Ted Lemoi stands outside a FEMA disaster recovery center in Cumberland, Rhode Island, after receiving financial assistance to repair his flood-damaged home. He was granted $810 and approved for a $27,000 loan from the Small Business Administration (SBA).
However, vital programs like this—designed to help people recover after natural disasters—could soon disappear if President-elect Donald Trump adopts the suggestions in the conservative policy guide known as Project 2025.
According to this playbook, a major proposal is to completely end the SBA’s direct disaster lending program. These loans are a crucial support system for disaster survivors, and getting rid of them would cause serious harm—especially for rural communities that already struggle with fewer resources and face a higher risk from extreme weather events.
“Rural areas are hit harder by natural disasters, but they have less financial support and infrastructure to recover,” explained Natalie Baker, Director of Economic Analysis at the Center for American Progress.
This concern is backed by data. A 2023 Urban Institute study found that 41.9% of areas identified as being at high risk for natural disasters under the federal Community Disaster Resilience Zones program are located in rural America.
That number is more than double the percentage of Americans who actually live in rural areas—just about 20% of the population. This clearly shows how overrepresented rural regions are among high-risk zones.
And the situation is only becoming worse. As the climate warms, storms are getting stronger, causing more destruction and driving up the cost of recovery.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has warned that natural disasters are growing more intense, leaving a trail of costly damage, especially in storm-prone states like Florida, Texas, and Louisiana.
In these states and many others, the SBA’s disaster loan program has served as a lifeline. It helps communities survive financially after a storm or flood—especially when insurance doesn’t fully cover the damage or when FEMA payouts fall short.
These loans are available not just to businesses, but also to homeowners, renters, and nonprofit organizations, making them one of the most widely accessible forms of post-disaster aid.
Despite this, Project 2025 explicitly calls for “an end to SBA direct lending,” which, by definition, is only made available after a natural disaster strikes. The Center for American Progress warns that this move would leave a huge gap in support when communities need it most.
There’s ongoing debate about whether Trump will follow the Project 2025 recommendations. The 900-page document was put together by the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank.
Trump has publicly claimed that he hasn’t read the document, but history suggests he’s aligned with its views. During his first term, over 70 former Heritage Foundation staff members either served on his transition team or were part of his administration.
Now, following his November 6 victory, Trump has once again turned to the Heritage Foundation to help him fill around 4,000 presidentially appointed government roles, as reported by NBC News.
This deep connection strongly suggests that Trump may lean toward adopting many of Project 2025’s policy ideas—including the proposed elimination of disaster relief loans.
Trump’s past decisions also point in this direction. In 2017, he denied Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf’s request for $7 million in disaster relief for areas devastated by a snowstorm. And in 2016, after Hurricane Matthew caused 26 deaths in North Carolina, Trump’s administration approved only 1% of the aid requested by Governor Roy Cooper. These examples demonstrate a track record of limiting federal disaster aid.
“If the new administration does go ahead and implement the policies outlined in Project 2025—and we have solid reasons to believe they will—it will leave rural communities deeply exposed and financially unstable when future natural disasters strike,” said Baker.
Eliminating SBA disaster loans would mean stripping away one of the few reliable safety nets available to thousands of Americans each year—particularly in rural areas where options are limited, and the road to recovery is already long and difficult.
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