Small Business Administration offers disaster aid to Illinois small businesses hit by storms

Illinois small businesses, small agricultural cooperatives, small aquaculture businesses, and private nonprofit organizations affected by the severe storms in Illinois on March 31 may apply for low-interest Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDLs) from the U.S. Small Business Administration, SBA Administrator Isabella Casillas Guzman announced Tuesday.

Guzman made the loans available in response to a letter from Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker on June 29, requesting a disaster declaration by the SBA. Eligible applicants in the declared area can
now apply for low-interest disaster loans from the SBA, a news release says. The declaration covers Boone, DuPage, Lee and Sangamon counties and the adjacent counties of Bureau, Cass, Christian, Cook, DeKalb, Kane, Kendall, LaSalle, Logan, Macon, Macoupin, McHenry, Menard, Montgomery, Morgan, Ogle, Whiteside, Will and Winnebago in Illinois; and Rock and Walworth in Wisconsin.

“SBA’s mission-driven team stands ready to help Illinois small businesses, small agricultural
cooperatives, small aquaculture businesses, and private nonprofit organizations impacted by the
March 31 severe storms in Illinois,” said Guzman. “We’re committed to providing federal
disaster loans swiftly and efficiently, with a customer-centric approach to help businesses and
communities recover and rebuild.”

“For eligible applicants, the SBA offers Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) to help meet working capital needs caused by the disaster,” said SBA’s Illinois Acting District Director Mark Ferguson.

Interest rates are 4 percent for businesses and 2.375 percent for nonprofit organizations, with terms up to 30 years. Loan amounts and terms are set by the SBA and are based on each applicant’s financial condition.

Applicants may apply online using the Electronic Loan Application (ELA) via SBA’s secure website here and should apply under SBA declaration #17983, not for the COVID-19 incident, the release says.

For disaster loan information and application forms, call the SBA’s Customer Service Center at 800-659-2955 (800-877-8339 for the deaf and hard-of-hearing) or email . Download applications at . Return completed applications to the center or mail to U.S. Small Business Administration, Processing and Disbursement Center, 14925 Kingsport Road, Fort Worth, TX 76155.

The filing deadline to return economic injury applications is April 3, 2024.