II 

112TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 653 

To allow the Administrator of the Small Business Administration to create 

or save jobs by providing interest relief on certain outstanding disaster 

loans relating to damage caused by the 2005 Gulf Coast hurricanes 

or the 2008 Gulf Coast hurricanes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 28, 2011 

Ms. LANDRIEU (for herself, Mr. WICKER, and Mr. COCHRAN) introduced the 

following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 

Small Business and Entrepreneurship 

A BILL 

To allow the Administrator of the Small Business Administration to create or save jobs by providing interest relief 

on certain outstanding disaster loans relating to damage 

caused by the 2005 Gulf Coast hurricanes or the 2008 

Gulf Coast hurricanes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Southeast Hurricanes 

5 Small Business Disaster Relief Act of 2011’’. 


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•S 653 IS

1 SEC. 2. SOUTHEAST HURRICANES SMALL BUSINESS DIS2 ASTER RELIEF PROGRAM. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 12086 of the Food, Con4 servation, and Energy Act of 2008 (Public Law 110–234; 

5 122 Stat. 1422) is amended to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘SEC. 12086. SOUTHEAST HURRICANES SMALL BUSINESS 

7 DISASTER RELIEF PROGRAM. 

8 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

9 ‘‘(1) the term ‘covered area’ means an area in 

10 the State of Louisiana, the State of Mississippi, the 

11 State of Alabama, or the State of Texas for which 

12 the President declared a major disaster relating to 

13 Hurricane Katrina of 2005, Hurricane Rita of 2005, 

14 Hurricane Gustav of 2008, or Hurricane Ike of 

15 2008; 

16 ‘‘(2) the term ‘covered disaster loan’ means a 

17 loan— 

18 ‘‘(A) made under section 7(b) of the Small 

19 Business Act (15 U.S.C. 636(b)); 

20 ‘‘(B) for damage or injury caused by Hur21 ricane Katrina of 2005, Hurricane Rita of 

22 2005, Hurricane Gustav of 2008, or Hurricane 

23 Ike of 2008; and 

24 ‘‘(C) made to a business located in a cov25 ered area; 


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•S 653 IS

1 ‘‘(3) the term ‘Deepwater Horizon oil spill’ 

2 means the blowout and explosion of the mobile off3 shore drilling unit Deepwater Horizon that occurred 

4 on April 20, 2010, and resulting hydrocarbon re5 leases into the environment; and 

6 ‘‘(4) the term ‘program’ means the Southeast 

7 Hurricanes Small Business Disaster Relief Program 

8 established under subsection (b). 

9 ‘‘(b) PROGRAM ESTABLISHED.—Subject to the avail10 ability of appropriations, the Administrator shall establish 

11 a Southeast Hurricanes Small Business Disaster Relief 

12 Program, under which the Administrator may waive pay13 ment of interest by a business on a covered disaster loan— 

14 ‘‘(1) for not more than 3 years; and 

15 ‘‘(2) in a total amount of not more than 

16 $15,000. 

17 ‘‘(c) PRIORITY OF APPLICATIONS.—The Adminis18 trator shall, to the extent practicable, give priority to an 

19 application for a waiver of payment of interest under the 

20 program by a small business concern— 

21 ‘‘(1) with not more than 50 employees; 

22 ‘‘(2) that demonstrates substantial economic in23 jury as a result of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill; 

24 or 

25 ‘‘(3) that resumed business operations— 


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•S 653 IS

1 ‘‘(A) during the period beginning on Sep2 tember 1, 2005 and ending on October 1, 2006 

3 in a covered area relating to Hurricane Katrina 

4 of 2005 or Hurricane Rita of 2005; or 

5 ‘‘(B) during the period beginning on Sep6 tember 1, 2008 and ending on January 1, 2009 

7 in a covered area relating to Hurricane Gustav 

8 of 2008 or Hurricane Ike of 2008. 

9 ‘‘(d) REIMBURSEMENT BY RESPONSIBLE PARTY.— 

10 The Administrator may present a claim to the responsible 

11 party (as defined in section 1001 of the Oil Pollution Act 

12 of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2701)) for costs and expenses de13 scribed in section 1012(a)(5) of the Oil Pollution Act of 

14 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2712(a)(5)) relating to a waiver of inter15 est under this section for a business suffering a substan16 tial economic injury as a result of the Deepwater Horizon 

17 oil spill in accordance with section 1013 of the Oil Pollu18 tion Act of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2713). 

19 ‘‘(e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

20 are authorized to be appropriated to the Administrator 

21 such sums as may be necessary to carry out the program. 

22 ‘‘(f) TERMINATION OF PROGRAM.—The Adminis23 trator may not approve an application under the program 

24 after March 31, 2012.’’. 


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•S 653 IS

1 (b) SAVINGS CLAUSE.—A loan refinanced under sec2 tion 12086 of the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act 

3 of 2008 (Public Law 110–234; 122 Stat. 1422) before the 

4 date of enactment of this Act shall remain in full force 

5 and effect under the terms, and for the duration, of the 

6 loan (including any option to defer repayment). 

7 (c) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENT.— 

8 The table of contents in section 1(b) of the Food, Con9 servation, and Energy Act of 2008 (Public Law 110–234; 

10 122 Stat. 933) is amended by striking the item relating 

11 to section 12086 and inserting the following: 

‘‘Sec. 12086. Southeast Hurricanes Small Business Disaster Relief Program.’’. 

Æ 


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