Seeley Swan Pathfinder -

Tens of thousands of businesses and nonprofit organizations across Montana have benefited from the Paycheck Protection Program, a massive federal effort that has routed billions of dollars into subsidized bank loans intended to help small businesses keep workers on payroll during the economic disruption prompted by the coronavirus pandemic.

Data released this week by the U.S. Small Business Administration provides the first detailed accounting of the businesses aided by the program, indicating that Montana's loan recipients span nearly the full width of the state's economic landscape.

In Wh...