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James RiveraAssociate Administrator for Office of Disaster AssistanceSmall Business Administration - Office of Disaster Assistance
FY 14-15: Agency Priority Goal
Increase the Disaster Loan Application Return Rate
Priority Goal
Goal Overview
The FY13 baseline number for Disaster Loan Application Return Rate was 24%, so the goal for FY14 is to achieve 29% and 34% in FY15. Increasing the application return rate will improve the delivery of the Disaster Loan Program. The primary opportunity being addressed is that a higher application return rate should result in a greater number of disaster survivors that will apply for disaster loan assistance and receive much needed Federal disaster assistance. SBA’s plan to increase the application return rate also ensures that SBA's disaster assistance resources for businesses, non-profit organizations, homeowners, and renters can be deployed quickly, effectively and efficiently in order to preserve jobs and help return small businesses to operation.
SBA’s plan to increase the application return rate will indirectly make the Disaster Loan Program more efficient by: 1) saving costs on mailing application packets to 100% of disaster survivors referred to SBA; and 2) freeing up resources dedicated to preparing and mailing application packets that can be utilized in other critical areas of the application screening process that directly impact processing times.
Strategies
SBA will actively market the SBA Disaster Loan Program to disaster survivors. We will explore ways of making on-line access to Electronic Loan Application (ELA) and program information readily available to disaster survivors. Office of Disaster Assistance will upgrade ODA's marketing to increase public knowledge of SBA’s disaster programs, with emphasis on direct links to the ELA application. We will capitalize on news media to attract interest in the Disaster Loan Program and provide immediate access to disaster survivors. The overall strategy will be aimed at our internal partners and the external recipients of disaster assistance.
The application return rate is largely impacted by the footprint of individual disasters and the variance in types of disaster (flooding, wind, fire, etc.) and declaration types (Presidential-Iindividual Assistance, Agency, Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) only). SBA will monitor the impact that these contextual indicators have on the overall progress of the priority goal to increase the application return rate.
We will also look at the return rate to see if there is any impact on goal achievement based on location of the disaster, size of the disaster and type of the disaster.
Key Barriers and Challenges:
- Disaster survivors’ reluctance to applying for Federal disaster loan assistance, possibly due to the following reasons: unwilling to apply for additional debt; share financial information, pledge collateral to secure loan or general concerns over uncertain recovery of local economy.
- Disaster survivors may also be reluctant to apply for disaster loan assistance if other programs with more desirable terms (e.g. grants, forgivable loans, etc.) are available to them.
Progress Update
The process improvements from previous fiscal years (i.e. implementing separate application tracks for home and business loans, use of electronic loan applications) enabled the SBA to successfully achieve a high Application Return Rate in FY 2015. Also implementing a new process for issuing applications to disaster survivors in Presidential disaster declarations for Individual Assistance (IA), SBA attained a disaster loan application return rate of 98%. Prior to FY 2014, SBA mailed a disaster loan application to every individual and business that registered with FEMA and referred to SBA for disaster loan assistance. Now the referrals from FEMA are contacted by telephone via Disaster Assistant Customer Service Center's auto-dialer and offered the options of applying on-line, applying in-person or applying by mail. Those individuals not contacted receive a letter detailing the various options for applying.
In all fiscal quarters except one from FY 2014 through FY 2015, the SBA increased the disaster loan application return rate, going from 24% at the end of FY 2013 to 98% at the end of FY 2015. The SBA improved disaster assistance by integrating user-friendly technology and streamlining the loan application process. For example, the electronic loan application rate increased to 84 percent in FY 2015, more than tripling the rate from FY 2011. The SBA is continually reviewing and implementing process improvements to enhance program delivery and improve the customer experience. For example, the electronic loan application (ELA) for disaster assistance loans has simplified the loan application process, speeding delivery of assistance to eligible disaster survivors and improving the integrity of data used in the underwriting process via the Disaster Credit Management System (DCMS). Also, SBA established approximate loan processing time standards based on tiered levels of application volumes (from less than 50,000 applications to more than 500,000 applications) which will help SBA better manage customer expectations based on the level of disaster activity.
SBA’s new process for issuing applications in Presidential-IA declarations helped increase the application return rate and improves customer service by adding multiple touch points with disaster survivors. SBA's priority goal strategy has also resulted in reduced mailing costs and savings of $145,000.
Next Steps
No Data Available
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Performance Indicators
Percentage return rate for disaster survivor applications
Other Indicators
Total number of Disaster Assistance applications issued
Total number of Disaster Assistance applications received
Contributing Programs & Other Factors
The SBA’s Office of Disaster Assistance (ODA) administers the Disaster Loan Program, one of the Agency’s main tools for helping drive economic recovery for local communities following a disaster. This goal emphasizes the importance of efficient delivery and high quality service in lending to small business owners (up to $2 million for physical damages and/or economic injury) and residents (up to $200,000 for real estate damages and $40,000 personal property losses) following a disaster. These critical dollars provide a foundation for reestablishing and growing local and/or regional economies. The Disaster Loan Program is the only SBA loan program directly administered by the agency itself; not through a bank or credit union.
ODA will work with the Office of Communication and Public Liaison (OCPL) to develop messaging to the disaster survivors. We will work with the Office of Field Operations through District and Regional offices to get the message out to disaster survivors. In partnership with the Office of Entrepreneurial Development, ODA will work with its resource partners, i.e. Small Business Development Centers (SBDC), Women’s Business Centers (WBC) and SCORE, to distribute information about the SBA Disaster Loan Program and encourage disaster survbivors to apply.
External Stakeholder: The Office of Disaster Assistance will receive an electronic file from FEMA containing of the contact information for disaster victims that may be eligible for SBA disaster loan.
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Strategic Goals
Strategic Goal:
Growing businesses and creating jobs
Statement:
Growing businesses and creating jobs
Strategic Objectives
Statement:
Expand access to capital through SBA's extensive lending network
Description:
Access to capital is critical to the long-term success of America’s small businesses. The top priority at the SBA is to get lending flowing to small businesses. As the economy continues to improve, the SBA is working to ensure that remaining gaps in the commercial markets are filled and that small businesses across the country are well positioned to take advantage of opportunities. The SBA also continues to streamline and simplify its loan programs to make its products more attractive to lenders and borrowers.
Statement:
Ensure federal contracting goals are me and/or exceeded by collaborating across the federal government to expand opportunities for small businesses and strengthen the integrity of the federal contracting certification process and data.
Description:
Small business contracting is one of the most important federal programs to help America’s small businesses grow and create jobs. The federal government gets to work with the most innovative small businesses in America today, and small businesses get critical revenue to build and scale their operations. SBA’s goal is to make sure that all federal agencies meet or exceed their targets for federal prime contracting dollars awarded to small businesses. The SBA is improving coordination and communication across the federal government, facilitating matchmaking events, increasing online trainings and holding senior officials accountable for meeting their agencies’ small business goals. SBA continues to simplify access to federal contracting opportunities and educate small businesses on the contracting opportunities available to them. The SBA is also streamlining the certification process and data for federal contracting and continues to aggressively root out fraud, waste and abuse in small business contracting to ensure that contracting dollars go to deserving small businesses.
Statement:
Strengthen entrepreneurial ecosystems through a variety of strategic partnerships to provide tailored training, mentoring and counseling services that support entrepreneurs during every phase of their business growth
Description:
Entrepreneurs and small business owners who receive training, mentoring and/or advising services increase sales, create more jobs, and have greater economic impact on their communities. SBA’s resource partner network, including 63 SBDCs with over 900 outreach locations, over 100 WBCs, and 11,000 SCORE volunteers nationwide, along with online training, assists more than one million business owners and entrepreneurs each year. The SBA also leads and builds partnerships with other agencies and private sector partners to support robust entrepreneurial ecosystems across the country. For instance, regional innovation clusters bring together small businesses and entrepreneurs with venture capitalists, universities and regional industry leaders who can help leverage a region’s unique assets to turn entrepreneurial ideas into high-growth small businesses.
Statement:
Enhance the ability of current and future small business exporters to succeed in global markets by expanding access to financing, counseling, training and other export tools
Description:
Export sales contribute to a strong middle class by fueling economic opportunity and jobs in communities across the United States, while the countries buying American products gain access to some of the highest-quality products and services in the world. Today, nearly 96 percent of consumers and over two-thirds of the world's purchasing power reside outside the United States. Small businesses that can tap into this global market have the potential for vast expansion and growth, with small businesses now constituting 34 percent of total export dollars and comprising approximately 97.8 percent of all exporters.
Statement:
Fuel high-growth entrepreneurship, innovation and job creation by providing the tools small businesses need to start and grow their businesses.
Description:
High-growth businesses create almost all of the net new jobs in the economy today. Through longer-term “patient” capital, growth accelerators and regional innovation clusters, federal research and development (R&D) grants, and export assistance, the SBA plays a critical role in the ongoing success of high-growth small businesses. These high-growth investments provide opportunities for small businesses to create jobs and sustain the cycle of American entrepreneurship and innovation.
Statement:
Ensure that SBA’s disaster assistance resources for businesses, non-profit organizations, homeowners, and renters can be deployed quickly, effectively and efficiently in order to preserve jobs and help return small businesses to operation.
Description:
Returning small business operations to normal after a disaster is critical to ensuring that local economies regain traction as quickly as possible and are once again able to contribute to the economy and create jobs. The SBA, in coordination with the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), other federal agencies, the American Red Cross and array of state and local entities, helps small businesses prepare for disaster and provides timely and accessible low-cost, low-interest loans to small business owners, non-profits, homeowners, and renters who are survivors of disaster.
Statement:
Ensure the competitiveness and innovation of American manufacturing and supply chains by building capacity and supporting integrated networks of small business suppliers that encourage insourcing and the expansion of U.S. operations
Description:
Across the country, manufacturing and production are coming back to the United States. The reality is that large manufacturers need a diverse and nimble network of small suppliers. These suppliers make large companies more efficient, more productive and more globally competitive. A strong supply chain of small businesses can be a determining factor for locating production in a particular area. To build capacity and depth in America’s small business supply chain, the SBA continues its leadership role in the American Supplier Initiative, an Administration-wide effort focused on investing in — and building capacity throughout — the nation’s small business supply chain through: increased market access for small businesses; counseling and mentoring services to assist small suppliers; ready sources of capital to support sales, and; addressing the skills gap facing many small manufacturers and suppliers.
Agency Priority Goals
Statement:
Expand access to capital by adding 325 new and returning lenders to SBA’s flagship 7(a) program each fiscal year in FY2014-2015.
Description:
Providing access to capital has been one of the SBA’s critical strategies in meeting its objective to drive business formation, job growth and economic expansion particularly in underserved markets since the agency was created in 1953. By providing loan guarantees to reduce lenders’ loss exposure, the SBA provides an important credit lifeline to small businesses, especially startup businesses and businesses owned by women, minorities, veterans and other underserved groups who often cannot easily obtain credit in the conventional market. In the current economic conditions, SBA loan programs become even more crucial for ensuring that small businesses are not only surviving but also leading the way toward economic recovery and growth, as they have done time-and-time again throughout U.S. history.
SBA will increase small business access to capital by increasing the number of new or returning lenders in the fiscal year for the flagship 7(a) program (including the Community Advantage pilot program). New and returning lenders are a major component of SBA’s lending portfolio and are essential to growth in the quantity of loans approved and small businesses assisted. Each new or returning lender will expand SBA’s footprint and increase small business access to capital. Attaining a high volume of new and returning lenders from one fiscal year to the next will create a consistent pipeline of SBA loans into the hands of small business.
There are barriers and challenges to the SBA in achieving its priority goals:
- Economic Trends; micro and macro
- Issues within the Finance Industry as a whole
- Shrinking workforce in field offices which provide training
- Recent cases from the OIG reviewing SBA lenders underwriting criteria have triggered a more cautious approach from some lenders with some loan guaranty types
Statement:
Maximize small business participation in federal government contracting to meet the statutory goals and reduce participation by ineligible firms.
Description:
Congress has mandated that small businesses receive 23% of federal government prime contracting dollars, including 5% of prime and subcontracts to Small Disadvantage Businesses; 5% of prime and subcontracts to Women-Owned Small Businesses; 3% of prime and subcontracts to HUBZone Small Businesses; and 3% of prime and subcontracts to Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Businesses
Meeting and exceeding the federal government’s small business procurement goals continues to be an Administration priority. Federal contracting with small businesses is a win-win. Small businesses get the revenue they need to grow their businesses and create jobs, and the federal government gets the opportunity to work with some of America’s most innovative and nimble small businesses, often times with a direct line to the CEO.
In FY 2012, the federal government made real progress toward the 23 percent goal, with 22.25 percent or $89.9 billion in federal contracting dollars going to small businesses compared to 21.65 percent in FY 2011, with significant impact in key areas:
- For the first time, more agencies than ever before met or surpassed all of their prime contracting goals.
- Also, for the first time, the federal government exceeded the goal for service disabled veterans.
- The federal government had the highest percentage of contracts going to Small Disadvantage Businesses to date.
As a result of a government wide focus on increasing small business contracting opportunities, during President Obama’s first term (FY2009 - FY2012) the federal government awarded $376.2 billion in federal contracting dollars to small businesses. This is a $48.1 billion increase over the four preceding years even as we have seen reduced spending overall.
Also, since President Obama took office, the SBA has supported more than $132.61 billion in Federal government contracting dollars to small disadvantaged businesses. This represents a 36.6 percent increase when compared to the prior Administration. Under the Bush Administration’s first term, $97.10 billion in federal government contracting dollars were awarded to small disadvantaged businesses.
Although we have seen marked success over the last few years, we know more must be done. Many challenges exist for small businesses seeking to enter the federal procurement marketplace.
- The unpredictable and changing budget climate is a challenge for small businesses, and SBA is working hard to create an environment where small businesses can be successful in the federal procurement marketplace.
- The instability and ambiguity caused by Continuing Resolutions make it difficult to agency acquisition staff to plan effectively for small business utilization.
- Entering the federal supply chain can often be a lengthy and arduous process for many small businesses.
SBA’s GCBD unit must implement effective and efficient strategies to monitor the agencies’ progress to goal, support small businesses interested in working with the government and encourage agencies to improve data quality when reporting their contracting activities. SBA will increase its efforts to collaborate with and hold federal agencies accountable to achieving their goals.
Statement:
Expand small business access to export financing by increasing the number of lenders providing export financing solutions from 430 to 555 and the number of small business exporters receiving financing through SBA loan programs from 1,346 to 1,480 by FY2015.
Description:
The priority goal is directly tied to the objective of both the National Export Initiative (NEI) and the Export Promotion Cabinet (EPC) to expand SME access to trade financing, which has been identified as a gap issue for smaller exporters. Increasing access to export financing, combined with trade counseling and training, will contribute to the enhanced ability of current and future U.S. small business exporters to succeed in the global marketplace and supports the cross-agency goal of doubling U.S. exports.
There are barriers and challenges to the SBA in achieving its priority goals:
- From a marketing perspective, communicating and disseminating trade financing information to lenders and small business exporters could provide challenging given current, and anticipated, budget constraints on staffing.
- Inter-agency collaboration and joint initiatives can be challenging to manage, given the differing regulations and performance metrics of individual agencies, which might reduce the commitment of other agencies to help support this priority.
- Unique, and sometimes additional, Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) requirements for core export loans vs. other 7(a) loan products can confuse lenders and may require the creation of “Lender Training Manuals,” more extensive lender training, and Office of Capital Access support in implementing needed SOP revisions.
- In terms of operations, a reduced travel budget could greatly restrict the ability of field staff to deliver the necessary training to lenders and businesses that would expand the use of SBA loan programs for exporters, given that SBA's specialized trade finance specialists cover multiple states.
- The banking sector could receive another “financial shock,” forcing it to tighten lending requirements to small businesses and/or Basel III capital requirements could limit lending capacity.*
- U.S. export growth could slow, reducing demand for trade financing, as a result of slow overseas economic growth and/or a strengthening of the U.S. dollar, making U.S. exports less competitive.
Trade financing historically has been perceived by many lenders, especially community banks, as being too complex to be incorporated into their suite of financial products. Working with other federal agencies, SBA will help reduce the complexity of USG trade financing and export marketing programs and highlight the growing importance of exports to the U.S. economy, thereby encouraging more lenders to offer comprehensive business solutions to their export customers. In addition, SBA will leverage its outreach by working with state, federal, and other resource partners in order to promote customized trade financing options to the small business exporting community.
Statement:
Increase the return rate for disaster survivor applications by 10 percent points from 24% to 34% return rate by September 30, 2015.
Description:
The FY13 baseline number for Disaster Loan Application Return Rate was 24%, so the goal for FY14 is to achieve 29% and 34% in FY15. Increasing the application return rate will improve the delivery of the Disaster Loan Program. The primary opportunity being addressed is that a higher application return rate should result in a greater number of disaster survivors that will apply for disaster loan assistance and receive much needed Federal disaster assistance. SBA’s plan to increase the application return rate also ensures that SBA's disaster assistance resources for businesses, non-profit organizations, homeowners, and renters can be deployed quickly, effectively and efficiently in order to preserve jobs and help return small businesses to operation.
SBA’s plan to increase the application return rate will indirectly make the Disaster Loan Program more efficient by: 1) saving costs on mailing application packets to 100% of disaster survivors referred to SBA; and 2) freeing up resources dedicated to preparing and mailing application packets that can be utilized in other critical areas of the application screening process that directly impact processing times.
Strategic Goal:
Serving as the voice for small business
Statement:
Serving as the Voice for Small Business
Strategic Objectives
Statement:
Ensure inclusive entrepreneurship by expanding access and opportunity to small businesses and entrepreneurs in communities where market gaps remain
Description:
Underserved communities – including women, low-income, minorities, veteran entrepreneurs – often have extreme difficulty in accessing capital, training, advising, and mentoring services and federal contracts. SBA’s unique approach to inclusive entrepreneurship provides products, services and programs that offer a path to business ownership for these populations that also suffer from disproportionately high levels of unemployment. The SBA will continue to work collaboratively with community development partners, credit unions, minority associations and others to tailor programs to meet their needs and ensure that SBA’s programs remain accessible to underserved communities.
Statement:
Lead and collaborate with other agencies to strengthen and streamline the delivery of programs, resources and services for small businesses.
Description:
The SBA is the voice of small business and works to advocate for the interests of small business owners and entrepreneurs across government agencies. In this capacity, the Agency takes a leadership role in ensuring effective delivery of federal small business programs and services, collaborating across a broad array of agencies. The Agency is a leading participant in interagency collaborations that focus on innovation, place-based and sector-based growth, government contracting, veterans and reservists, disaster recovery, access to capital for small business owners and entrepreneurial education. The SBA will continue to foster interagency collaborations that leverage and align Agency activities across the federal government to reach more small businesses more efficiently than ever before.
Statement:
Provide timely, instructive and useful information to the small business community through SBA’s extensive digital and in-person outreach efforts.
Description:
The SBA works to ensure that small business entrepreneurs can effectively access and navigate small business programs across the federal government. In an increasingly tech-driven economy, the SBA has taken significant steps to upgrade and enhance its website to better meet the needs of small businesses and give entrepreneurs more ways to access the Agency’s tools and resources. The SBA co-leads the BusinessUSA initiative with the Department of Commerce to provide small businesses with an easy-to-use, consolidated website and toll-free telephone number for the many government small business resources found in other agencies. The SBA leverages its nationwide network of field offices and resource partners to conduct outreach to hundreds of thousands of small business owners.
Statement:
Foster a small business-friendly environment by encouraging federal agency awareness about the impact of unfair regulatory enforcement and compliance efforts, reducing burdens on small business and improving small business research
Description:
The SBA plays a critical role in the Administration’s ongoing efforts to reduce regulatory barriers to entrepreneurship, innovation, and American competitiveness. As part of the Start-Up America initiative, government leaders met with more than 1,000 entrepreneurs across the country to talk about ways to reduce barriers for small business growth. These conversations continue to guide SBA policy and programmatic decisions. In addition, SBA’s National Ombudsman plays a key role in helping small business owners deal with specific regulatory burdens and challenges that result from federal agency processes. Furthermore, the SBA is focused on and committed to not only compiling internal SBA data to inform programmatic decisions, but also partnering with the key federal agencies to gather the most robust data sets to make informed policy.
Agency Priority Goals
Statement:
Expand access to capital by adding 325 new and returning lenders to SBA’s flagship 7(a) program each fiscal year in FY2014-2015.
Description:
Providing access to capital has been one of the SBA’s critical strategies in meeting its objective to drive business formation, job growth and economic expansion particularly in underserved markets since the agency was created in 1953. By providing loan guarantees to reduce lenders’ loss exposure, the SBA provides an important credit lifeline to small businesses, especially startup businesses and businesses owned by women, minorities, veterans and other underserved groups who often cannot easily obtain credit in the conventional market. In the current economic conditions, SBA loan programs become even more crucial for ensuring that small businesses are not only surviving but also leading the way toward economic recovery and growth, as they have done time-and-time again throughout U.S. history.
SBA will increase small business access to capital by increasing the number of new or returning lenders in the fiscal year for the flagship 7(a) program (including the Community Advantage pilot program). New and returning lenders are a major component of SBA’s lending portfolio and are essential to growth in the quantity of loans approved and small businesses assisted. Each new or returning lender will expand SBA’s footprint and increase small business access to capital. Attaining a high volume of new and returning lenders from one fiscal year to the next will create a consistent pipeline of SBA loans into the hands of small business.
There are barriers and challenges to the SBA in achieving its priority goals:
- Economic Trends; micro and macro
- Issues within the Finance Industry as a whole
- Shrinking workforce in field offices which provide training
- Recent cases from the OIG reviewing SBA lenders underwriting criteria have triggered a more cautious approach from some lenders with some loan guaranty types
Statement:
Maximize small business participation in federal government contracting to meet the statutory goals and reduce participation by ineligible firms.
Description:
Congress has mandated that small businesses receive 23% of federal government prime contracting dollars, including 5% of prime and subcontracts to Small Disadvantage Businesses; 5% of prime and subcontracts to Women-Owned Small Businesses; 3% of prime and subcontracts to HUBZone Small Businesses; and 3% of prime and subcontracts to Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Businesses
Meeting and exceeding the federal government’s small business procurement goals continues to be an Administration priority. Federal contracting with small businesses is a win-win. Small businesses get the revenue they need to grow their businesses and create jobs, and the federal government gets the opportunity to work with some of America’s most innovative and nimble small businesses, often times with a direct line to the CEO.
In FY 2012, the federal government made real progress toward the 23 percent goal, with 22.25 percent or $89.9 billion in federal contracting dollars going to small businesses compared to 21.65 percent in FY 2011, with significant impact in key areas:
- For the first time, more agencies than ever before met or surpassed all of their prime contracting goals.
- Also, for the first time, the federal government exceeded the goal for service disabled veterans.
- The federal government had the highest percentage of contracts going to Small Disadvantage Businesses to date.
As a result of a government wide focus on increasing small business contracting opportunities, during President Obama’s first term (FY2009 - FY2012) the federal government awarded $376.2 billion in federal contracting dollars to small businesses. This is a $48.1 billion increase over the four preceding years even as we have seen reduced spending overall.
Also, since President Obama took office, the SBA has supported more than $132.61 billion in Federal government contracting dollars to small disadvantaged businesses. This represents a 36.6 percent increase when compared to the prior Administration. Under the Bush Administration’s first term, $97.10 billion in federal government contracting dollars were awarded to small disadvantaged businesses.
Although we have seen marked success over the last few years, we know more must be done. Many challenges exist for small businesses seeking to enter the federal procurement marketplace.
- The unpredictable and changing budget climate is a challenge for small businesses, and SBA is working hard to create an environment where small businesses can be successful in the federal procurement marketplace.
- The instability and ambiguity caused by Continuing Resolutions make it difficult to agency acquisition staff to plan effectively for small business utilization.
- Entering the federal supply chain can often be a lengthy and arduous process for many small businesses.
SBA’s GCBD unit must implement effective and efficient strategies to monitor the agencies’ progress to goal, support small businesses interested in working with the government and encourage agencies to improve data quality when reporting their contracting activities. SBA will increase its efforts to collaborate with and hold federal agencies accountable to achieving their goals.
Statement:
Increase the return rate for disaster survivor applications by 10 percent points from 24% to 34% return rate by September 30, 2015.
Description:
The FY13 baseline number for Disaster Loan Application Return Rate was 24%, so the goal for FY14 is to achieve 29% and 34% in FY15. Increasing the application return rate will improve the delivery of the Disaster Loan Program. The primary opportunity being addressed is that a higher application return rate should result in a greater number of disaster survivors that will apply for disaster loan assistance and receive much needed Federal disaster assistance. SBA’s plan to increase the application return rate also ensures that SBA's disaster assistance resources for businesses, non-profit organizations, homeowners, and renters can be deployed quickly, effectively and efficiently in order to preserve jobs and help return small businesses to operation.
SBA’s plan to increase the application return rate will indirectly make the Disaster Loan Program more efficient by: 1) saving costs on mailing application packets to 100% of disaster survivors referred to SBA; and 2) freeing up resources dedicated to preparing and mailing application packets that can be utilized in other critical areas of the application screening process that directly impact processing times.
Strategic Objectives
Strategic Objective:
Ensure SBA’s disaster assistance can be deployed quickly, effectively and efficiently
Statement:
Ensure that SBA’s disaster assistance resources for businesses, non-profit organizations, homeowners, and renters can be deployed quickly, effectively and efficiently in order to preserve jobs and help return small businesses to operation.
Description:
Returning small business operations to normal after a disaster is critical to ensuring that local economies regain traction as quickly as possible and are once again able to contribute to the economy and create jobs. The SBA, in coordination with the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), other federal agencies, the American Red Cross and array of state and local entities, helps small businesses prepare for disaster and provides timely and accessible low-cost, low-interest loans to small business owners, non-profits, homeowners, and renters who are survivors of disaster.
Agency Priority Goals
Statement: Increase the return rate for disaster survivor applications by 10 percent points from 24% to 34% return rate by September 30, 2015.
Description: The FY13 baseline number for Disaster Loan Application Return Rate was 24%, so the goal for FY14 is to achieve 29% and 34% in FY15. Increasing the application return rate will improve the delivery of the Disaster Loan Program. The primary opportunity being addressed is that a higher application return rate should result in a greater number of disaster survivors that will apply for disaster loan assistance and receive much needed Federal disaster assistance. SBA’s plan to increase the application return rate also ensures that SBA's disaster assistance resources for businesses, non-profit organizations, homeowners, and renters can be deployed quickly, effectively and efficiently in order to preserve jobs and help return small businesses to operation. SBA’s plan to increase the application return rate will indirectly make the Disaster Loan Program more efficient by: 1) saving costs on mailing application packets to 100% of disaster survivors referred to SBA; and 2) freeing up resources dedicated to preparing and mailing application packets that can be utilized in other critical areas of the application screening process that directly impact processing times.
