LOS ANGELES — Small-business owners and nonprofit organizations that suffered physical or economic damage related to protests against police brutality that began May 26 may borrow up to $2 million in disaster-recovery loans, Los Angeles County officials announced Saturday.
Low-interest disaster-assistance loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration are available to repair or replace damaged or destroyed real estate, machinery and equipment, inventory and other business assets. The money can also be used to make improvements to protect against or prevent the same type of damage in the future.
Two key deadlines apply. Business owners must file an application by Aug. 17 for property damage, and by March 17, 2021, for economic injury. Applications can be completed online at sba.gov, by calling the SBA's customer service center at 800-659-2955 or by emailing disastercustomerservice@sba.gov. Help with filling out applications is also available at lacountyhelpcenter.org. Business owners who are deaf or hearing-impaired may call 800-877-8339.
Economic injury disaster loans, which are available regardless of whether the business suffered property damage, can be used to help meet working capital needs such as purchasing inventory, supplies and covering day-to-day expenses such as rent and payroll. However, the SBA disaster loans are only available for damages and losses due to the civil unrest and not for COVID-19 related losses.
Interest rates are based on each applicant's financial circumstances and can be as low as 3% for businesses, and 2.75% for nonprofit organizations with terms up to 30 years.