No, Boebert didn’t receive a PPP loan

Social media users are sharing U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert’s recent comments about government assistance at the Conservative Political Action Conference and claiming that the Colorado Republican is a hypocrite because she got a Paycheck Protection Program loan — but that’s wrong.  

"We’re here to tell government we don’t want your benefits, we don’t want your welfare, don’t come knocking on my door with your Fauci ouchie, you leave us the hell alone," Boebert said July 10, making oblique references to Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of President Joe Biden’s COVID-19 task force and COVID-19 vaccines.

Some critics seized on this, pointing to what they said was a hefty check her restaurant received from the federal government.

"Lauren Boebert’s restaurant, Shooter’s Grill, in Rifle, CO received a $233,305 PPP check," according to one tweet. 

"Lauren Boebert received a PPP loan for her restaurant," the text of a Facebook post said before it was edited.

"Her restaurant literally received COVID relief funds," claimed an Instagram post.

These posts were flagged as part of Facebook’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Facebook.)

Boebert is the owner of a Rifle, Colorado, restaurant, called Shooters Grill. She and her husband opened the gun-themed restaurant in 2013, according to Politico. 

The Paycheck Protection Program, which ended in May, was a federal loan initiative to encourage businesses to keep workers on their payrolls during the pandemic.    

ProPublica has a database to track the hundreds of billions of dollars the federal government provided in financial support to banks to make these loans. You can search for Paycheck Protection Program loan applications by organization, lender, ZIP code and business type. 

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Searching for "Shooters," dozens of businesses turn up, including Shooters Sports Grill LLC, which received a loan for $233,305, according to the database.

But that business is in Loveland, Ohio — it’s not Boebert’s restaurant in Colorado. 

Ben Stout, a spokesperson for Boebert, told us that she has no connection to that restaurant. 

"And she never received a PPP loan," he said. 

Searching the database using the zip code of the restaurant in Rifle and Boebert’s name, we found no loan applications for her or the Shooters restaurant in Colorado.  

Some people who made the claim about Boebert have corrected the record. 

The Twitter account for "No Lie with Brian Tyler Cohen," a podcast with Cohen, a progressive commentator, initially tweeted to tens of thousands of followers that Boebert’s restaurant "received a $233,305 PPP check." 

On July 11, the account tweeted: "Deleted this tweet. The PPP check was for a bar of the same name in a different state. My job is to stop misinformation, not to spread it; no excuse for getting this wrong. I apologize to the congresswomen and you all." 

CNN reported that Cohen deleted the tweet after the network contacted Cohen to ask about the claim.   

We rate this post False.