While figures released by the Small Business Administration earlier this year show that the Plum Jack Group has received PPP loans worth 350 350,000, newly released data from the SBA indicates the Plumjack industries – including wineries, bars and restaurateurs – Received eight times the amount. About a million million dollars at once.
Related: Officials question whether the South Bay man deserves millions in PPP loans
In 2018, government news blindly placed their proprietary interests in the Plump Jack Group. This means that they have no knowledge or role in the company’s business decisions during the time fee.
Digging into the data
The ABC I-Team found discrepancies between the company’s SBA data and publicly available records, which raises questions about how much money some companies receive under the program.
ABC7’s analysis found that at least nine companies affiliated with the Plump Jack Group have received PPP loans.
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One of the companies on this list is Villa Ankinal Partners Limited Partnership. State records indicate that the name was found behind Plump Jack Winery in Nepal. San Francisco billionaire Gordon Getty is an investor.
On April 14, 2020, the company received a loan of 9 18,918,720, according to SBA data.
For loans to be forgiven, SBAs need to use at least 60 percent to cover their wages. Based on SBA data, Villa Anchor Partners LPA retains 14 employees. Presumably, if shared evenly, each of them would receive approximately 40 40,000 to cover their payroll over a three-month period – an annual salary of approximately ,000 160,000 per employee.
Sean Molton, a senior policy analyst at Project Government Oversight (POGO), said the 14-employee union was expected to receive about $ 1 million. He specializes in tracking PPP funds. “The purpose behind this program was to save entry-level jobs, people went into it and worked on paychecks. To prevent unemployment, we put this there.”
The average small business loan of 14 small employees for California companies was about 128 128,000. So far, Plump Jack Entity Villa Ankinal Partners LP – which retains 14 employees according to SBA data – has received seven times that amount, more than 918,720.
The only other California winery in ABC7’s analysis that found close to the same loan amount as Villa Encanal Partners LP is Oak Knoll Farming Corp., which retains 79 employees – five times more than Villa.
The average number of employees retained for each California winery that has received PPP funding of more than 900,000 is 148.
Related: 22 Two Area Companies Keep million 52 Million in Federal Fund for Small Businesses Between Epidemics
Milbree Pancake House received a loan of 43 1,431,400 and retained 53 employees. By comparison, that is less than half of what Villa got, and Burke retains almost four times as many employees.
“It seems inappropriate because there are small family businesses like ours that need money,” said Erin Burke, owner of the restaurant.
After 60 years of operation, Burke was forced to close his family-owned business on November 29.
“We’re just trying our best to survive,” he said. “That money wasn’t enough.”
The San Francisco Chamber of Commerce reports most small businesses that struggled to get a PPP loan say the size of the loan was not enough or the owner misunderstood the application.
“I think it’s heartbreaking,” said Jay Cheng, the institute’s public policy director. “We see a big difference between a small business and the loans they get and their ability to get loans and large companies that are well-resourced and well-employed and have strong relationships with their banks.”
Another company affiliated with the Plump Jack Group is Balboa Cafe Partners LP, which obtained a loan of Rs 6,506,799 on April 29, 2020. A Commercial Data Pay in June 2020 estimates that Balboa Cafe Partners employs seven individuals, but SBA data associated with their loan application states that they retain. 55 employees.
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The Plumpjack group responds
ABC7 reached out to Plump Jack Management Group for clarification on how the nearly $ 3 million fund was spent.
We received the following statement:
“Like many other companies facing severe economic hardship during the epidemic, we used loan money to save our workers and keep them employed. Our staff members and their loved ones depend on these programs for their livelihood. Gavin News is not involved in the operation. Jeff Ned, a spokesman for Plump Jack Management Group, said the companies’ advice in any way.
Government News is not involved in the management of companies because its interests are in blind faith. However, she is listed on the website as the founder and her sister Hillary is listed as the president and partner of the news company.
According to the governor’s 2019 economic interest statement, Newsum has ownership interests in eight companies linked to Plumjack that have received PPP funding.
CalMatters The governor’s 2018 tax return shows that he and his wife made million 1.2 million from wages and investments – much of it from his wine and hospitality ventures.
ABC7 reached out to Plump Jack for the second time, requesting parole records to see how each of the 14 employees of Villa Encanal Partners was paid.
We received the following statement:
“Plumpjack Management Group operates under the federal guidelines created for COVID-19 SBA loan recipients. These funds have been crucial in keeping our employees employed and continuing our operations. Any suggestions we have made (or we have) outside of the guidelines Jeff Ned, a spokesman for the management group, said filing for a waiver on the loan was irresponsible.
The Plump Jack Group will have two to five years to apply for a loan waiver if they choose to do so. This means that the company does not have to repay the loan.
Miriam Barajaj, director of SBA Region 9 Communications, said that for any company that apologizes, “they have to give them a certificate when they apply to retain employees.” “It includes payroll records, documentation filings, there’s a lot of evidence that in these businesses they have to prove they paid their employees.”
If companies don’t apologize for the loan, they have to pay it off – but these companies still benefit.
Daniel Bryan, executive director of the project on government oversight, said they were able to take advantage of the benefits the government is offering at this very low interest rate. “This is a one percent loan … it’s essentially free money for them.”
ABC7 reached out to Government News for further comment on the story and has yet to hear back.
In total, about .8 16.8 billion in PPP funding has gone to more than 130,000 companies in the Gulf region. The average number of employee companies is 10.
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