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Executive Summary

Since its inception in 1953, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) has served to aid, counsel, assist and protect the interests of small businesses.  While SBA is generally known for its financial support of small businesses, the Agency also plays a critical role in assisting the victims of natural and other declared disasters.  Specifically, SBA provides disaster assistance through its Disaster Loan Program (DLP) to help homeowners, renters, businesses of all sizes, and private nonprofits recover from disasters such as earthquakes, hurricanes, floods, and terrorist attacks.  As of March 31, 2011, SBA has approved more than 1.9 million loans for over $49 billion since 1953.  (See Appendix D.)

SBA’s response to catastrophic disasters has five guiding principles.  These principles allow the Agency to effectively execute surge plans involving the whole Agency.  They are as follows:

• SBA is prepared to respond.  SBA has an organizational infrastructure designed to respond to catastrophic disaster activity, swiftly and effectively.
   

• SBA is trained to respond. Training and coordination are the keys to preparedness.  The vast majority of employees involved in SBA’s catastrophic disaster response has been trained and will continue to be trained in their roles.     

• SBA’s response at higher surge levels requires an “all hands on deck” approach.  Employees across the entire SBA organization have key roles to play in core functions and are valuable assets to help SBA achieve the level of performance America requires and expects.

• SBA takes pride in quality assurance and customer service.  The Agency continuously strives to deliver the highest level of quality of service.  Customers will be provided with the necessary support and communication channels to minimize confusion and ensure a positive experience during their time of greatest need.

• SBA’s response is coordinated with its government partners.  The Agency communicates with local, state, and federal government agencies, including Congress, to deliver timely assistance. 

SBA’s Disaster Recovery Plan (DRP) supports the following outcomes:

• Support of long-term economic recovery by providing capital to help disaster victims rebuild and withstand economic injury;

• Timely decisions on disaster loan applications, closing and disbursement;

• A customer-focused, transparent, outcome-driven model of performance;

• A strong, standing, core capability supplemented by surge capacity; and

• Processes coordinated with federal guidance and protocols for disaster recovery (e.g., the National Response Framework (NRF) and the National Incident Management System (NIMS), where applicable).

SBA’s Disaster Recovery Plan is applicable Agency-wide to ensure a broad scope of coordination, awareness, and support throughout its organization. The DRP comprises the following key sections:

• Section I, Introduction, gives a background on SBA and its role in supporting disaster recovery.

• Section II, Disaster Recovery Framework: The Process, discusses SBA’s process for preparing for and processing disaster loan applications, including:

  • Pre-disaster Planning & Preparation;

  • Disaster Declaration & Notification;

  • Application Intake;

  • Loss Verification;

  • Loan Processing; and

  • Closing & Loan Disbursements.

• Section III, Disaster Recovery Framework: Operational Support, delineates SBA’s five functional components that scale: (1) human capital, (2) infrastructure, (3) technology, and (4) public/private partnership, all reliant on streamlined (5) communications.  SBA has prepared to scale each of these components, depending on the level of response needed for a given disaster.  Furthermore, SBA leaders have designed an efficient and cost-effective means for making the best strategic decisions during their surge implementation plan.  These components are summarized below:

  • Human Capital (Personnel):  Utilize current staff; enlist reserves and former employees; cross-train Office of Disaster Assistance (ODA) personnel in loan processing functions, then SBA (non-ODA) staff; engage SBDCs, SCORE, and WBCs in non-loan processing functions (local outreach); hire externally. 

  • Infrastructure (Facilities): Expand office space, staff to meet anticipated workload, adjust schedules as needed to accommodate various time zones, employ a double-shift approach to maximize usage of facilities, and leverage assets within the Agency and its resources to respond.

  • Information Technology:  Leverage the Disaster Credit Management System (DCMS) core capabilities with oversight measures to ensure that system capacity remains stable.

  • Public/Private Partnerships: Leverage relationships with other organizations.

  • Communications: Inform citizens of the SBA resources available to them; listen to businesses, chambers of commerce, and citizens; reach out to state, local, and federal partners.

• Section IV, ODA Organizational Roles and Responsibilities, describes the organizational structure, roles and responsibilities of SBA’s primary disaster loan offices, including:

  • ODA Headquarters;

  • Disaster Customer Service Center;

  • Disaster Field Operations Centers (East and West);

  • Loan Processing and Disbursement Center;

  • Personnel and Administrative Services Center;

  • DCMS Operations Center, and

  • Damage Verification Center.

• Section V, Office of Disaster Planning (ODP) Roles and responsibilities, outlines the planning and readiness mission.

• Section VI, Forecasting and Modeling, describes the models SBA uses to predict the number of disaster loan applications that will be generated by a particular disaster.  Using these forecasting tools allows timely deployment of the resources needed for processing loan applications subsequent to a disaster.   

• Section VII, Surging to Accommodate Need, explains the resources SBA will deploy in response to disasters of different sizes.  SBA categorizes disasters into levels based on the number of anticipated applications. This categorization enables SBA to determine an appropriate surge level for scaling resources and operations to meet the needs of disaster victims. Levels I and II are within ODA’s core capabilities; for Levels III and IV necessitate an SBA-wide response.  The disaster categories are as follows:

  • Surge Level - Approximate Range of Expected Applications

    • Level I - 100,000 and below

    • Level II - 100,000 to 250,000

    • Level III - 250,000 to 500,000

    • Level IV - 500,000 and above

• Section VIII, Communications Plan, sets forth the mechanisms for communicating with citizens, state and local officials, federal officials, the media, national business organizations, and other strategic partners during disasters.  Although the specific communication plan will vary for each disaster, SBA will apply the same principles for all levels of disaster. The two major objectives guiding the Communications Plan are clear:

  • SBA will inform citizens of SBA services and how to obtain them, and

  • SBA will coordinate operations with other recovery partners.

• Section IX, Plan Improvements, SBA participates in the National Exercise Program managed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), organizes periodic internal exercises, and conducts an annual lessons learned/corrective actions program