Responding to concerns from constituents in the small-business community, U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney, D-2nd District, indicated Monday that he hopes a fifth coronavirus aid package out of Congress will address the eight-week limit on the Paycheck Protection Program, tax forgiveness on loans, and access to personal protective equipment.

"The process of crafting a new measure is really happening right now, in real time," Courtney said in a Zoom call Monday morning, and noted he would be on a caucus call in the afternoon to address some of the "issues we need to clean up."

The Eastern Connecticut, Greater Mystic, and Greater Norwich Area chambers of commerce hosted the virtual forum with Courtney.

Elected officials on the call included New London Mayor Michael Passero, Stonington First Selectman Danielle Chesebrough, and Montville Mayor Ron McDaniel. Other organizations represented include Mystic Aquarium, Tanger Outlets at Foxwoods, Suisman Shapiro Attorneys-at-Law, Collins & Jewell and the La Grua Center.

Robin Moore Ely, who runs a non-medical day care for adults with dementia, said she could use some reopening guidance around issues such as PPE for staff and taking temperatures.

In terms of PPE, Courtney acknowledged there's "been a 'Hunger Games' competition out there that states are in the middle of, that employers are in the middle of."

He said addressing PPE shortages is "still an issue that's going to take a while," and he thinks that it was a "really smart move" for Connecticut to join a seven-state consortium for purchasing PPE rather than relying on the federal stockpile.

Speaking about unemployment benefits, Courtney said that if an employee is called back to work, the employee doesn't have the option to instead stay home and collect benefits unless they have COVID-19.

Jonathan Duncklee, of Duncklee Cooling & Heating, asked what would happen if he called back to work someone and they said no because a health condition, such as diabetes or high blood pressure, puts them at risk of getting the coronavirus. Maria Costigan, Courtney's legislative director, said the Connecticut Department of Labor indicated this might be a case-by-case decision.

"Employees who do believe that returning to work would be a health risk for them, and that the environment is not suitable for them, do have a claim," she said. "They can, potentially, continue to receive unemployment."

Responding to another question from Duncklee, Courtney noted that while the Paycheck Protection Program was designed to cover eight weeks of payroll, House Small Business Committee Chairwoman Nydia Velazquez, D-New York, had initially pushed for 16 weeks.

Courtney said restaurants in particular have voiced concern about the eight-week limit, that it's too short a window to reasonably start hiring people back.

He also noted that Congress needs to make sure loan forgiveness through the PPP is not treated as taxable income.

"We definitely are going to take that back to the Ways and Means Committee," Courtney said.

He is confident that committee member Rep. John Larson, D-1st District, and Chairman Richard Neal, D-Massachusetts, "will be very strong allies for making sure people don't get hit with a tax bill."

In a letter sent to the chambers on Tuesday, Courtney clarified that new guidance from the IRS states that any forgiven amount of a PPP loan "shall be excluded from gross income," per the CARES Act. But he said the CARES Act does not maintain certain tax deductions for overhead costs.

e.moser@theday.com