More than four years later, plenty of those saved are still paying for it — and aren’t enthusiastic about taking on loans provided in the General Assembly’s latest Hurricane Helene relief bill. 

One form of relief during COVID was the Paycheck Protection Program, which was technically a forgivable loan. Another form of relief was the Economic Injury Disaster Loan, which was not forgivable. The loans were let on a 30-year term at 3.75% interest.

Data from the Small Business Administration shows who received those COVID loans, how much money they received and when they received it, however what it doesn’t show is who has already paid them back, or what their outstanding balances are. Chances are high that many or most of the 30-year loans have not been paid back yet, just over four years after they were disbursed.

While the face value dollar amounts of the loans don’t strictly testify to the amount of post-Helene need in Western North Carolina — nearly every business was affected by COVID, but not all businesses were affected by Helene — the number of COVID loans taken out does perhaps indicate the number of businesses in the region that aren’t in a position to incur further debt and need direct assistance in the form of grants, not loans, if they’re to survive.

Across North Carolina, nearly 94,000 COVID loans were issued at a face value of $4.3 billion. In what used to be the 11th Congressional District, there were 5,400 loans at a face value of $254.4 million, received by legal entities in 88 municipalities or communities — many of which were hit hard by Helene.