‘There is sufficient disaster aid for CNMI’

Typhoon victims in the CNMI should not hesitate to apply for assistance with the U.S. Small Business Administration because it has enough resources to help them, SBA officer for CNMI Carl N. Gaspari said yesterday.

Gaspari, during yesterday’s Saipan Chamber of Commerce meeting at Pacific Islands Club, said that CNMI residents should not worry about SBA’s ability to extend assistance despite the fact that there are other major disasters in other parts of the United States such as Florida.

“It [Florida] will not limit our ability to provide assistance to the CNMI. We’re here for assistance,” said Gaspari.

He said that 2,700 people have registered with the Federal Emergency Management Agency for assistance.

So far, he said about $3 million has been allocated for Chaba disaster assistance in the CNMI.

SBA and FEMA are two independent federal agencies but they work closely when it comes to disaster assistance.

Gaspari said that 500 applications for small business assistance had been sent out. Nearly 100 of these applications were returned, he said.

“It means that these are completed applications and they’re up for processing,” he said.

He encouraged people to complete their applications as fast as they can so they can get help.

“Know that your disaster assistance application will come to a screeching halt if you don’t complete your SBA loan,” he said, noting that FEMA automatically refers to SBA applications of all business groups and those who are self-employed.

He said that FEMA and SBA have different approaches in assessing applications. For instance, he said that, while FEMA requires insurance, SBA can process a loan without it.

SBA grants loans to homeowners, ranchers and businesses.

For homeowners, SBA grants up to $200,000 loan for repair and or replacement of damaged structures and up to $40,000 for personal properties. Up to $40,000 is granted to ranchers for replacement or repair of personal farm tools. For businesses, SBA grants up to $1.5 million in disaster loans that apply to the combination of physical damage and economic injury.

Given the difficult economic situation, he said that SBA defers the monthly payment in the first five months or to a maximum of 11 months.

“We want to help people. And these loans are low-interest loans. Further, SBA loans can be amortized up to 30 years,” he said.

SBA representatives currently hold office at the Multi-Purpose Center in Susupe to accept applications from the CNMI.

Meantime, the governor’s authorized representative for disaster assistance, Vicky Villagomez, said on the same occasion that affected individuals can seek disaster unemployment assistance.

“It’s for people who were laid off as a result of the disaster,” she said.

She said a crisis counseling service will also be made available for CNMI residents.

Villagomez noted that the CNMI posted a record-breaking 1,067 evacuees during Supertyphoon Chaba. These included 855 evacuees on Saipan, 114 on Rota, and 69 on Tinian.

Meanwhile, CNMI American Red Cross executive director John Hirsh said that based on their latest assessment, relief operation is 70 complete on Saipan, 80 percent on Rota, and 90 percent on Tinian. He said that operations on Tinian and Rota would end this weekend.

Federal assistance was made available to the CNMI after President Bush declared the Northern Mariana Islands a major disaster area, two days after the onslaught of Chaba late last month.