Pennsylvania small businesses, small farm cooperatives, small aquaculture businesses, and private nonprofit organizations, affected by various incidents related to civil or natural disasters, can apply for low-interest disaster loans from the SBA.

Kem Fleming, director of SBA’s Field Operations Center East, said in a press release: 

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, affected by the same disaster.

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Small business owners affected by any of the following episodes can approach the Business Recovery Centers (BRC) to apply for Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL).

These are the possible beneficiaries:

• Those affected by the Fountain Court shopping center fire in Pocono Township on Jun. 25, 2023. The declaration covers Monroe County and the adjacent counties of Carbon, Lackawanna, Luzerne, Northampton, Pike, and Wayne. The SBA will open a BRC in Monroe County on July 18, 2023. Interest rates are 4% for businesses and 2.375% for nonprofits, with terms up to 30 years.
• Aug. 21 is the deadline for filing working capital loans for the drought and excessive heat that occurred from Jul. 1 to Aug. 19, 2022 in New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania. Loans are available in Essex, Hunterdon, Morris, Passaic, Somerset, Sussex, Union, and Warren counties in New Jersey; Orange in New York; and Bucks, Monroe, Northampton, and Pike in Pennsylvania. The loan amount can be up to $2 million with interest rates of 2.935% for small businesses and 1.875% for private non-profit organizations, with terms of up to 30 years.
• Aug. 21 is the deadline for filing EIDL loans in Pennsylvania due to economic losses from the drought that occurred from Apr. 7 to Oct. 3, 2022. The declaration covers the main counties of Berks, Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Lancaster Lebanon, Lehigh, Montgomery, Northampton, Philadelphia, and Schuylkill.
• Also, Aug. 21 is the filing deadline for federal working capital loans in Northumberland County and adjacent counties in Pennsylvania for economic losses due to the drought that occurred from Jun. 10 to Aug. 31, 2022. The declaration covers Columbia, Dauphin, Juniata, Lycoming, Montour, Northumberland, Perry, Schuylkill, Snyder, and Union counties.
• The same deadline applies for those affected by the drought that occurred from Jun. 1 to Aug. 31, 2022. This statement covers Bradford, Columbia, Luzerne, Lycoming, Sullivan, Susquehanna, Tioga, and Wyoming counties.

#SmallBiz counseling, mentoring, and training are just a few clicks away!

Find SBA resource partners near you with the local assistance tool: https://t.co/oG9al18RwZ pic.twitter.com/AKiHb5YqGR

— SBA (@SBAgov) July 13, 2023

“We’re committed to providing federal disaster loans swiftly and efficiently, with a customer-centric approach to help businesses and communities recover and rebuild,” highlighted Isabel Casillas Guzmán, SBA’s administrator. 

SBA determines eligibility based on the size of the applicant, the type of activity and their financial resources. Loan amounts and terms are set by the SBA and are based on each applicant's financial condition.

These working capital loans can be used to pay fixed debts, payroll, accounts payable, and other bills that could have been paid if the disaster had not occurred. Loans are not intended to replace lost sales or profits.