SBA Offering Economic Disaster Loans For Civil Unrest Period This Summer

By Benjamin Cox on October 15, 2020 at 5:40pm

Several West Central Illinois counties have qualified for federal assistance from the U.S. Small Business Administration for economic injury during the civil unrest that occurred in the state over the summer. Governor J.B. Pritzker announced today that the SBA has approved federal assistance to help businesses and private non-profits in more than 60 counties recover from economic injury stemming from civil unrest that took place in Illinois between May 26th and July 30th. Qualifying businesses will be eligible for up to $2 million in emergency loans for working capital, which includes operational costs, PPE, payroll, and more.

These Economic Injury Disaster Loans from the SBA are available for qualifying businesses in the following counties in West Central Illinois: Morgan and Sangamon with the contiguous counties of Brown, Cass, Greene, Macoupin, Pike, Schuyler, and Scott also able to apply.

Illinois Emergency Management Agency Director Alicia Tate-Nadeau said in a press release this afternoon that her organization is exploring as many avenues as possible to expedite the recovery process for homeowners, business owners, and non-profit organizations throughout the state from the unprecedented upheaval brought on by COVID-19 along with the civil unrest created by social justice protests.

Economic Injury Disaster Loans provide economic relief to small businesses and private non-profit organizations that experienced temporary loss of revenue due to a disaster or emergency. These SBA loans can help businesses meet their financial obligations and cover operational expenses that could have been met had the disaster not occurred. The loan amount is based on the actual economic injury of the business and its financial needs, regardless of whether the business suffered any property damage. The Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity estimates that more than $32 million in economic losses associated with the civil unrest over the summer were made across Illinois.

Applicants can receive assistance over the web at the SBA’s Virtual Business Recovery Center which is open 7-days a week from 8AM to 8PM. For information on it’s operation, email FOCE-Help@sba.gov or individuals can phone 1-800-659-2955. The Deaf and Hard of Hearing Community can request assistance at 1-800-877-8339. Additionally, business advisors at any of Illinois’ 42 Small Business Development Centers are available to help with the application process in person or over the phone. Contact information for the nearest Small Business Development Center can be found on the sba.gov website.

The filing deadline to return applications for economic injury applications is July 13, 2021.