ATLANTA – The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) announced today that certain Private Non-Profit organizations (PNPs) in 12 additional Mississippi counties that do not provide critical services of a governmental nature may be eligible to apply for low-interest disaster loans for damages from severe storms, straight-line winds and flooding that occurred June 14-19, 2023.
Eligible PNP organizations in the following Mississippi counties may apply: Adams, Amite, Attala, Claiborne, Copiah, Covington, Franklin, Greene, Holmes, Humphreys, Itawamba, Jackson, Jasper, Jefferson, Jefferson Davis, Jones, Lawrence, Leake, Neshoba, Newton, Perry, Rankin, Scott, Simpson, Smith, Warren, Wayne, Yazoo and the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians. Examples of eligible non-critical PNP organizations include, but are not limited to, food kitchens, homeless shelters, museums, libraries, community centers, schools, and colleges.
PNP organizations may borrow up to $2 million to repair or replace damaged or destroyed real estate, machinery and equipment, inventory, and other business assets. The interest rate is 2.375 percent, with terms up to 30 years.
Applicants may be eligible for a loan amount increase of up to 20 percent of their physical damages, as verified by the SBA, for mitigation purposes. Eligible mitigation improvements might include insulating pipes, walls and attics, weather stripping doors and windows, and installing storm windows to help protect property and occupants from future damage caused by a similar disaster.
The SBA also offers Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) to help meet working capital needs, such as ongoing operating expenses for PNP organizations. EIDL assistance is available regardless of whether the organization suffered any physical property damage.
PNP organizations are urged to contact their county’s emergency manager to provide information about their organization. The information will be submitted to FEMA to determine eligibility for a Public Assistance grant or whether the PNP should be referred to SBA for disaster loan assistance. Applicants may apply online using the Electronic Loan Application (ELA) via the SBA’s secure website at DisasterLoanAssistance.sba.gov/ela/s/ and should apply under SBA declaration # 18026.
Disaster loan information and application forms may also be obtained by calling the SBA’s Customer Service Center at 800-659-2955 (if you are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability, please dial 7-1-1 to access telecommunications relay services), or by sending an email to DisasterCustomerService@sba.gov. Loan applications can be downloaded from the SBA’s website at 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 filing deadline to submit applications for physical property damage is Oct. 11, 2023. The deadline to submit economic injury applications is May 13, 2024.
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