Durbin, Duckworth Lead Illinois Delegation In Urging SBA To Grant Economic Injury Disaster Declaration For Ford County
SPRINGFIELD – U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) led all members of the Illinois Congressional Delegation in sending a letter to the Small Business Administration (SBA) requesting that Ford County be granted an Economic Injury Disaster Declaration following severe flooding earlier this month. The letter comes in support of Governor J.B. Pritzker’s request after his office determined that the severity of flood damage was beyond the capacity of state and local governments to address.
“On August 12, severe storms caused up to 10 inches of flooding in Ford County. The National Weather Service reported that ‘essentially all’ roads in Gibson City were untraversable. The subsequent damage assessment conducted by the SBA found that many properties either incurred major damage or were destroyed as a result of the flooding,” wrote the lawmakers.
“As such, we respectfully request that you issue an SBA Disaster Declaration for Ford County, and we request that the SBA disaster loans also be offered to the counties that are contiguous to the aforementioned county,” the letter concluded.
Full text of the letter is available here and below:
August 20, 2021
Dear Administrator Guzman:
We are writing in support of Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker’s request for a U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) Economic Injury Disaster Declaration for Ford County in Illinois as a result of severe flooding that occurred this month.
On August 12, severe storms caused up to 10 inches of flooding in Ford County. The National Weather Service reported that “essentially all” roads in Gibson City were untraversable. The subsequent damage assessment conducted by the SBA found that many properties either incurred major damage or were destroyed as a result of the flooding.
Assisting these residents in recovery is of utmost importance, and Governor Pritzker has determined that this incident is of such severity and magnitude that effective response is beyond the capabilities of the state and local governments.
As such, we respectfully request that you issue an SBA Disaster Declaration for Ford County, and we request that the SBA disaster loans also be offered to the counties that are contiguous to the aforementioned county.
Sincerely,
-30-
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