Politics & Government

Deadline Looms for Federal Hurricane Aid

Feds say Oct. 31 is deadline for local residents to apply for assistance from Irene's damage.

Plainview homeowners were hard hit by , whose fury struck in August and left behind millions of dollars in .

An important deadline looms for Plainview residents: the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the U.S. Small Business Administration are urging New Yorkers who have applied for disaster aid to complete and return their SBA loan applications. 

To date, SBA has approved more than $43 million in low-interest disaster loans for New Yorkers who suffered damage from Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee. 

Find out what's happening in Plainviewwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The deadline to apply for SBA disaster assistance loans for Hurricane Irene is Oct. 31. The SBA application deadline for Tropical Storm Lee is Nov. 14. The sooner flood survivors complete their applications, the sooner decisions are made.

SBA disaster loans are the primary source of long-term recovery aid. The application provides necessary information for determining assistance for each applicant.

Find out what's happening in Plainviewwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The SBA low-interest disaster loans are available to qualified renters, property owners, non-profit organizations, and businesses of any size that suffered losses due to the disaster. These loans are designed for disaster survivors not fully covered by insurance or without insurance, officials said

Anyone waiting for action from their insurance company is urged to apply – applications can be processed while you are waiting. 

Loans can provide money for relocation, refinancing and mitigation projects to reduce the risk of further flood damage. Anyone denied an SBA loan has the right to ask for reconsideration. In many cases, SBA can, on further review, reverse such a decision, according to SBA officials.

For more information, call the SBA at 1-800-659-2955 or visit the SBA web site at www.sba.gov.


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