WEST PITTSTON, PA- U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) today met with small business owners and local officials at Agolino’s Restaurant on Luzerne Avenue to discuss flood recovery efforts. Senator Casey is pushing the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) to lower interest rates on disaster relief loans to help businesses like Agolino’s reopen, rehire and recover lost revenue.
“The extent of the damage at Agolino’s was a stark reminder that recovering from the flood will not be easy, but there are steps we can take to reduce the burden on businesses and residents who are working tirelessly to rebuild after this disaster,” said Senator Casey. “I called SBA Administrator Karen Mills today to relay the concern of business owners that interest rates on disaster relief loans are too high and to reiterate my call for the agency to reduce the rates immediately.”
Senator Casey is also calling on the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to commit to honoring requests for assistance made by Pennsylvanians in the Eastern part of the state who have continued to be impacted by flash flooding. Ground saturation and persistently high river water levels from the recent tropical systems have created a condition in which normal storms can cause flash flooding.
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