SBA Offers Disaster Assistance to Residents of the City of Baltimore Affected by Civil Disorder

WASHINGTON, May 11, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- City of Baltimore businesses and residents affected by events surrounding the instances of unrest between April 25 – May 3, 2015, can apply for low-interest disaster loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration, SBA Administrator Maria Contreras-Sweet announced today.

Administrator Contreras-Sweet made the loans available in response to a letter from
Gov. Larry Hogan dated May 6, requesting a disaster declaration by the SBA. The declaration covers the City of Baltimore and the adjacent counties of Anne Arundel and Baltimore in Maryland.

"The SBA is strongly committed to providing the people of Maryland with the most effective and customer-focused response possible to assist businesses of all sizes, homeowners and renters access necessary credit in this time of need," said Administrator Contreras-Sweet.

SBA's customer service representatives will be available at the Disaster Loan Outreach Centers to answer questions about the disaster loan program and help individuals complete their applications.  The Centers are located in the following community and are open as indicated:

"Businesses of any size and nonprofit organizations may borrow up to $2 million to repair or replace damaged or destroyed real estate, machinery and equipment, inventory, and other business assets," said Stephen Umberger, SBA's district director in Maryland.

For small businesses, small agricultural cooperatives, small aquaculture businesses and most private nonprofit organizations, the SBA offers Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDLs) to help meet working capital needs caused by the disaster.  EIDL assistance is available regardless of whether the business suffered any physical property damage.

"Loans up to $200,000 are available to homeowners to repair or replace damaged or destroyed real estate.  Homeowners and renters are eligible for loans up to $40,000 to repair or replace damaged or destroyed personal property," said Frank Skaggs, director of SBA's Field Operations Center East in Atlanta.

Applicants may be eligible for a loan amount increase up to 20 percent of their physical damages, as verified by the SBA, to make improvements that help prevent the risk of future property damage caused by a similar disaster.

Interest rates are as low as 4 percent for businesses, 2.625 percent for nonprofit organizations, and 1.688 percent for homeowners and renters with terms up to 30 years.  Loan amount and terms are set by the SBA and are based on each applicant's financial condition.

Applicants may apply online using the Electronic Loan Application (ELA) via SBA's secure website at https://disasterloan.sba.gov/ela.

Businesses and individuals may also obtain information and loan applications by calling the SBA's Customer Service Center at 1-800-659-2955 (1-800-877-8339 for the deaf and hard-of-hearing), or by emailing [email protected]. Loan applications can also be downloaded at www.sba.gov/disaster. Completed applications should be returned to the center or mailed to: U.S. Small Business Administration, Processing and Disbursement Center, 14925 Kingsport Road, Fort Worth, TX 76155.

The filing deadline to return applications for physical property damage is July 10, 2015.  The deadline to return economic injury applications is February 11, 2016.

For more information about the SBA's Disaster Loan Program, visit our website at www.sba.gov/disaster.

Contact: Michael Lampton
Email: [email protected] 
Phone:  (404) 331-0333

Release Number: 15-227 MD 14306/14307

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SOURCE U.S. Small Business Administration

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