# Iconic NYC landmark Strand Bookstore to pay $1.5M for taking off-limits COVID loan

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/iconic-nyc-landmark-strand-bookstore-to-pay-1-5m-for-taking-off-limits-covid-loan/
- Published: 2026-11-04T17:17:47+00:00
- Updated: 2026-11-05T06:43:00+00:00
- Original publisher: New York Post (publisher lean: Right)
- Original article: https://nypost.com/2026/11/04/business/iconic-nyc-strand-bookstore-to-pay-1-5m-for-taking-off-limits-covid-loan-over-ties-to-us-senator/
- Topics: Americas, World

## Key points

- Strand Bookstore agreed to pay nearly $1.5 million over a PPP loan.
- The second-draw rules barred businesses controlled by a senator’s spouse.
- The owner says the application error was unintentional and funds were returned.

## Summary

New York’s Strand Bookstore has agreed to pay nearly $1.5 million to settle an investigation into a COVID-era Paycheck Protection Program loan it was not eligible to receive. The case matters because the rules barred a business from taking a second-draw loan if a member of Congress or their spouse held a controlling interest.

The Strand applied for $932,350 in February 2021, after the restriction was introduced; its owner, Nancy Bass Wyden, is married to Oregon Senator Ron Wyden. The Justice Department said the application was knowingly and materially false, while the settlement makes no determination of liability. Bass Wyden called the application an unintentional mistake caused by rapidly changing rules, saying the money was returned once the issue came to light; the bookstore had earlier reported a 70% drop in revenue during the pandemic.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.