Kentucky Storms Trigger Presidential Aid: Loans Open for Damage Recovery
Published Date: 3/3/2025
Notice
Summary
Kentucky just got hit hard by storms, flooding, and mudslides starting February 14, 2025, and the President declared it a major disaster on February 24. People and businesses in certain counties can now apply for disaster loans to help fix damage or recover lost income, with deadlines on April 25 for physical damage and November 24 for economic injury loans. This means money and support are on the way to help Kentucky bounce back stronger!
Analyzed Economic Effects
4 provisions identified: 3 benefits, 0 costs, 1 mixed.
Disaster Loans Available for Primary Counties
Because the President declared a major disaster on February 24, 2025, people and businesses in the Primary Counties can apply for SBA disaster loans for physical damage and economic injury. The Primary Counties are Breathitt, Clay, Harlan, Knott, Lee, Letcher, Martin, Owsley, Perry, and Pike, and the physical damage application deadline is April 25, 2025 while the economic injury deadline is November 24, 2025.
Economic Injury Loans for Contiguous Counties
Certain Contiguous Counties are eligible only for Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL), which help small businesses and small agricultural cooperatives with working capital. The Contiguous Counties listed are Kentucky: Bell, Estill, Floyd, Jackson, Johnson, Knox, Laurel, Lawrence, Leslie, Magoffin, Powell, Wolfe; Virginia: Buchanan, Dickenson, Lee, Wise; and West Virginia: Mingo, Wayne, and the EIDL application deadline is November 24, 2025.
SBA Disaster Loan Interest Rates Specified
The notice lists specific interest rates for SBA disaster loans. For physical damage loans: homeowners with credit available elsewhere 5.125%, homeowners without 2.563%, businesses with credit 8.000%, businesses without credit 4.000%, and non-profits 3.625%; for economic injury loans: businesses and small agricultural cooperatives without credit 4.000% and non-profits without credit 3.625%.
How and Where to Apply
You can apply for these SBA disaster loans online at the MySBA Loan Portal: https://lending.sba.gov, or at other locally announced locations; the notice also gives an SBA disaster assistance email ([email protected]) and phone number 1-800-659-2955 for help. The declaration numbers are 209776 for physical damage and 209780 for economic injury.
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