The federal government is offering low-interest loans to businesses and nonprofits in Rhode Island that suffered damage in February’s record-breaking blizzard.
The U.S. Small Business Association said it is offering its Economic Injury Disaster Loan program to eligible small businesses, small agricultural cooperatives and nonprofits with financial losses directly related to the storm in all of Rhode Island, as well as some counties in Connecticut and Massachusetts.
SBA representative Elizabeth Canfil says loans will only be given to people who suffered economic losses, not property losses.
“Individuals and business owners can look at those recouped losses,” Canfil said, “whether it was folks not coming into a restaurant due to the bad roads, whether it was a nonprofit hosting a fundraiser that they needed to cancel, and apply for these federal loans.”
The blizzard that struck Rhode Island in February dropped as much as 38 inches of snow in Warwick, while battering the rest of the state with snow, high winds and power outages. It took days for many people to dig out, and required the help of heavy-duty crews from out of state.
The storm caused many billions in damage and economic losses, according to preliminary estimates.
Now, affected entities can receive up to $2 million in federal disaster loans, with interest rates as low as 4% for small businesses and 3.625% for nonprofits. Loan recipients won’t be required to make payments for the first year, and interest will not accrue during that time.
“So this gives folks who do receive that loan a bit of breathing space so they’re not jumping right into the first monthly payment, but rather they have that space over those 365 days to build their business,” Canfield said.
Elected officials in both Rhode Island and Massachusetts had requested federal government support in the wake of the storm.
“These SBA loans can provide important support as businesses and nonprofits continue to recover,” Rhode Island Gov. Dan McKee said in a statement. “We thank the federal government for approving this declaration and making resources available.”
The storm dropped as much as 2.5 feet of snow in Massachusetts.
“The February blizzard forced many businesses to close for days and disrupted economic activity across Southeastern Massachusetts,” Massachusetts Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll said in a separate statement. “This assistance will help businesses and nonprofit organizations recover from those losses and move forward stronger.”
Prospective applicants can find more information at sba.gov/disaster.
Ocean State Media’s Jeremy Bernfeld contributed to this story.
