Yellow bankruptcy: Treasury’s $700 Million Pandemic Loan is ‘undercollateralized,’ Congressman Warns; Gov’t Scientists Got $325M in Royalties from China, Russia, Pharma Firms: Report, and other C-Virus related stories

Yellow bankruptcy: Treasury’s $700 million pandemic loan is ‘undercollateralized,’ congressman warns:

Rep. French Hill of Arkansas has repeatedly voiced his concerns about the $700 million federal loan made to Yellow Corp.

In the wake of Yellow Corp.’s bankruptcy announcement, Rep. French Hill of Arkansas has again voiced his concerns about a $700 million federal loan that the trucking company received in 2020.

On Sunday, the beleaguered Nashville, Tenn.,-based company announced its bankruptcy filing, which it blamed on the International Brotherhood of Teamsters union.

The $700 million bailout was made under the CARES Act during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Treasury Department’s summary of the loan transaction described YRC Worldwide, as Yellow YELL, -4.62% was then known, as “a leading provider of Department of Defense supply transportation and other delivery services for the U.S. Government.”

Hill, a Republican who is currently the sole member of the Congressional Oversight Commission, has been a vocal critic of the loan. “Anytime you have government directly involved in trying to make credit decisions for businesses, you’re going to have catastrophic problems,” he told MarketWatch on Tuesday.

The congressman has argued that Yellow should never have received the $700 million bailout. “Yellow, certainly for many years following the financial crisis in 2008-09, would be deemed an overleveraged, struggling company,” he said.

Hill is also the author of a Congressional Oversight Commission report on the Yellow bailout that was released in June. “Overall, the Commission continues to believe that the Treasury and the Defense Department made missteps in deeming Yellow as critical to maintaining national security and in executing the loan to Yellow,” the report said.

So could the government take a financial hit in the wake of Yellow Corp.’s bankruptcy? “I think the Treasury is undercollateralized. I’ll leave it at that,” Hill said.

The loan was broken up into two tranches, with the $300 million tranche A dedicated to YRC’s “near-term contractual obligations and non-vehicle capital expenditures.” Tranche B provided “$400 million for capital investments made pursuant to capital plans subject to approval by Treasury,” the summary said, noting that both tranches mature on Sept. 30, 2024. —>READ MORE HERE

Gov’t scientists got $325M in royalties from China, Russia, pharma firms: report

National Institutes of Health scientists raked in more than $325 million in royalties from Chinese and Russian entities — as well as pharmaceutical companies — over more than a decade, according to a new report.

Former NIH director Dr. Francis Collins and former National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) director Dr. Anthony Fauci were among the thousands of government whitecoats who took the cash between September 2009 and October 2020, the taxpayer watchdog OpenTheBooks.com revealed on Wednesday.

Several of those royalties came from companies that in turn received federal contracts and grants, prompting concerns about conflicts of interest.

Collins, for instance, took licensing payments from at least four firms that have been awarded nearly $50 million from the US government since 2008.

“As the most recognized official at NIH, Dr. Anthony Fauci was the face of the third-party royalties controversy. But our investigation was about a lot more than any single scientist,” OpenTheBooks.com Founder and CEO Adam Andrzejewski said in a statement.

“It was about allowing for scrutiny of these records for potential conflicts of interest, public health implications, and even national security implications for all of us. Every American should understand the stakes in play when public health guidance is released by the federal government.”

Fauci has said he donates all royalties to charity.

The NIH permits inventors to take up to $2,000 in their first collection from a licensee; up to 15% for royalties between $2,000 and $50,000; and up to 25% for royalties above $50,000. —>READ MORE HERE

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