Small businesses and private nonprofits across a swath of Middle Tennessee can now apply for low-interest federal loans to help them recover from an ongoing drought, with the application window open through June 21, 2027. The U.S. Small Business Administration is offering the relief to eligible organizations in 11 counties after a drought that reportedly began on October 6.
The loans, known as Economic Injury Disaster Loans, provide working capital for expenses tied to the disaster rather than free money, according to WZTV. The outlet reports the loans are loans rather than grants, meaning recipients will eventually have to pay them back, though the terms are designed to ease the burden on cash-strapped operations.
Eligible locations include Bedford, Cannon, Coffee, Davidson, Giles, Lincoln, Marshall, Maury, Rutherford, Williamson, and Wilson counties, the station's report states. That list spans a mix of urban and rural counties, suggesting the drought's economic fallout has reached well beyond farmland into the Nashville metro area itself.
Who Can Apply and for How Much
Potentially eligible applicants may include small businesses, private nonprofits, faith-based organizations, small agricultural cooperatives, nurseries, and small aquaculture businesses, per the same account. Loan applicants must meet SBA eligibility requirements before funds are approved, and the station notes EIDL funds can help cover ordinary operating expenses that businesses cannot cover because of the disaster.
The loans may provide up to $2 million, with interest rates as low as 4% for small businesses and 3.625% for private nonprofits, the report says. Terms may stretch up to 30 years, and borrowers get a break up front: interest and payments are deferred for the first 12 months after the loan is disbursed, according to the same report.
Deadline and How to Apply
Eligible applicants can apply at sba.gov/disaster, the station reports, with the clock running until the June 21, 2027 application deadline. That gives business owners and nonprofit leaders several months to gather paperwork and determine whether their losses qualify.
Anyone with questions can reach the SBA's applicant assistance line at 866-272-4357 or by email at [email protected], as the report notes. People who are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability can dial 7-1-1 for telecommunications relay services.
A Pattern of Drought Relief in Tennessee
This is not the first time the SBA has stepped in to help Tennessee businesses weather dry conditions. An earlier SBA announcement dated May 8, 2026, described drought relief still available to Tennessee small businesses and private nonprofits, listing the same loan ceiling of up to $2 million and the same rate structure of 4% for small businesses and 3.625% for private nonprofits, with terms up to 30 years, according to legacy.sba.gov.
A separate SBA notice dated November 4, 2025, referenced disaster loans tied to drought and excessive heat in Tennessee with a December 2 application deadline, per sba.gov. The evidence does not establish whether that earlier notice and the current application window concern the same disaster declaration, so the two should be treated as distinct episodes of federal relief rather than a single continuous program.
