Josh Hawley Questions SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler About Disaster Relief Efforts For St. Louis

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At today's Senate Small Business Committee hearing, Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) questioned SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler.

Transcript

00:00Thank you. Now I recognize Senator Hawley for five minutes of questions. It's great to see

00:05you again, Administrator. Would you like to get a word in there? I'm happy to allow you to actually

00:10finish the sentence. Go ahead. I'll rest my case. Probably wise. Let me ask you about something

00:20that's happening in Missouri that's very important to us. As you probably are aware, we've had very

00:24significant tornado damage across the state, including in St. Louis. I was just on the ground

00:29there for most of the day on Monday, walking the streets, talking to folks in neighborhoods.

00:33The damage is very, very extensive. We're going to need help across the board, and I'm asking

00:38you because one of the most important services, I think, that SBA provides is disaster relief,

00:44often the form of loans to businesses that have been affected by natural disasters. Can

00:47you just talk to us a little bit about the nature of those loans, of that program, and

00:53what, for instance, my constituents might be able to get help with? Absolutely. Thank

00:58you, Senator, and your constituents in Missouri and, frankly, the entire region that was impacted

01:04are in my prayers, and our team is already on the ground in that region to ensure that we are part of,

01:11while we're not a response agency, we're a recovery and resilience agency, and we are going to be there

01:17for your constituents. First of all, in fiscal 2025, as you know, the disaster relief funds ran out, and it was a great

01:30surprise to Congress that this agency did not alert this committee or others that they were running out of disaster relief funds.

01:37Under my watch, that will never happen again, and right now we are making sure of that by ensuring that we do fraud checks.

01:44We've already caught about $75 million in attempted fraud that should have gone to survivors' disasters.

01:50We're streamlining our programs to ensure that the regional offices work with our disaster relief folks,

01:58which had never been done before. The agency had broken the regional and disaster response efforts apart.

02:04We're also looking at the first 100 days of President Trump's loan volume to see, to ensure that that's being delivered quickly.

02:12For example, in California, we delivered $2 billion in relief within the first 100 days,

02:18already surpassing what was delivered in all of Biden's last year. So we are on top of it.

02:24We have 400 disaster assistance specialists in the field right now servicing dozens of disasters across the country,

02:33and we will be right there alongside of you to ensure that your constituents are served.

02:39That's terrific to hear. I know that homeowners who are located in the declared disaster area are eligible to apply,

02:46in many cases, for SBA personal property loans, which I think go up to $40,000, and SBA real property loans, which can go up to $200,000.

02:53I can just tell you that that's going to be very, very important relief for my constituents.

02:59We're really suffering in Missouri, all over the state, to be frank with you.

03:03But most recently, particularly in the St. Louis and Southeast Missouri areas.

03:07So I'm glad to hear that you're making this a priority.

03:09Thank you for the reforms that you have enacted to make sure that there is funding available,

03:13that you get those teams that specialize in this on the ground.

03:17I know we'll want to see them in Missouri.

03:19I realize that a lot of this depends on a major disaster declaration.

03:23That's what opens up a lot of this relief on the SBA side and makes it available.

03:28So we certainly hope FEMA will act on that very, very quickly.

03:31But thank you again, and I look forward to working with you to bring relief to the people of Missouri.

03:36We're in a lot of need right now.

03:38Thank you, Senator. We'll be there.

03:40Thank you. It's great to see you again. You're doing a great job.

03:42Thank you very much.

03:43Thank you, Madam Chair.

03:47How you do, sir?

03:50How you do, sir?

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