The U.S. Small Business Administration will resumeaccepting Payroll Protection Program loanapplicationson Monday, April 27 at 10:30 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time from approved lenders on behalf of any eligible borrower.

This will ensure that SBA has properly coded the system to account for changes made by the legislation, a release stated.

Lenders were flooded with applications during the first phase of the program which partially or totally forgives loans for employers that keep staff on the payroll.

According to the statement from U.S. Small Business Administration Jovita Carranza and U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin, PPP has supported more than 1.66 million small businesses and protected over 30 million jobs.

Both stated that the additional funds appropriated by Congress, tens of millions of additional workers will benefit from the relief.

“We encourage all approved lenders to process loan applications previously submitted by eligible borrowers and disburse funds expeditiously. All eligible borrowers who need these funds should work with an approvedlender to apply. Borrowers should carefully review PPP regulations and guidance and the certifications required to obtain a loan,” Carranza and Mnuchin stated.

It remains unclear how long the funds will last, due to the backlog of existing applications. The program has been modified to allocate more funds to community banks that serve smaller borrowers.

The previous program came under heavy criticism as large companies used their ties to lenders and other professionals to move to the front of the line on applications. New rules have been imposed that are aimed at giving preference to smaller businesses.

Wilmington-based WSFS Bank reported 2,500 loans valued at $775 million within its footprint that includes Delaware and southeast Pennsylvania.

M&T Bank, believed to be the largest small business lender in the state, earlier reported it processed loans valued at more than $300 million in Delaware. Nearly $1.1 billion went to businesses in the state under the program.

SBA officials have insisted that the bulk of the money went to smaller businesses, citing the total number of loans as evidence.

For more information on the Paycheck Protection Program, visitsba.gov/paycheckprotection.