15 USC § 657n - Immediate Disaster Assistance program

---
identifier: "/us/usc/t15/s657n"
source: "usc"
legal_status: "official_prima_facie"
title: "15 USC § 657n - Immediate Disaster Assistance program"
title_number: 15
title_name: "COMMERCE AND TRADE"
section_number: "657n"
section_name: "Immediate Disaster Assistance program"
chapter_number: 14
chapter_name: "AID TO SMALL BUSINESS"
positive_law: false
currency: "119-84"
last_updated: "2026-04-17"
format_version: "1.1.0"
generator: "[email protected]"
source_credit: "(Pub. L. 85–536, § 2[42], as added Pub. L. 110–234, title XII, § 12084, May 22, 2008, 122 Stat. 1420, and Pub. L. 110–246, § 4(a), title XII, § 12084, June 18, 2008, 122 Stat. 1664, 2182.)"
---


# § 657n. Immediate Disaster Assistance program

**(a)** **Program required** The Administrator shall carry out a program, to be known as the Immediate Disaster Assistance program, under which the Administration participates on a deferred (guaranteed) basis in 85 percent of the balance of the financing outstanding at the time of disbursement of the loan if such balance is less than or equal to $25,000 for businesses affected by a disaster.

**(b)** **Eligibility requirement** section 636 of this title

To receive a loan guaranteed under subsection (a), the applicant shall also apply for, and meet basic eligibility standards for, a loan under subsection (b) or (c) of .

**(c)** **Use of proceeds** section 636 of this title

A person who receives a loan under subsection (b) or (c) of  shall use the proceeds of that loan to repay all loans guaranteed under subsection (a), if any, before using the proceeds for any other purpose.

**(d)** **Loan terms**

**(1)** **No prepayment penalty** There shall be no prepayment penalty on a loan guaranteed under subsection (a).

**1** **Repayment** section 636 of this title[^1]

A person who receives a loan guaranteed under subsection (a) and who is disapproved for a loan under subsection (b) or (c) of , as the case may be, shall repay the loan guaranteed under subsection (a) not later than the date established by the Administrator, which may not be earlier than 10 years after the date on which the loan guaranteed under subsection  is disbursed.

So in original. Probably should be “subsection (a)”.

**(e)** **Approval or disapproval** The Administrator shall ensure that each applicant for a loan under the program receives a decision approving or disapproving of the application within 36 hours after the Administration receives the application.

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**Source Credit**: (Pub. L. 85–536, § 2[42], as added Pub. L. 110–234, title XII, § 12084, May 22, 2008, 122 Stat. 1420, and Pub. L. 110–246, § 4(a), title XII, § 12084, June 18, 2008, 122 Stat. 1664, 2182.)

## Editorial Notes

### Codification

and  enacted identical sections.  was repealed by .

## Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

### Effective Date

Enactment of this section and repeal of  by  effective , the date of enactment of , see , set out as a note under , Agriculture.