Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner submitted a request (Friday) for U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) assistance to help people and businesses in Christian and Iroquois counties recover from severe storms and floods that occurred in late December 2015.

If approved, the SBA declaration would enable people and businesses in the counties, as well as counties contiguous to each, to apply for low-interest, long-term loans.

"Nearly three months after floodwaters receded, many people still are trying to repair or rebuild their homes and replace personal property damaged in the floods," said Rauner. "If approved, these low-interest loans could speed up the recovery process for many people and businesses."

The state requested federal assistance through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to help people recover from the floods. However that request was denied March 10.

The Illinois Emergency Management Agency (IEMA) consulted with the affected counties to see if any additional damage had been reported that could have been used to support an appeal of the denial. However, only minimal damage information for homes and businesses was reported by the impacted counties.

Rauner also announced Friday that IEMA will work with FEMA to review additional local government expenses related to the disaster that were recently submitted by eight counties.

94.1 WGFA