Planned Parenthood Clinics Say They’ll Keep PPP Funds Government Ordered Them to Return

Two Planned Parenthood facilities in Texas say they will keep the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) funds they have been ordered to return by the Small Business Administration (SBA).

“We have no plans to return these essential funds,” said Jeffrey Hons, CEO of the Planned Parenthood clinic in San Antonio, reported Dallas News.

According to the news report, the abortion giant’s facility in Houston also said it would be keeping its funds.

Each clinic received between $1-$2 million in April and May from the PPP coronavirus relief program.

Planned Parenthood of Greater Texas, however, reportedly did return its $2-$5 million loan on May 28, the report noted, in order to avoid an expensive lawsuit.

“Elected officials singled us out based on political reasons,” said Sarah Wheat, chief external affairs officer for the Dallas clinic.

In May, it was revealed on Fox News’s Tucker Carlson Tonight that Planned Parenthood affiliates received $80 million in forgivable loans through the PPP program in violation of the rules of the relief program.

The report noted 37 affiliates of the organization applied for and received the PPP funds. SBA officials and some members of Congress demanded the money be returned, asserting possible criminal prosecution may apply.

According to SBA, the Planned Parenthood Federation of America was never eligible for the funds that have been loaned to organizations with 500 employees or less.

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL), chairman of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, told Fox News when the loans were discovered that Planned Parenthood had violated the PPP rules since the “parent organization has close to half a billion dollars in assets” and “is not eligible for the Paycheck Protection Program.”

“Those funds must be returned immediately,” Rubio said. “Furthermore, the SBA should open an investigation into how these loans were made in clear violation of the applicable affiliation rules and if Planned Parenthood, the banks, or staff at the SBA knowingly violated the law, all appropriate legal options should be pursued.”

In its latest annual report for 2018-2019, Planned Parenthood revealed the organization performed a record-high number of abortions while it also received record-high taxpayer funding.