Doug Rand Profile picture
Personal account. @USCIS senior advisor. Previously @FAScientists senior fellow, @chooseboundless & @playscripts co-founder, @WHOSTP assistant director.

Apr 5, 2020, 6 tweets

Yet another source of confusion about #PPPloans & the SBA affiliation rules:

The official @USGPO e-regulation site is out of date.

To see the rules that are actually binding right now, here's the @waybackmachine:

1/

web.archive.org/web/2017061902…

Do *not* rely solely on the e-CFR site from @USGPO. The following reg text on @SBAgov affiliation criteria is no longer operative (I'll explain why in a moment):

2/

ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-i…

Coincidentally, the SBA last updated its affiliation rules on Feb. 20 (see link below).

But tucked into the CARES Act, signed into law a month later, is a provision that wipes out that Feb. 20 update.

(If anyone knows the backstory, please speak!)

3/
federalregister.gov/documents/2020…

Honestly this isn't a huge deal, but it helps explain why Friday night's Treasury/SBA guidance looks a bit different from the reg you'll find from @USGPO. In fact, the Fri. guidance is a pure restatement of the post-CARES Act reg.

Here's a side-by-side (guidance+true reg):
4/

Finally, a plea to @USGPO:

The CARES Act was signed 3/27 & immediately changed the rules.

So e-CFR is *not* "current as of 4/2."

Of course it takes time to update the Code of Federal Regulations, but the public deserves full transparency about the length of the time lag.
5/5

P.S. Wow, you're still reading this even-wonkier-than-usual thread!

Here's more on why any of this matters in the first place:

Share this Scrolly Tale with your friends.

A Scrolly Tale is a new way to read Twitter threads with a more visually immersive experience.
Discover more beautiful Scrolly Tales like this.

Keep scrolling