by Megan Roberts, Extension educator
Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) emergency advance funding has lapsed. The $20 billion allocated for emergency grants of up to $10,000 per small businesses has run out of money in mid-July. An emergency advance was issued before an EIDL was processed, and unlike the loan, the emergency advance grant portion did not have to be repaid. According to the Small Business Administration (SBA) national office, SBA paid out 72,623 emergency advances to Minnesotan small business totaling $251,712,000 across the state. While emergency advances are not currently available, EIDL continues to fund loans related to economic losses of COVID-19. An EIDL has relatively low rates and flexible terms. Due to new laws passed during COVID-19, agricultural businesses including farmers are eligible to apply for EIDLs for the first time. Previous to April 2020, this loan program was not available to agricultural businesses. For more information on EIDLs, please see the Ag Business Management team's previous post.