avoid those penalties, drug traffickers have routinely altered the chemical composition of fentanyl, making it a slightly different drug. These fentanyl analogs are just as dangerous and deadly as the original drug, yet they're treated differently under the law, because they have a chemical structure that differs slightly from the banned substance. A few years ago, Congress and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) recognized this inconsistency, and criminalized fentanyl analogs on a temporary basis. That classification was set to expire earlier this month, but Congress extended the ban for an additional 15 months. However, that's not enough. Fentanyl analogs should be banned permanently. That's why I introduced legislation, H.R. 5771, the FIGHT Fentanyl Act, along with fellow Ohio Congressman Bob Latta. Companion legislation was introduced in the Senate by our Senator Rob Portman and West Virginia's Senator Joe Manchin. Our legislation would permanently criminalize the manufacture, distribution or possession of fentanyl analogs. China, a major source of fentanyl in our country, has banned fentanyl-related drugs. And we should too. We need to give the DEA the permanent authorization to use all the tools and resources at their disposal to keep fentanyl and its analogs out of our communities. Congress doesn't need to spend more time deciding if fentanyl analogs are dangerous. We know they're more than just dangerous, they're deadly, and should be kept off our streets and out of our neighborhoods. Now is the time to make the criminalization of fentanyl analogs permanent. Too many lives and families have been ruined by the scourge of this deadly drug for Congress to continue passing temporary, incomplete measures. Congressman Steve Chabot represents Ohio's 1st District in the United States House of Representatives and is the ranking member of the House Committee on Small Business.