How will your business survive if one or more of your essential employees who
is a military reservist is called to active duty? Big businesses can usually
have the resources to hire someone new on a temporary basis or temporarily
transfer responsibility for the reservist's to another employee. But small
businesses usually don't have that luxury. The temporary loss of one or more key
employees can disrupt normal business activities, making some small businesses
unable to pay normal operating expenses.
If you have key employees who are military reservists (or you are one
yourself) who could be called to duty, you should be aware of The US Small
Business Administration (SBA) Military Reservist Economic Injury Disaster Loan
Program (MREIDLs). The program, addresses the financial needs of a small
business because a key employee (including an owner/operator) is a reservist and
has been called to active military duty.
It provides loans to eligible small businesses to cover operating expenses that
would have been met, but cannot be met because an essential employee was called
to active duty during a period of military conflict in his or her role as a
military reservist.
"With the possibility of continued conflict in America's war on terrorism,
men and women from across the country who serve in America's reserve military
forces will answer the call to support the nation's military effort," said SBA
Administrator Hector V. Barreto.
"Some of these men and women may be key employees at small businesses, and
their call-up, even for a short period of time, can have a financial impact on
small companies," Barreto added. "This low-interest loan program can provide the
money necessary to support these small businesses, and the availability of the
on-line form will simplify the application process."
Small businesses may apply for MREIDLs of up to $l.5 million if they have
been financially affected by the loss of a key employee. These working capital
loans may be used to pay fixed debts, payroll, accounts payable, and other bills
that cannot otherwise be paid. The interest rate on these loans is 4 percent,
with a maximum term of 30 years. The SBA determines the amount of economic
injury, the term of each loan and the payment amount, based on the financial
circumstances of each borrower.
The filing period begins the date the essential employee is ordered to active
duty and ends 90 days after the date the employee is discharged from active
duty.
Applications for the Military Reservists Disaster Loan can now be downloaded
from the SBA's web site at
http://www.sba.gov/disaster/mreidl.html. Or, contact one of the four SBA
disaster area offices listed below to obtain an application.
For additional information about the program download the program overview
from the SBA at
http://www.sba.gov/disaster/mreidl.pdf. There is also a FAQ page about the
program at
http://www.sba.gov/disaster/mreidlall.html
SBA DISASTER AREA OFFICES
Small Business Administration
Disaster Area 1 Office
360 Rainbow Blvd. S., 3rd Fl.
Niagara Falls, NY 14303
1-800-659-2955
(716) 282-4612
Serves: Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Maine, Maryland,
Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico,
Rhode Island, U.S. Virgin Islands, Vermont, Virginia and West Virginia
Small Business Administration
Disaster Area 2 Office
One Baltimore Pl., Ste. 300
Atlanta, GA 30308
1-800-359-2227
(404) 347-3771
Serves: Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan,
Minnesota, Mississippi, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee, and
Wisconsin
Small Business Administration
Disaster Area 3 Office
4400 Amon Carter Blvd., Ste. 102
Ft. Worth, TX, 76155
1-800-366-6303
(817) 684-5600
Serves: Arkansas, Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Missouri, Montana,
Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, Utah and
Wyoming
Small Business Administration
Disaster Area 4 Office
P.O. Box 13795
Sacramento, CA 95853-4795
1-800-488-5323
(916) 566-7240
Serves: Alaska, American Samoa, Arizona, California, Commonwealth of the
Northern Mariana Islands, Federated States of Micronesia,Guam, Hawaii,Idaho,
Nevada, Oregon, Republic of the Marshall Islands and Washington
