April 10, 2025
Ms. Stevens introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Small Business
To amend the Small Business Act to make disaster loans available for damages caused by prolonged power outages, and for other purposes.
Section 1. Small business disaster loans for prolonged power outages
Section 7(b) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 636(b)) is amended—
(1)
by redesignating the second paragraph (16) (relating to statute of limitations) as paragraph (17); and
(2)
by inserting after paragraph (17), as so redesignated, the following new paragraph:
(18) Prolonged power outage
(A) In general
For the purposes of paragraphs (1)(A) and (2), the term disaster includes prolonged power outages.
(B) Use of loan amounts
In addition to any other allowable uses of a loan made under paragraph (1)(A) or (2), if a borrower receives such a loan pursuant to a disaster that is prolonged power outage, the borrower may use the proceeds of such loan to—
(i)
purchase energy resilience systems that enable the borrower to cope with and recover from disruptions to the commercial availability of electrical power, including generators, solar panels, wind turbines, microgrids, fuel cells, batteries, and other technologies that provide electrical generation and storage capabilities, as determined appropriate by the Administrator; and
(ii)
pay for the cost of replacing any food and drink of the borrower that was lost, destroyed, or rendered unfit for human consumption as a result of such disaster.
(C) Prolonged power outage defined
In this subsection, the term prolonged power outage means—
(i)
for the purposes of paragraph (1)(A), a loss of electrical power that causes not fewer than 25 homes or 25 business concerns, or any combination of not fewer than 25 homes, business concerns, or other eligible recipients of a loan under such paragraph, located in any county or smaller political subdivision of a State or territory or possession of the United States to each sustain uninsured losses of not less than 40 percent of the estimated fair replacement value or pre-disaster fair market value of the damaged property, whichever is lower; and
(ii)
for the purposes of paragraph (2), not fewer than 25 homes or 25 business concerns, or any combination of not fewer than 25 homes, business concerns, or other eligible recipients of a loan under such paragraph, located in any county or smaller political subdivision of a State or territory or possession of the United States concurrently losing electrical power for not fewer than 48 hours.