The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) is reminding small businesses and private nonprofit organizations in Minnesota of the upcoming deadline to apply for federal disaster loans. These loans aim to offset economic losses due to excessive rain and flooding from May 26 to July 31, 2024.
The affected areas include Beltrami, Clearwater, Marshall, Pennington, Polk, and Red Lake counties in Minnesota. The SBA's Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program is available for eligible small businesses, agricultural cooperatives, nurseries, and nonprofits that experienced financial losses related to the disaster. However, these loans are not available for agricultural producers such as farmers or ranchers unless they are involved in aquaculture.
EIDLs provide working capital needs caused by the disaster even if there was no physical damage. The funds can be used for fixed debts, payroll, accounts payable, and other bills that were not paid due to the flooding.
“Through a declaration by the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, SBA provides critical financial assistance to help communities recover,” said Chris Stallings, associate administrator of the Office of Disaster Recovery and Resilience at the SBA. “We’re pleased to offer loans to small businesses and private nonprofits impacted by these disasters.”
Loan amounts can reach up to $2 million with interest rates as low as 4% for small businesses and 3.62% for nonprofits. Terms can extend up to 30 years with interest accruing only after one year from the first loan disbursement. Loan amounts and terms depend on each applicant’s financial condition.
Applications can be submitted online at sba.gov/disaster or through contact with SBA’s Customer Service Center at (800) 659-2955 or via email at disastercustomerservice@sba.gov. Telecommunications relay services are available by dialing 7-1-1 for those who are deaf or hard of hearing.
The deadline for submitting economic injury applications is July 7, 2025.