SBA offering disaster assistance

The Federal Small Business Development Agency (SBA) is trying to assist the Illinois small businesses that have suffered amid the COVID-19 by offering them low-interest federal working capital loans. This decision was announced by SBA administrator Jovita Carranza today. The Coronavirus Supplemental Appropriations for Preparedness and Response Act required SBA to act which it did under its own authority.

The Act was recently signed by the President to declare a disaster following a request received from Governor JB Pritzker on March 17, 2020. SBA assistance will be available throughout the state of Illinois. The assistance will also be in:

• e contiguous counties of Clinton, Des Moines, Dubuque, Jackson, Lee, Louisa, Muscatine, and Scott in Iowa
• Benton, Gibson, Knox, Lake, Newton, Posey, Sullivan, Vermillion, Vigo, and Warren in Indiana
• Ballard, Crittenden, Livingston, McCraken, and Union in Kentucky
• Cape Girardeau, Clark, Jefferson, Lewis, Lincoln, Marion, Mississippi, Perry, Pike, Ralls, Saint Charles, Saint Louis, Saint Louis City, Sainte Genevieve and Scott in Missouri
• Grant, Green, Kenosha, Laffayette, Rock, and Walworth in

Administrator Carranza said, “SBA is firmly committed to providing the most effective and customer-centric response possible to help Illinois small businesses with federal catastrophe loans. We will be quick in our efforts to help these small businesses recover from the financial impacts of coronavirus disease (COVID-19).”

SBA customer service representatives are available to answer any questions or queries about the program. Carranza said, “Small businesses, private non-profit organizations of any size, small farm cooperatives, and small aquaculture businesses that have been financially affected as a direct result of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) since January 31, 2020, they may qualify to receive economic damage disaster loans of up to $ 2 million to help meet financial obligations and operating expenses that could have been met had the disaster not occurred.”