Tag: U.S. Small Business Administration

Final Week To Apply For Federal Aid Over April Storms, Floods

Renters and homeowners have just over one week to apply for aid from the federal government over storms and flooding that struck West Virginia in early April.

Renters and homeowners have just over one week to apply for aid from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) over storms and flooding that struck West Virginia on April 11 and 12.

FEMA can help fund basic needs and repair projects spurred by storm damage in Boone, Hancock, Kanawha, Marshall, Ohio, Roane, Wetzel and Wood counties. The funds cannot apply to repairs already covered by insurance.

Residents of Brooke, Doddridge, Gilmer, Lincoln and Tyler counties may also be eligible for public assistance on the state or local level.

President Joe Biden approved FEMA’s disaster declaration for the storms in May, opening affected West Virginia regions to federal aid. Applications for the current round of aid to West Virginia were initially due in September, but the agency extended its deadline to Nov. 2.

This year, FEMA announced it streamlined its disaster aid application process, removing some application requirements.

West Virginia residents may also be eligible for financial support from the United States Small Business Administration (SBA). However, loan offers may be delayed “due to a lapse in congressional funding,” according to the SBA website.

Property and business owners from counties affected by the storm can apply for low-interest disaster relief loans from the SBA to offset financial losses. The deadline to apply for these loans is also Nov. 2.

Individuals seeking FEMA aid can apply online, or over the phone at 1-800-621-3362. For more information on eligibility and financial aid for the April storms, visit the agency’s website.

Individuals interested in applying for SBA loans can also do so online. For more information, residents can also contact the SBA over the phone at 1-800-659-2955, or over email at disastercustomerservice@sba.gov.

Two Weeks Remain To Apply For Aid Related To April Storms

Just weeks remain for residents to apply for financial assistance with FEMA and the SBA over storms and flooding that struck the state April 11 and 12. Forms of aid available range from assistance for home repairs to business loans.

Residents have until Sept. 3 to apply for storm-related financial assistance with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the United States Small Business Administration (SBA). 

The aid can help with the cost of repairs due to storms and flooding that struck West Virginia on April 11 and 12.

Renters and homeowners in Boone, Hancock, Kanawha, Marshall, Ohio, Roane, Wetzel and Wood counties can seek financial aid from FEMA to cover their basic needs, property damages and repair projects tied to the inclement weather, among other costs.

Residents and business owners from these counties can also seek disaster relief loans from the SBA to offset financial losses from the storms.

Eligible parties seeking emergency aid from FEMA can apply for assistance online at disasterassistance.gov, by calling the agency at 1-800-621-3362 or by visiting their local disaster recovery center.

Residents and business owners can apply for SBA loans online at the agency’s website. They can also contact the SBA over the phone at 1-800-659-2955, or over email at disastercustomerservice@sba.gov.

New Food Entrepreneurship Hub Slated For Charleston

The West Virginia National Guard is opening a new entrepreneurial center in Charleston with a nearly $600,000 grant from the U.S. Small Business Administration.

A business center slated for Charleston aims to provide new resources to entrepreneurs in the culinary sector, including office areas, recipe design spaces and a test kitchen.

The United States Small Business Administration (SBA) announced Thursday it will grant the West Virginia National Guard $595,000 to establish a small business hub in the state capital “with a specific emphasis on food production and innovation.”

The new center will find good company in Charleston, a city already home to multiple other small business incubators — like the University of Charleston Downtown Innovation Hub and the West Virginia Small Business Development Center.

Adjutant General for the State of West Virginia William Crane said in a press release that the new funding will allow the National Guard to expand current entrepreneurial resources within the state’s veteran community and beyond.

The West Virginia Military Authority currently operates a program called Patriot Guardens, which provides “agricultural education and hands-on learning opportunities to veterans, active duty members of the military and their​ families,” according to the program’s website.

Crane said Thursday that the Patriot Guardens program serves as a stepping stone for veteran and military-affiliated West Virginians looking to enter agricultural entrepreneurship. He expects the new small business hub to expand upon those resources.

The small business center will offer “greater educational, financial and business opportunities,” and will support the Patriot Guardens program “as it continues to mature,” he said.

Sen. Joe Manchin, I-W.Va., said in the press release that he is eager to see the entrepreneurial work that can be accomplished through the new Kanawha County facility.

“I’m pleased the SBA is investing… [in] the West Virginia National Guard’s creation of an innovative small business center in Charleston,” he said. “This funding will support our veterans’ entrepreneurial endeavors, especially in food production.”

One Month Left To Apply For Business Loans Over Storm-Related Damages

Just one month remains for business owners and residents affected by extreme weather incidents in April to apply for disaster assistance loans with the United States Small Business Administration.

Just one month remains for business owners and residents affected by extreme weather incidents in April to apply for disaster assistance loans with the United States Small Business Administration (SBA).

The SBA is currently accepting applications for its low-interest disaster loan, which can subsidize property and structure repair costs that are not already covered by insurance providers.

There is no application fee associated with the disaster loans, and applicants can choose to accept or deny the loans offered to them. The loans also do not accrue interest or have required payments for the first 12 months after they are granted.

Additionally, the SBA is accepting applications for its Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program.

Granted to private nonprofits and small businesses, these loans do not require proof of physical damages. Instead, the EIDL program grants participants a capital loan, which helps them cover operating expenses as they recover from disaster-related revenue loss.

While insurance coverage might affect the size of the loan applicants receive, Stephen Clark, public affairs specialist for the SBA, said resident and business owners should not hesitate to begin the application process.

“Disaster survivors should not wait to settle with their insurance company before applying,” he wrote in a Thursday email to West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

“If a survivor does not know how much of their loss will be covered by insurance or other sources, SBA can make a low-interest disaster loan for the total loss up to its loan limits, provided the borrower agrees to use insurance proceeds to reduce or repay the loan,” he said.

The deadline to apply for both loans is July 22.

Residents and businesses in 11 West Virginia counties — Boone, Cabell, Fayette, Kanawha, Lincoln, Marshall, Nicholas, Ohio, Putnam, Wayne and Wetzel counties — are eligible to apply for the loans.

With the approval of President Joe Biden, the April weather incidents were declared a major disaster for the 11 counties, opening them to federal disaster aid.

In addition to the SBA loans, residents, workers and businesses in these counties may also be eligible to apply for financial assistance with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and WorkForce West Virginia.

Additional financial support for businesses and residents affected by April's severe weather is also available through WorkForce West Virginia.

Photo Credit: Jack Walker/West Virginia Public Broadcasting

Residents and business owners can apply for the loans online at the SBA website.

For more information on the loan application process, prospective applicants can schedule an appointment at the SBA’s business recovery centers in the Charleston Area Alliance or the U.S. Army Reserve Center in Wheeling.

The SBA can also provide information on the loans over the phone at 1-800-659-2955, or via email at disastercustomerservice@sba.gov. Prospective applicants with speech or hearing accessibility needs can dial 7-1-1 for telecommunications relay services that can connect to the SBA service number.

Deadline Nears To Apply For Storm Loans In 5 W.Va. Counties

Small private nonprofit organizations in five West Virginia counties have a few more weeks to apply for federal loans for economic losses from several winter storms last February.

The U.S. Small Business Administration said Feb. 14 is the filing deadline for the Economic Injury Disaster Loans from storms on Feb. 10 to 16, 2021. Eligible counties are Cabell, Lincoln, Mason, Putnam and Wayne.

Types of organizations eligible include food kitchens, homeless shelters, museums, libraries, community centers, schools, colleges and others.

The loans are offered to help the organizations meet needs such as ongoing operating expenses.

To apply online, visit DisasterLoanAssistance.sba.gov/ela/s under SBA declaration #16982, not for the COVID-19 incident.

Businesses in Two W.Va. Counties Eligible for Disaster Loans

Some small businesses in two West Virginia counties are eligible to apply for economic injury disaster loans as a result of storms last year.

The U.S. Small Business Administration said the loans are available to small businesses, small agricultural cooperatives, small businesses engaged in aquaculture and private nonprofit organizations in Hardy and Pendleton counties.

The loans are available as a result of a drought disaster declaration by the agriculture secretary covering the effects of rain, flash flooding, flooding and hail that began April 15, 2018.

Kem Fleming of SBA’s Field Operations Center East says Hardy and Pendleton counties are eligible because they are contiguous to one or more primary counties in Virginia.

Applications may be made online or by calling (800) 659-2955, or (800) 877-8339 for the hearing impaired.

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