Nonprofits eligible to apply for low-interest disaster loans, up to $2 million for repairs

SOUTHERN VERMONT - The US Small Business Administration announced that certain private nonprofit organizations in Bennington and Windham counties may be eligible to apply for low-interest disaster loans. These loans are available following a presidential disaster declaration for public assistance resulting from damages caused by severe storms and flooding on July 29 and 30, 2021.
PNP organizations are eligible if they do not provide critical services of a governmental nature. Examples of eligible noncritical 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%, with  terms up to 30 years. Applicants may be eligible for a loan amount increase up to 20% of their physical damages, as verified by the SBA, for mitigation purposes. Eligible mitigation improvements may include a safe room or storm shelter, sump pump, or French drain to help protect property and occupants from future damage caused by a similar disaster.
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.
Applicants may apply online using the electronic loan application via SBA’s secure website at https://disasterloanassistance.sba.gov/ela/s/, and should apply under SBA declaration #17204, not for the COVID-19 incident. Disaster loan information and application forms may also be obtained by calling the SBA’s customer service center at (800) 659-2955, or (800) 877-8339 for the deaf and hard-of-hearing. It can also be obtained by sending an email to disastercustomerservice@sba.gov. Loan applications can also be downloaded from 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 physical property damage applications is Monday, November 29. The deadline  to submit economic injury applications is June 29, 2022.