The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) has issued a reminder for eligible small businesses and private nonprofit organizations in North Dakota regarding the deadline to apply for low-interest federal disaster loans. These loans are intended to offset economic losses caused by adverse weather conditions that affected several counties.
The disaster declarations cover specific counties under different incident types. Declaration 20941 includes Burke, Mercer, and Oliver as primary counties with neighboring counties like Burleigh and Divide affected by drought, heat, and winds from July 30 to October 6, 2024. Declaration 20942 involves Cavalier, Pembina, Ransom, and Sargent as primary counties impacted by excessive rain and flooding from April 1 to October 1, 2024. Sioux County is listed under Declaration 20943 for wildfires and high winds between September 12 and October 2, 2024.
Under these declarations, the SBA's Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program is available to small businesses, small agricultural cooperatives, nurseries, and private nonprofits that experienced financial losses due to the disasters. However, the SBA cannot provide disaster loans to agricultural producers such as farmers or ranchers unless they are small aquaculture enterprises.
EIDLs can be used for working capital needs caused by the disaster even if there was no physical damage. The loans can cover fixed debts, payroll, accounts payable, and other unpaid bills resulting from the disaster.
“Through a declaration by the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, SBA provides critical financial assistance to help communities recover,” said Chris Stallings 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 3.25% for private nonprofits over terms up to 30 years. Interest does not accrue until a year after the first loan disbursement date.
To apply online or get more information about disaster assistance visit sba.gov/disaster or contact SBA’s Customer Service Center at (800) 659-2955 or email disastercustomerservice@sba.gov. For those who are deaf or hard of hearing dial 7-1-1 for telecommunications relay services.
Completed loan applications must be submitted by August 25.
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