SBA Offers Economic Assistance to Rhode Island Small Businesses Affected by the Washington Bridge Closure

​SBA Offers Economic Assistance to Rhode Island Small Businesses Affected by the Washington Bridge Closure
The attached release was issued to the media yesterday. To assist us with the widest distribution of this information as possible, please share our release with your contacts as appropriate and post to your social media.


WASHINGTON – Today, SBA Administrator Isabel Casillas Guzman announced that Rhode Island small businesses affected by the road closure due sudden bridge failure in Providence County on Dec. 11, 2023, and continuing may apply for low-interest, long-term Economic Injury Disaster Loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration.
Administrator Guzman made the loans available in response to a letter from Governor Daniel McKee on Dec. 14, 2023, requesting a disaster declaration by the SBA. The declaration covers Providence County and the adjacent counties of Bristol and Kent in Rhode Island, Windham in Connecticut, and Bristol, Norfolk and Worcester in Massachusetts, and applies to small businesses, small agricultural cooperatives, small aquaculture businesses and private nonprofit organizations. Eligible applicants in the declared area can now apply for low-interest, long-term Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDLs) from the SBA to cover working capital needs as the community recovers.


Regards,
Mary S. Gipson
Public Affairs Specialist
Field Operations Center - East 
U.S. Small Business Administration 
Office of Disaster Recovery & Resilience
101 Marietta St. NW, Suite 700
Atlanta, GA  30303
Office: 404-331-0333
[email protected]