The Big Story: Broadband access in the time of COVID-19. House Democrats this week introduced the HEROES Act, their proposed $3 trillion coronavirus relief package that includes a dramatic expansion of pandemic-related broadband assistance to help close the digital divide. The inclusion of broadband funding in the proposed relief package comes as policymakers in recent weeks have grown more vocal about the importance of reliable Internet connectivity during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Big Story: Amidst pandemic, data privacy debate continues. As the coronavirus pandemic forces people to rely on digital services to abide by statewide stay-at-home orders, the state- and federal-level debate over data privacy rages on.

The Big Story: Lawmakers propose freezing mergers during pandemic. Several congressional Democrats have proposed a temporary halt on certain “big” mergers and acquisitions during the coronavirus pandemic, saying that the outbreak could allow large companies to consolidate their power by buying up smaller firms. While larger tech companies have faced scrutiny in the past for allegedly acquiring potential competitors in order to protect their market share, acquisitions during the COVID-19 pandemic are far more likely to involve larger companies rescuing at-risk startups that would otherwise go out of business. It’s hard to see how blocking these types of acquisitions would promote competition. Efforts to curb what policymakers see as predatory behavior could instead deprive many startups of a critical lifeline they might need to remain in business. 

The Big Story: Pandemic underscores the need for broadband boost. Congress voted this week on a $484 billion coronavirus relief package to help support small businesses and Americans who are struggling as a result of the pandemic, but policymakers are already discussing additional legislative measures to bolster the nation’s broadband infrastructure.

The Big Story: Small business loan program hits funding limit. The U.S. Small Business Administration announced that it hit the $350 billion limit in funds Congress allocated for the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) to help small businesses as part of last month’s Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. At this time, SBA says it is unable to accept any more applications for PPP loans. While the program was designed to support companies with under 500 employees, many venture capital-backed firms were ineligible for the loans because the SBA’s “affiliation rules” require companies to count the employees of their “affiliates”—broadly defined in the law—as their own employees.

The Big Story: Privacy, big data, and COVID-19. As federal officials, tech companies, and researchers are using data to help identify and track viral transmissions and coronavirus hotspots, policymakers and advocates are raising concerns about the collection and use of potentially sensitive data. This week, the Senate Commerce Committee held a paper hearing to examine how anonymized and aggregated data is being used to combat the spread of COVID-19.

The Big Story: Treasury Department reportedly clarifying rules for VC-backed startups. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) told Axios yesterday that Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin is preparing to release guidance in the next few days, easing the rules around venture capital-backed startups and eligibility for small business loans included in the mammoth Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. Applicants can start applying for those loans today, but there were concerns that existing Small Business Administration rules would have precluded many startups from applying. 

The Big Story: As startup funding declines, stimulus offers some relief. With seed-stage investments disappearing as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, the $2 trillion stimulus package approved by the U.S. Senate this week offers some short-term relief for small businesses, entrepreneurs, and gig workers who are struggling as a result of the global economic downturn.  

The Big Story: Websites working to combat COVID-19 misinformation. Large social media platforms warned this week that more user-generated content could be removed for policy violations as Internet companies increase their reliance on automated software to flag and remove harmful content in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. But despite the necessary move towards automated detection tools, online companies of all sizes are working to carefully balance concerns about their employees’ health with heightened efforts to combat the spread of false information, especially about the virus.