Title: Small Business Relief From Communicable Disease Induced Economic Hardship Act of 2020
Policy area: Commerce

Summary:
Small Business Relief From Communicable Disease Induced Economic Hardship Act of 2020
This bill expands the definition of a disaster for which the Small Business Administration (SBA) may provide disaster loans to small business concerns to include communicable diseases for which the government issues a travel alert or travel warning, and it authorizes the SBA to make interest free disaster loans to small businesses affected by a disaster for which the government issues a public health emergency.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3531 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 3531

To amend the Small Business Act to ensure small businesses affected by 
  the onset of communicable diseases are eligible for disaster relief.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 18, 2020

    Mr. Menendez (for himself and Ms. Cortez Masto) introduced the 
 following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 
                  Small Business and Entrepreneurship

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Small Business Act to ensure small businesses affected by 
  the onset of communicable diseases are eligible for disaster relief.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Small Business Relief From 
Communicable Disease Induced Economic Hardship Act of 2020''.

SEC. 2. ECONOMIC INJURY LOANS FOR COMMUNICABLE DISEASES.

    (a) Definition of a Disaster.--Section 3(k)(2) of the Small 
Business Act (15 U.S.C. 632(k)(2)) is amended--
            (1) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``and'' at the end;
            (2) in subparagraph (C), striking the period and inserting 
        ``; and''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(D) a communicable disease for which the Federal 
        Government has issued a travel alert or travel warning.''.
    (b) Terms.--Section 7(b)(2) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 
636(b)(2)) is amended--
            (1) in subparagraph (D), by striking the period at the end 
        and inserting ``; or'';
            (2) by inserting after subparagraph (D) the following:
                    ``(E) a disaster described in section 3(k)(2)(D) 
                for which the Federal Government has issued a public 
                health emergency.''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following: ``A loan made 
        pursuant to a disaster described in subparagraph (E) shall not 
        require the payment of interest.''.
    (c) Applicability.--The amendments made by this section shall apply 
to a communicable disease--
            (1) for which the Federal Government issues a travel alert 
        or travel warning before, on, or after the date of enactment of 
        this Act; and
            (2) the effects of which are experienced on or after the 
        date of enactment of this Act.
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