§636k Reports on Disaster Assistance

Summary

The Administrator must send regular reports to four Congressional committees: the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, the Senate Committee on Appropriations, the House Committee on Small Business, and the House Committee on Appropriations. By the fifth business day of each month during a major disaster period, the Administrator must report on how the disaster loan program operated in the prior month. Those monthly reports must show lending activity (daily and weekly averages in number and dollars and how those amounts changed), money spent and money available for loans (both appropriations and program level) and where extra funds came from, estimates of how long loan and salary funds will last, staff numbers and costs, and administrative costs, with percent changes since the last report. During a disaster update period, the Administration must also send weekly reports to the Senate and House Small Business committees about the disaster area, including staff allocations, daily application counts and their status (received, pending entry, withdrawn, declined, in process, approved) with State breakdowns, daily dollar amounts approved and disbursed, totals since the last report, and key dates and number of counties in the declaration. If the Administrator declares eligibility for additional assistance under paragraph (9) of section 636(b), monthly reports must list applications distributed and received, average approval times, amounts approved, initial disbursement times, and amounts disbursed. When the Administrator tells any committee that the loan program needs supplemental funding in a fiscal year, the two Small Business committees must get a written notice the same day. Not later than 6 months after the President declares a major disaster, and every 6 months until 18 months after that declaration, the Administrator must report on Federal contracts awarded because of the disaster, including totals and counts for contracts given to small businesses, women and minority-owned businesses, and local businesses. Also, not later than 6 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator must give the Senate and House Small Business committees a report with recommendations and plans to improve loan processing. That report must cover staffing during disasters, ways to speed processing and disbursement, using alternative repayment checks (including pre-disaster credit scores), fast-tracking loans for businesses vital to recovery, any needed legislative changes from the Accelerated Disaster Response Initiative, and how the Administration will coordinate with its technical assistance programs.