SAN ANTONIO, September 18, 2017 – In the days since Hurricane Harvey’s Texas landfall last month, UTSA’s South-West Texas Border (SWTXB) Small Business Development Center (SBDC) Network has been coordinating efforts with the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) to assist Texas small businesses impacted by the devastating Category 4 storm, which yielded unprecedented damage and destruction.
The SWTXB SBDC Network comprised of 13 SBDC centers across 79 counties throughout Central, West, and South Texas, includes affiliate centers at the Del Mar College SBDC in Corpus Christi, University of Houston-Victoria SBDC, and Texas State University SBDC in Austin. All three affiliate centers have coordinated with FEMA and the SBA to provide disaster assistance to small businesses in the affected areas.
Many business owners are dealing with personal losses, in addition to varying levels of physical damage and economic injury to their businesses. Small businesses impacted by Harvey will face extreme challenges and will likely need to re-assess their business model and current and future markets. In addition, financial recovery, financial record reconstruction, and the management of accounts receivables and payables are all areas of business recovery that small business owners should begin considering.
Applying with FEMA and the SBA are necessary first steps to begin the business recovery process. Business owners are encouraged to apply through https://www.fema.gov/ to obtain a FEMA Registration ID Number and through https://disasterloan.sba.gov/ela/ for SBA Disaster Loan Assistance.
Application filing deadlines that business owners must be aware of are currently:
- Physical Damage: October 24, 2017
- Economic Injury: May 25, 2018
Texas Small Business Development Centers (SBDC), including those in the Houston area, are providing services at no-cost to help small businesses navigate through the recovery process. Local SBA Business Recovery Centers currently located in Port Aransas and Rockport are referring small businesses seeking disaster loan assistance to Texas SBDCs for the following:
- Help in reconstructing damaged or destroyed business records
- Business planning to help business owners re-establish their operations and plan for their future
- Assistance with updating or rewriting business plans
- Counseling for financial, accounting, marketing and other post-disaster challenges
- Assistance with accessing government contracts and procurement related to the disaster
- Management and technical assistance
To find a local SBDC, visit sbdctexas.org
For information regarding SBDC services, the SBA and FEMA, visit txsbdc.org or iedtexas.org
“Our experience with disasters of this magnitude has shown that 40 percent of small businesses never reopen, and the remainder take 3 – 5 years to recover” said Al Salgado, executive director for the South-West Texas Border SBDC Network. “Advisors from across the Texas SBDC Network are prepared to guide business owners through the SBA Disaster Loan Application, assess damages to their business, and explore opportunities re-establish operations if possible.”
For more disaster assistance information, visit http://www.sba.gov/disaster. Disaster loan information is also available from SBA’s Customer Service Center by calling (800) 659-2955 or emailing disastercustomerservice@sba.gov. Completed applications should be mailed to U.S. Small Business Administration, Processing and Disbursement Center, 14925 Kingsport Road, Fort Worth, TX 76155.
About the UTSA Institute for Economic Development
The UTSA Institute for Economic Development is dedicated to growing businesses, creating jobs and fostering economic development. Focused on building the economy one business at a time, the Institute consists of 10 centers and programs that provide professional business advising, technical training, research and strategic planning for entrepreneurs, business owners and community leaders. These programs serve Greater San Antonio, the Texas-Mexico border area as well as regional, national and international stakeholders. Together with the federal, state and local governments, and private businesses, the UTSA Institute for Economic Development fosters economic and community development in support of UTSA’s community engagement mission. In 2016, the Institute generated direct regional economic impact of 7,517 jobs, started 591 new businesses, $447 million in new financing, $78 million in new tax revenue and exceeded $1.4 billion in new sales, exports and contracts. For more information, visit iedtexas.org
