Sandy Help Still Available

    Working capital small business loans are still available to small businesses, agricultural cooperatives, and private, nonprofit organizations who have unpaid bills and lost business due to Hurricane Sandy. The Small Business Association loans have a cap of $2 million for physical damage and economic injury, and are also available to homeowners associations and planned unit developments.

    The deadline to apply for a Small Business Association disaster loan is Feb. 27 for physical damage and July 31 for economic injury. Applications can be completed online at disasterloansba.gov/ela, at a New York State Federal Emergency Management Agency disaster recovery center, whose locations are listed at fema.gov, or a business recovery center, which can be found at sba.gov. The first payment for a disaster loan will be deferred for five months from the date of issuance. More information can be requested by e-mail to [email protected].

    A 14-day extension to FEMA’s Transitional Sheltering Assistance program has also been announced. The program enables eligible survivors from Hurricane Sandy who cannot return to their houses, to stay in participating hotels or motels with the cost of the room and taxes paid directly to the hotel by FEMA. The new checkout date is Feb. 24, when the federal agency promised to work in coordination with state, local, and voluntary agency partners to assist applicants’ transition to more suitable temporary or long-term housing. More information on New York’s disaster recovery can be found on their Twitter or Facebook pages.