Disaster Recovery Loan Fund
The VEDA Disaster Recovery Loan Fund provides financial assistance to Vermont businesses, farms, foresters, and not-for-profit organizations to help them recover from damage caused by disasters by repairing or replacing damaged property, inventory, or working capital.
ELIGIBLE DISASTERS
A disaster must be declared for the Disaster Recovery Loan Fund to be activated. That happens one of two ways. A disaster must be:
- declared by the Governor of Vermont or President of the United States, or
- declared by VEDA in consultation with the Vermont Secretary of Commerce and Community Development; Vermont Secretary of Agriculture, Farms, and Markets; and the Vermont Commissioner of Forests, Parks, and Recreation.
ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS
To be eligible to receive a loan from the Disaster Recovery Loan Fund, applicants must meet all of the following criteria:
- The entity was in operation at the time of the declared disaster, or significant capital had been spent on an emerging business or nonprofit organization at the time of the declared disaster.
- The entity can demonstrate and attest to economic harm caused by or exacerbated by the declared disaster.
- The entity remains open or attests they plan to reopen as soon as practicable.
LOAN TERMS
Collateral: All loans will be secured by sufficient collateral
Interest Rate: To be determined at time of application.
Personal Guarantees: Required from any 20% or more owner. (Does not apply to not-for-profit organizations).
ACH Requirement: All loans required to establish monthly payment via automatic ACH.
LOAN AMOUNT
- Maximum loan proceeds will be set at $100,000.
- Loan amount limited to cost necessary for repair or replacement of damaged property.
- Proceeds received from state, federal, local governments, as well as insurance proceeds, will be considered to determine the appropriate loan amount.
- Working capital e loan amounts will be determined on a case-by-case basis.
PREPARING TO APPLY
- Before you begin filling out an application, please be sure you have the following documentation on hand:
- Three years of business tax returns.
- Personal financial information as outlined in Checklist linked below under “APPLY NOW”.
- Description of collateral.
- Required information from emerging businesses will be determined on a case-by-case basis.
APPLY NOW
Applicants are required to sign attestations that their business, farm, forestry operation, or nonprofit organization sustained direct damage from the declared disaster.
You can download a Disaster Relief Loan Fund Checklist and Application below.
Questions? Please email drlf@veda.org. VEDA’s Underwriting Team will provide a simple and quick response to all requests regarding this program.
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Funds for the Disaster Recovery Loan Fund were appropriated to VEDA in 2025 under H.398 (Act 26).
