Posted at 11:18 a.m., Wednesday, August 15, 2007
Loans offered to drought-affected small businesses
Advertiser Staff
Hawai'i small and non-farm businesses are eligible to apply for low-interest disaster loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration to offset economic losses caused by drought.Businesses may qualify for Economic Injury Disaster Loans of up to $1.5 million to help meet financial obligations and operating expenses that could have been met had the disaster conditions not occurred, the SBA said. Eligibility for the working capital loans is based on the financial impact of the disaster only, and not on any actual property damage, the SBA said.
The loans have an interest rate of 4 percent and a maximum term of 30 years. The SBA makes these loans available when the U.S. secretary of Agriculture designates a disaster, which was done at the request of Gov. Linda Lingle.
For information and application forms, call 800-659-2955 or visit www.sba.gov/services/disasterassistance.
