Essential Hurricane Relief Resources: Grants, Loans, and Support for Small Businesses
Over the past month Florida, North Carolina, Georgia, South Carolina, and Tennessee have been battered by hurricanes, leaving many business owners searching for ways to put their lives and their businesses back together. Members of our team listening to a Marketplace podcast heard that many small business owners did not know how to find funding to help them rebuild their lives and businesses.
So our Squared Compass team thought, we specialize in helping small businesses find grants and other funding opportunities to sustain and grow operations. Let’s get this information out there in the hopes of helping our fellow Americans. So, here’s an overview of how you can identify grants and other funding opportunities to help sustain your business as you recover from recent natural disasters.
Government Resources
Monitor federal, state, and local government websites for funding programs specifically aimed at disaster recovery. Key sources include:
Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA): Provides post-disaster recovery grants.
U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA): Offers low-interest disaster loans and grants.
State and Local Economic Development Agencies: Many states launch special funding initiatives after disasters to support local businesses.
Grant Databases and Search Tools
Databases and grant search sites provide updated lists on available grants and funding opportunities.
Grants.gov: The central hub for federal grants.
State Grant Portals: State grant portals provide a list of state sponsored grants and funding opportunities.
Local Community Foundations: Community foundations are nonprofit organizations that manage and distribute charitable funds from donors to support local community needs, including disaster relief, education, and economic development.
Private Grant Portals: Online portals, such as Grant Watch, are subscription based portals that list grants from private foundations and corporations that focus on disaster relief and small business recovery.
Private Foundations and Nonprofits
Private foundations and nonprofit organizations often create disaster relief funds.
The Red Cross and other disaster-focused nonprofits.
Local community foundations that raise funds for rebuilding efforts.
Corporate foundations that may offer recovery-specific grants for small businesses.
Networking with Financial Institutions
Banks and credit unions often provide disaster recovery loans or grants.
Local financial institutions to explore low-interest loans or specialized recovery funds.
Credit unions that may have flexibility in their funding options for local businesses.
Staying Updated on Emerging Programs
New funding programs frequently emerge in response to specific disasters. Monitor announcements from:
Local Chambers of Commerce and business development centers.
Industry-specific associations that may offer emergency relief funds or resources tailored to certain business sectors.
Tailored Research for Specific Needs
Each business's situation is unique. When researching, take into account:
The industry of the business.
The severity of the impact from the hurricane.
The geographic location, as some funds are region-specific.
The size and structure of the business to match them with the most suitable opportunities.
FEMA Assistance is Available for People Affected by Hurricane Helene
FEMA provides various forms of assistance to help individuals and families recover from disasters. Eligible recipients in designated areas can receive aid for:
Serious Needs Assistance: An initial, flexible payment for essential items like food, water, and emergency supplies while waiting for additional funds.
Displacement Assistance: Funds for temporary housing if the disaster prevents returning home, such as hotel stays or staying with friends and family.
Personal Property: Help to repair or replace damaged household items, computers, tools, and items necessary for school or work.
Medical/Dental: Coverage for disaster-related medical expenses, equipment, and medication replacement.
Funeral: Assistance for funeral expenses related to the disaster.
Childcare: Funds to cover increased childcare costs caused by the disaster.
Miscellaneous Items: Assistance for essential recovery tools or equipment like generators or chainsaws.
Transportation: Help to repair or replace a damaged vehicle.
Moving and Storage: Funds for moving and storing personal items to prevent further damage during repairs.
Group Flood Insurance Policy: Coverage for homes in flood-prone areas for three years.
Clean and Sanitize: Funds to address minor damage and prevent additional loss or health risks.
Housing Assistance includes:
Rental Assistance: Funds for renting housing when displaced.
Lodging Reimbursement: Reimbursement for emergency hotel stays.
Home Repair/Replacement: Aid for home repairs, mold removal, and hazard mitigation to reduce future damage.
Accessibility Needs: Support for repairs or improvements to make homes accessible for people with disabilities.
Private Roads/Bridges: Assistance to repair access routes damaged by the disaster.
Applicants who received aid for a previous disaster can still apply for assistance for a new one if their primary home is in a declared area.
The first step residents can take to jump start their recovery is to apply for FEMA assistance. There are four ways to apply and learn about other forms of assistance that may be available.
Call the FEMA Helpline at 1-800-621-3362. Calls are accepted every day from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. ET. Help is available in many languages. If you use a relay service such as video relay (VRS), captioned telephone or other service, give FEMA the number for that service. To view an accessible video about how to apply, visit: FEMA Accessible: Registering for Individual Assistance - YouTube.
Online at DisasterAssistance.gov. If you have access to WiFi and your electronic devices have power, applying online is the easiest, fastest and most convenient way to apply.
On the FEMA App for mobile devices. You can also use the app’s Disaster Recovery Center locator feature to find an open center nearby.
Visit any Disaster Recovery Center. For locations and hours, visit fema.gov/drc.
SBA
SBA disaster assistance for homeowners, renters, nonprofits, and businesses of all sizes affected by Hurricane Milton.
Types of available disaster loans
Home Disaster Loans: Loans to homeowners or renters to repair or replace disaster-damaged real estate and personal property, including automobiles.
Business Physical Disaster Loans: Loans to businesses to repair or replace disaster-damaged property owned by the business, including real estate, inventories, supplies, machinery and equipment. Businesses of any size are eligible. Private, non-profit organizations such as charities, churches, private universities, etc., are also eligible.
Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL): Working capital loans to help small businesses, small agricultural cooperatives, small businesses engaged in aquaculture, and most private, non-profit organizations of all sizes meet their ordinary and necessary financial obligations that cannot be met as a direct result of the disaster. These loans are intended to assist through the disaster recovery period.
Applicants are encouraged to apply online for a disaster loan. If you would like to schedule an in-person appointment or have questions, call 800‐659‐2955.
Hello Alice
$10K grants: Restaurant Disaster Relief Fund
To help restaurants recover in times of critical need, DoorDash has partnered with Hello Alice to create the Restaurant Disaster Relief Fund. The fund supports restaurants impacted by natural disasters, severe weather events, or major infrastructure failures, and provides relief through $10,000 grants.
Regions Bank Disaster-Recovery Services :
The grants from the Regions Foundation are in addition to disaster-recovery financial services announced by Regions Bank on Oct. 11. The bank’s branch network in western, central and eastern Florida fared well during the storm, with most locations back open and serving customers. The limited number of branches that remain closed will reopen as soon as possible pending the restoration of power or, in some cases, minor repairs.
Personal and business loan payment assistance is available for qualified customers.
Regions is offering payment deferrals for current credit card holders.
The bank can provide business loan payment deferrals of up to 90 days .
Regions is offering a Disaster Response interest rate discount of 0.50% on standard rates for new business loans or lines of credit of up to $1 million to help with recovery needs in impacted areas.
Florida Small Business Emergency Bridge Loan Program
The Florida Small Business Emergency Bridge Loan program provides short-term, zero-interest working capital loans that are intended to “bridge the gap” between the time a disaster impacts a business and when a business has secured longer term recovery funding such as federally or commercially available loans, insurance claims or other resources.
Loans made under this program are short-term, personal loans using State of Florida funds – they are not grants and must be repaid. Florida Small Business Emergency Bridge Loans require repayment by the approved applicant. Owners may utilize funding from longer term financial resources, such as U.S. Small Business Administration economic injury disaster loans, to repay the Emergency Bridge Loan.
Loans are available up to $50,000 per business per eligible applicant. Loans of up to $150,000 are available for agriculture and aquaculture small businesses
Loans made through this program are two year, zero-interest, personal business loans.
Florida Small Business Emergency Bridge Loans require repayment by the applicant.
Owners may utilize funding from longer term financial resources, such as U.S. Small Business Administration Economic Injury Disaster Loans, to repay the Emergency Bridge Loan.
NC Small Business Assistance Program
The North Carolina Department of Commerce has awarded $7.5 million to support the recovery of small businesses located in areas impacted by Hurricane Matthew. The recovery funds are being administered by N.C. Commerce’s Rural Economic Development Division and are provided from Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Disaster Recovery funds. Three non-profit, small business lending institutions have been awarded the money to expand access to credit for small businesses within Matthew-affected areas.
2024 ASPCA Hurricane Response & Relief Grants Initiative
To support animals and communities impacted by Hurricanes Helene and Milton, the ASPCA is offering $1 million in grants to cover expenses of animal welfare and other organizations supporting disaster response and relief for animals including supplies, transport costs, and veterinary care.
Grants will generally range from $5,000 - $50,000, but requests for other amounts will be considered. The total funding available for this grant opportunity is up to $1 million.
Eligibility
Applicants must be a non-profit animal welfare organization or municipal agency with a focus on animal welfare or an organization or municipal agency providing general disaster assistance looking to provide support to animals in its community.
Applicants must be located in or responding to an area affected by Hurricanes Helene or Milton in FL, GA, NC, SC, and TN.
Beyond Words
Beyond Words is a disaster relief fund for public school libraries in Dollar General store communities. Grants are awarded to public school libraries that have incurred substantial damage or hardship due to a natural disaster, fire or an act recognized by the federal government as terrorism.
Eligibility Requirements:
A public school with a pre-existing school library
Within 36 months of the date of the disaster
15 miles from a Dollar General store or Distribution Center
Significant damage to books, media and/or library equipment
Etsy is committed to helping creative entrepreneurs recover when disasters disrupt their businesses. Etsy has partnered with CERF+, a nonprofit organization focused on helping artists prepare for and recover from emergencies and disasters, to create a disaster relief fund just for Etsy sellers. Each quarter, Etsy works with CERF+ to award grants to a select number of eligible sellers. Any Etsy seller who has experienced a federally declared disaster within the past year may apply for a grant, as long as they’ve been an active seller on Etsy for at least one year, and their accounts with Etsy are in good standing.
Grants of $2,000 are available to sellers when they apply. The amount and frequency of grants will depend on the amount of money available in the fund at any given time.
USDA Disaster Assistance Programs
USDA offers a variety of programs to help farmers, ranchers, communities, and businesses that have been hard hit by natural disaster events. Below you’ll find available FSA programs; visit farmers.gov for additional USDA programs that can help agricultural producers recover.
Livestock Indemnity Program (LIP) provides benefits to livestock producers for livestock deaths in excess of normal mortality caused by adverse weather
Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees, and Farm-Raised Fish (ELAP) provides emergency assistance to eligible producers of livestock, honeybees and farm-raised fish for losses due to disease (including cattle tick fever), adverse weather, or other conditions, such as blizzards and wildfires, not covered by LFP and LIP.
Emergency Loan Program provides loans to help producers recover from production and physical losses due to drought, flooding, other natural disasters, or quarantine by animal quarantine laws or imposed by the Secretary under the Plant Protection Act.
Disaster Set-Aside Program provides producers who have existing direct loans with FSA who are unable to make the scheduled payments to move up to one full year’s payment to the end of the loan. Assistance is available in counties, or contiguous counties, who have been designated as emergencies by the President, Secretary or FSA Administrator.
Emergency Forest Restoration Program (EFRP) helps owners of non-industrial private forests restore forest health damaged by natural disasters.
Noninsured Disaster Assistance Program (NAP) pays covered producers of covered non-insurable crops when low yields, loss of inventory, or prevented planting occur due to natural disasters (includes native grass for grazing). Eligible producers must have purchased NAP coverage for the current crop year.
Tree Assistance Program (TAP) provides financial assistance to qualifying orchardists and nursery tree growers to replant or rehabilitate eligible trees, bushes, and vines damaged by natural disasters
Florida Short Time Compensation Program for Employers
Short-Time Compensation (STC) is a temporary alternative work style that will assist employers in keeping their workforce intact. The program permits prorated unemployment compensation benefits to employees whose work hours and earnings are reduced as part of an STC plan to avoid the total layoff of some employees.
Employees retained during a temporary slowdown can resume high production levels when business conditions improve and are spared the hardships of full unemployment.
Employers avoid the expense of recruiting, hiring, and training new workers when business conditions improve.
Employers who must permanently reduce their workforce can use the program as a transition to layoff. Affected employees may continue to work at reduced levels with an opportunity to find other employment before the expected layoff.
Business Relief Grant: Designed to assist rental operations in the U.S. and Canada that have been severely impacted by natural disasters. Grants range between $500-$2,500.
Employee Relief Grant: Business owners must apply on behalf of their employees after any type of natural disaster. Grants range between $500-$2,500.
North Carolina Dental Society Foundation
Grants to North Carolina individuals in eligible locations for disaster relief efforts. Funding is intended to assist dentists who have experienced business and personal loss or damages due to recent hurricanes. Eligible applicants are located in communities impacted by the flooding caused by Hurricane Helene in North Carolina.
