Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) announced that the Small Business Administration (SBA) will extend the deferment period for repaying loans to the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program for a total of 30 months from inception on all approved COVID EIDL loans. Last week, she led 15 of her colleagues in a letter to SBA Administrator Isabella Guzman urging her to support more than 42,100 businesses and nonprofits in Nevada that benefited from the EIDL program during the pandemic by extending the deferment period. Many of these borrowers are still recovering from the impacts of the Omicron variant, supply chain challenges, natural disasters, and uncertainty stemming from the situation in Ukraine, and they need additional time before they begin to repay their loans.
“Small businesses are the backbone of Nevada’s economy, and I’m doing everything I can to support them,” said Senator Cortez Masto. “As we continue to recover from the pandemic, many of our small businesses still face uncertainty associated with price increases, supply chain backlogs, and a devastating wildfire season. Extending the deferment period will help them focus on their customers and employees without worrying about loan repayments.”
Senator Cortez Masto has been a strong advocate for small businesses in the Senate, leading legislation to streamline the EIDL program and combat fraud. She’s also introduced legislation to protect small businesses from expensive data breaches and cyberattacks and to help small businesses partner with institutions of higher education to conduct research and development. Throughout the pandemic, she worked to pass the CARES Act and additional coronavirus relief legislation to provide economic relief. She has also supported Small Business Administration (SBA) loans to small businesses and an additional $370 billion in funding for the SBA’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program (EIDL).
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