U.S. Senators Charles. E Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand today announced that New York businesses affected by last year’s drought, beginning August 15, 2014, can now apply for low-interest disaster loans through the U.S. Small Business Administration. The SBA will accept applications for emergency federal loans through June 1st. The SBA offers Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDLs) to help small businesses, small agricultural cooperatives, small aquaculture businesses and most private non-profit organizations. The disaster declaration covers eligible farm-related and small businesses in Orange, Dutchess, Putnam, Rockland, Sullivan, Ulster and Westchester Counties.
“After the devastating drought that began last August, the SBA’s decision to provide disaster loan assistance to Hudson Valley farmers and businesses that were impacted by last year’s drought is welcome news. This means our small businesses and agricultural cooperatives that suffered financial losses during this drought will have access to critical low-interest loans they can use to recover,” said Senator Schumer.
“These SBA disaster loans are a welcome and necessary relief for many of the businesses in the Hudson Valley especially Orange County that were hurt by the damaging drought last year,” said Senator Gillibrand. “These funds can help give the region’s recovery efforts a significant boost and help small businesses get back on their feet.”
“Dryness and drought this past year has been immense. The multiple wild fires our residents have seen locally are very concerning. This has impacted our farmers’ ability to grow their crops in Orange County and across the region. I appreciate the efforts of Senator Schumer and Senator Gillibrand on behalf of our agricultural community and we look forward to continuing to work with them and Congressman Maloney to ensure appropriate Federal assistance is available to Orange County residents,” said Orange County Executive Steve Neuhaus.
The loans are allocated to pay fixed debts, payroll and other bills accumulated as a result of the disaster. Total loan amounts are up to $2 million with interest rates of 2.625 percent for private nonprofit organizations and 4 percent for small businesses up to 30 years. The loans are not intended to replace lost sales or profits and terms are based on each applicant’s financial situation.
Applicants may apply online using the Electronic Loan Application (ELA) via SBA’s secure website at https://disasterloan.sba.gov/ela.
Disaster loan information and application forms may also be obtained by calling the SBA’s Customer Service Center at 800-659-2955 (800)-877-8339 for the deaf and hard-of-hearing) or by sending an email to disastercustomerservice@sba.gov. Loan applications can be downloaded from www.sba.gov/disaster. Completed applications should be mailed to: U.S. Small Business Administration, Processing and Disbursement Center, 14925 Kingsport Road, Fort Worth, TX 76155.
The deadline to apply for a working capital disaster loan is June 1st, 2015.