Chicago – (HINA) The U.S. Small Business Administration is offering low-interest federal disaster loans for working capital to Illinois small businesses suffering substantial economic injury as a result of the Coronavirus (COVID-19), SBA Administrator Jovita Carranza announced.
SBA acted under its own authority, as provided by the Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act that was recently signed by the President, to declare a disaster following a request received from Gov. JB Pritzker on March 17, 2020.
The disaster declaration makes SBA assistance available in the entire state of Illinois; and the 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, McCracken 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; and Grant, Green, Kenosha, Lafayette, Rock and Walworth in Wisconsin.
“SBA is strongly committed to providing the most effective and customer-focused response possible to assist Illinois small businesses with federal disaster loans. We will be swift in our efforts to help these small businesses recover from the financial impacts of the Coronavirus (COVID-19),” Administrator Carranza said.
The disaster declaration submitted by Gov. Pritzker was supported by information from affected Illinois small businesses gathered by the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity.
“Our businesses are already hurting due to the effects of COVID-19, and the root of that pain isn’t going away anytime soon,” Gov. Pritzker said. “My administration is working expeditiously to mitigate the challenges small businesses are facing, and I appreciate the U.S. SBA’s prompt approval of Illinois’ Economic Injury Declaration. I also want to thank our federal elected officials, especially Senators Durbin and Duckworth, for their support on behalf of small businesses across all 102 of our counties.”
SBA representatives will be available to answer questions about the Economic Injury Disaster Loan program and explain the application process. Small business owners can find the nearest resource at https://www.sba.gov/local-assistance/, email the SBA Illinois District Office at Illinois.do@sba.gov, or call (312) 353-4528 with questions.
“Small businesses, private non-profit organizations of any size, small agricultural cooperatives and small aquaculture enterprises that have been financially impacted as a direct result of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) since Jan. 31, 2020, may qualify for Economic Injury Disaster Loans of up to $2 million to help meet financial obligations and operating expenses which could have been met had the disaster not occurred,” Carranza said.
“These loans may be used to pay fixed debts, payroll, accounts payable and other bills that can’t be paid because of the disaster’s impact. Disaster loans can provide vital economic assistance to small businesses to help overcome the temporary loss of revenue they are experiencing,” Carranza added.
Eligibility for Economic Injury Disaster Loans is based on the financial impact of the Coronavirus (COVID-19). The interest rate is 3.75 percent for small businesses. The interest rate for private non-profit organizations is 2.75 percent. SBA offers loans with long-term repayments in order to keep payments affordable, up to a maximum of 30 years and are available to entities without the financial ability to offset the adverse impact without hardship.
Applicants may apply online, receive additional disaster assistance information and download applications at https://disasterloan.sba.gov/ela. Applicants may also call SBA’s Customer Service Center at (800) 659-2955 or email disastercustomerservice@sba.gov for more information on SBA disaster assistance. Individuals who are deaf or hard?of?hearing may call (800) 877-8339. 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 an Economic Injury Disaster Loan is Dec. 21, 2020. For more information about Coronavirus, please visit Coronavirus.gov.
For more information about available SBA resources and services, please visit SBA.gov/coronavirus.
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