I am not commenting on whether or not they should have been. I am not interested in tying them back to discussion of any other loans or loan forgiveness.
Why call them loans if they are not?
In: Economics
If the government says “We’ll give you a pile of money, and we want you to spend it on paying your employees” then they have to watch to see if you actually do that, and if you don’t, they’d have to sue you and prove that you didn’t in order to make you pay it back.
Instead, if they say “We’ll *loan* you a pile of money, and if you can prove that you used it to pay your employees, you won’t have to pay it back” then it’s up to you to prove you did use it that way, and if you don’t, then you need to pay it back.
Either way it’s free money, but the second way puts the burden of proof on you, which is easier for the government.
Latest Answers