Strand Bookstore admits it took a pandemic loan despite being ineligible

Strand Bookstore in Union Square acknowledged it accepted a pandemic-era Paycheck Protection Program loan for which it was not eligible, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia announced on Tuesday. The office stated that the bookstore would pay nearly $1.5 million to account for the error.

The Strand is owned by Nancy Bass Wyden, who is married to Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden. The U.S.

Attorney’s Office said The Strand was ineligible when it applied in February 2021 for a loan of more than $930,000, as federal law prohibited businesses controlled by a member of Congress or their spouse from receiving the second round of PPP funding. “The Paycheck Protection Program was created to save American jobs, not to enrich those who aren’t eligible for taxpayer-funded relief,” U.S.

Attorney Jeanine Pirro said in a statement. “No one gets a pass when it comes to defrauding the American taxpayer.” A spokesperson for The Strand described the application as an honest mistake, saying that neither the bookstore’s accountant nor the bank handling the loan were aware of the law barring a congressman’s spouse from receiving a PPP loan.

The funds were returned as soon as The Strand became aware of the issue, according to the spokesperson. The store has not responded to an inquiry to clarify whether it paid the original $932,350 loan amount or the new, higher sum announced by the U.S. Attorney's Office.

Ron Wyden, a Democrat, has been outspoken in his criticism of President Donald Trump, who appointed Pirro to her position in May 2025. The Strand, which is known for the “18 miles of books” housed in its flagship store, has been open about its financial struggles in the past. In March 2021, responding to worker complaints of mismanaged funds, a Strand spokesperson told New York magazine that limited sales and a PPP loan were the only things keeping staff members paid in a period of struggle.

In December 2024, the Strand’s 110 unionized employees went on strike amid tense contract negotiations to demand they make more than New York City’s minimum wage of $16 an hour. Both parties reached a tentative agreement to raise the base pay rate by 50 cents an hour and grant employees a raise of $1.50 an hour in their fourth year working at the store.

Nancy Bass Wyden's grandfather, Ben Bass, founded the bookstore at its original Greenwich Village location in 1927. It moved 30 years later to its current location on East 12th Street and Broadway.