Landrieu, Kerry to Hold Administration Accountable on Disaster Loan Program

RisingFromTheRuin Blog on MSNBC reports today that the SBA "loan program leaves lives in limbo" and then they go on to say, in a nutshell that the SBA is doing the best they can under the circumstances... "The SBA has been approving disaster loans at an unprecedented pace," says SBA Administrator Hector Barreto. I'm not sure where RisingFromTheRuin got their information, but it might have been helpful if they interviewed Senators John Kerry and Mary Landrieu about the SBA Loan Program that the Bush administration has failed to fully fund:

On the heels of the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) disaster loan program nearly shutting down twice last month, Senators Mary Landrieu (D-LA) and John Kerry (D-Mass) called on the Bush Administration to report to Congress on the program’s financial status daily. More than six months since Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast, it is time to focus on the long-term recovery of the area, including getting money lent to families and businesses that need it.

The Administration waited until just days before the disaster loan program was slated to run out of money on February 13, 2006, to request $100 million. But that amount would only have kept the program solvent for two more weeks had Congress not acted to pass a second temporary funding measure for $712 million that will keep the program’s doors open through the end of April. Although SBA estimated it needed $1.3 billion to fully fund the program through the end of the fiscal year, the Administration did not request the full amount in either of its emergency requests.

“SBA has been millions of dollars short and more than a day late,” Sen. Landrieu said. “We cannot allow the Administration to fail our small business owners and their families. This plan will make certain that SBA fulfills its duties and is held accountable. I am thankful for Senator Kerry’s leadership in solving this crisis and look forward to working with him and all of my colleagues on the Small Business Committee to ensure that the SBA is working for the people of the Gulf Coast.”

As of today, more than 130,000 Gulf Coast homeowners and businesses are waiting for their loans to be processed and more than 68,000 with approved loans are waiting to receive their much-needed money. In dollars, that means that out of $5.2 billion that could be used to rebuild local neighborhoods, only $184,000 has been disbursed.

“If no one in the Bush Administration will keep an eye on the books, Congress will do it for them,” said John Kerry, Ranking Democrat on the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship. “Jumpstarting the Gulf Coast economy means investing in people who want to rebuild and in business owners who want to reopen, not leaving them wondering if they won’t have a safety net tomorrow. Since we can’t rely on the Administration for an honest and timely accounting of the disaster loan program, Senator Landrieu and I will review the program’s finances daily ourselves.”

A copy of the letter is available here.