SBA Disaster Assistance

As the Corona virus crisis continues to unfold, its impacts on the small businesses of Frederick County continues to grow. Restaurants, bars and many other retail establishments are already shut down entirely and pending restrictions in the state further threaten manufacturing and service businesses already severely impacted by supply chain reductions.

In an attempt to help offset the losses that these local small businesses face, the US Small Business Administration (SBA) is making available low interest business loans under the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) Program.

The disaster declaration for Frederick County has been approved and the system is now accepting applications. https://disasterloan.sba.gov/ela  

Loan amounts up to $2M are possible at rates around 3.75% and terms up to 30 years. Loans up to $25,000 can be unsecured, requiring little or no collateral. Initial repayment of the loan will be deferred by at least 5 months in order to give businesses time to recover. The loans are made directly by the SBA and no commercial lenders are involved. There is no cost to apply and no obligation to take any loan offered. 

In addition to completing the online forms, applicants will be asked to scan and upload the businesses’ most recent tax return. For additional information on the program please contact:

SBA disaster assistance customer service center. Call 1-800-659-2955 (TTY: 1-800-877-8339), e-mail disastercustomerservice@sba.gov.

Frederick County Small Business Development Center, Robert Bower- Counselor (240) 524-1775, email: rbower@umd.edu.