Court filing
SIGPR-A-22-003-4 — Independent Review: JetBlue Airways Validation Memo (April 2022)
Record facts
| Court | Special Inspector General for Pandemic Recovery (SIGPR) |
|---|---|
| Filed | 2022-04-28 |
Summary
Report Number SIGPR-A-22-003-4, dated April 28, 2022, from the Assistant Inspector General for Auditing of the Special Inspector General for Pandemic Recovery (SIGPR) to the Chief Recovery Officer of the U.S. Department of the Treasury. It reviews the Validation Memo Treasury completed for JetBlue Airways Corporation, which applied on April 29, 2020 for a loan of $1.1 billion under Section 4003 of the CARES Act. The report states that after a final collateral appraisal and additional pledged aircraft and engines, JetBlue was deemed eligible for $1.14 billion and is classified as a Tier 1 borrower. It concludes that SIGPR is not aware of any material modifications that should be made to the Validation Memo to comply with Treasury's Underwriting Guide. Appendices set out the review's objective, scope and methodology and the report distribution.
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Full text
SIGPR-A-22-003-4 Independent Review of 4003(b) Loan Recipient’s Validation Memo – JetBlue Airways Corporation Report Number: SIGPR-A-22-003-4 April 28, 2022 SIGPR-A-22-003-4 i April 28, 2022 TO: Jacob D. Leibenluft Chief Recovery Officer U.S. Department of the Treasury FROM: Theodore R. Stehney Assistant Inspector General for Auditing Special Inspector General for Pandemic Recovery (SIGPR) SUBJECT: Independent Review of 4003(b) Loan Recipient’s Validation Memo – JetBlue Airways Corporation This report presents the results of our review of the Validation Memo associated with JetBlue Airways Corporation’s (JetBlue) application submission to the Department of the Treasury (Treasury). JetBlue received a $1.14 billion loan under Section 4003, Division A, Title IV, Subtitle A of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act of 2020 (the “CARES Act”). On April 29, 2020, JetBlue applied for a loan under Application Number LA- 2004290596. All applicants had to provide specific documentation along with their applications to be further considered to receive a loan, as outlined in Treasury’s Underwriting Guide. Treasury completed a Validation Memo once it received and reviewed an applicant’s document submissions. Once the Validation Memo was completed, Treasury forwarded the application to the next level of the underwriting process. Based on our review, we are not aware of any material modifications that should be made to the Validation Memo that Treasury completed for JetBlue to comply with Treasury’s Underwriting Guide. Please address questions regarding this report to Michael Sinclair at (202) 923-8021 or Michael.Sinclair@sigpr.gov. SIGPR-A-22-003-4 1 Introduction Section 4003 of the CARES Act authorizes the Treasury to make loans, loan guarantees, and other investments to provide liquidity to eligible businesses related to losses incurred as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. Sections 4003(b)(1)-(3) appropriated $46 billion to help stabilize the airline industry and businesses critical to maintaining national security. The breakdown of available funding was as follows: 1. Up to $25 billion for passenger air carriers; businesses certified to perform inspection, repair, replace or overhaul services; and ticket agents; 2. Up to $4 billion for cargo air carriers; and 3. Up to $17 billion for businesses critical to maintaining national security. Section 4003 loans were further categorized by the loan amount requested. The Air Carrier Loan Program is categorized into tiers as follows: Tier 1 loans were above $300 million, Tier 2 loans were between $20 million and $300 million, and Tier 3 loans were under $20 million. Background On April 29, 2020, JetBlue applied for a loan of $1.1 billion, and was originally deemed eligible for that same amount. After submitting the final appraisal of proposed collateral, and pledging additional aircraft and engines, JetBlue was deemed eligible to receive a loan of $1.14 billion. Based on its loan amount, JetBlue is classified as a Tier 1 borrower. During the application period, applicants were required to submit documents through a Treasury web portal. For each applicant to move forward in the loan process, they had to provide a financial plan, IRS Form 941s, and financial statements, among other documentation. Depending on the applicant’s type of business additional documentation was also required. For instance, air carriers had to provide their Department of Transportation certification as such under Section 40102(a) of Title 49, United States Code. All documentation provided was to be maintained by Treasury. Once the required documentation was compiled, Treasury verified and recorded it using a Validation Memo. A completed and signed Validation Memo allowed the applicant to move forward to the loan underwriting process. Results in Brief Based on our review, we are not aware of any material modifications that should be made to the Validation Memo Treasury completed for JetBlue to comply with Treasury’s Underwriting Guide. SIGPR-A-22-003-4 2 Compliance Statement We conducted our review in accordance with generally accepted government auditing standards for attestation engagements. Those standards require that we plan and perform the review to obtain limited assurance that the Validation Memo is fairly presented in all material respects and completed according to Treasury’s Underwriting Guide. A review is substantially less in scope than an examination, the objective of which is to obtain reasonable assurance and express an opinion on the subject matter. Accordingly, we do not express such an opinion. We believe that our review provides a reasonable basis for our conclusion. Audit Team This review was conducted the individuals listed below: Michael Sinclair Audit Manager Renata Malionek Management Analyst SIGPR-A-22-003-4 A-1 Appendix A – Objective, Scope and Methodology We have reviewed JetBlue’s submission of loan documents under Application Number LA-2004290596. Treasury was responsible for obtaining JetBlue’s loan documentation and completing the Validation Memo in accordance with its Underwriting Guide prior to moving the application further in the loan process. Our responsibility is to express a conclusion about whether any material modification should be made to the Validation Memo for it to be in accordance with Treasury’s Underwriting Guide and be fairly stated. The objective of this review is to evaluate whether Treasury’s Validation Memo for JetBlue was completed according to Treasury’s Underwriting Guide and other applicable criteria, and fairly presents the supporting documentation provided by JetBlue in all material respects. Treasury’s efforts culminated in the completion of the Validation Memo. Additionally, this review is an offshoot of the overall audit of the 4003(b) loan program. We primarily performed this review remotely due to the ongoing telework situation dictated by the pandemic. We therefore relied on mostly electronic records for our review. To accomplish the review objective, our fieldwork included, but was not limited to, the following procedures: • Reviewed Treasury’s Underwriting Guide and determined the documents required by all applicants; • Reviewed JetBlue’s Validation Memo for completeness and accuracy; • Determined if the document submissions were complete and accurate; • Requested additional documentation from Treasury officials when needed; and • Held discussions with Treasury officials when applicable. The review was conducted in accordance with generally accepted government auditing standards for attestation engagements. SIGPR-A-22-003-4 B-1 Appendix B – Report Distribution Chief Recovery Officer – U.S. Department of the Treasury Office of General Counsel – U.S. Department of the Treasury Inspector General – Special Inspector General for Pandemic Recovery Asst. Inspector General for Auditing – Special Inspector General for Pandemic Recovery Office of General Counsel – Special Inspector General for Pandemic Recovery
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- REPORT_SIGPR_independent-review-4003b-loan-recipients-validation-memo-jet_2022-04-28.pdf
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- 47a540ea7607bc972bff637b7119fe29157deb2811ecc5ce15ba152f473bdaad
- Original
- www.oversight.gov