ATLANTA, Ga. (CLARKSVILLENOW) – The U.S. Small Business Administration announced today that Economic Injury Disaster Loans are available to small business, small agricultural cooperatives, small businesses engaged in aquaculture and private non-profit organizations located in Tennessee as a result of rain and flooding from May 1, 2018 through February 25, 2019.
The loans are available for counties throughout Tennessee including: Cheatham, Dickson, Montgomery, Robertson, and Stewart.
“When the Secretary of Agriculture issues a disaster declaration to help farmers recover from damages and losses to crops, the Small Business Administration issues a declaration to eligible entities, effected by the same disaster,” said Kem Fleming, director of SBA’s Field Operations Center East.
Under this declaration, the SBA’s Economic Injury Disaster Loan program is available to eligible farm-related and non-farm related entities that suffered financial losses as a direct result of this disaster. With the exceptoon of aquaculture enterprises, SBA cannot provide disaster loans to agricultural producers, farmers, and ranchers.
The loan amount can be up to $2 million with interest rates of 3.61 percent for small business and 2.5 percent for private non-profit organizations, with terms up to 30 years. The SBA determines eligibility based on the size of the applicant, type of activity and its financial resources.
Loan amounts and terms are set by the SBA and are based on each applicant’s financial condition. These working capital loans may be used to pay fixed debts, payroll, accounts payable, and other bills that could have been paid had the disaster not occurred. The loans are not intended to replace lost sales or profits.
Applicants may apply online using the Electronic Loan Application (ELA) via SBA’s secure website at Disasterloan.sba.gov.