As our Pensacola business community begins to assess the flooding-related damage from Hurricane Sally, the demand for available resources capable of providing capital, advice and disaster relief services has become a hot topic of discussion—and a source of some confusion and frustration.
On the federal level, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis sent a letter to President Trump on September 18, 2020, formally requesting an expedited Major Disaster declaration for Hurricane Sally impacts. If approved, the declaration will significantly expand the resources available to individuals and businesses in affected areas.
In the meantime, there are immediate state and local resources available that you can explore now. The following are a few of those resources.
Business Damage Assessment Survey
The State of Florida has a program managed by the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity (DEO) to collect information and share it with local and state recovery resources. The Florida Business Damage Assessment Survey is a straight-forward online survey every impacted business should complete as soon as possible. The survey alerts the state to your needs and provides a one-stop resource to locate recovery resources available to you. Click here to take the survey. To take the survey, click here.
Assistance with Disaster Insurance Claims
Florida’s Division of Consumer Services has a resource center website called PrepareFL containing several useful links for businesses and individuals. With information and assistance regarding claims processing as well as a fact sheet on commercial insurance coverage, the site also contains information about bridge loans and even a business disaster safety toolkit. Visitors can also be redirected to Small Business Administration disaster loan programs from this site.
Anglin Pensacola Office Support
To clients and friends impacted by the storm, please reach out to any of our professionals regarding questions about storm-related losses and your ongoing financial or tax planning. Contact our Pensacola office at 850-438-3622.
For more information, you may also be interested in our blog post about Federally Declared Disaster Area losses and tax planning options.