Florida businesses got more pandemic relief than almost every state

TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — The federal government has disbursed $329.7 billion in loans to businesses through a pandemic disaster relief program, as of Jan. 20. The Small Business Administration’s latest data report shows that Florida got more money and had more applicants than any other state approved, save California.

Across the U.S. and its various territories, seven states took home the biggest chunk of pandemic relief pie for business owners. The SBA’s Economic Injury Disaster Loan program poured billions into American businesses to try to stave off catastrophic losses during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

As of January 2022, we know now that California and Florida businesses benefitted the most from taxpayer dollars, particularly when it came to loan application approvals and dollars delivered. To be clear, the EIDL loans are separate from the Paycheck Protection Program payments that businesses could request, though business owners were able to receive money from both programs.

Starting in January, new applications will no longer be accepted, making the billions available for relief a slowly dwindling pot of money. However, SBA said it will allow requests for increases, appeals on rejected applications, and reconsideration requests.

As of September 2021, loans could be requested up to $2 million. Applicants could previously request up to $500,000. Depending on the size of the loan requested, applicants had to have a credit score of at least 570. For loans over $500,000, credit scores had to be 625 at the lowest. Equifax reports that a good credit score is typically between 670 to 739. Scores top out at 850, and the average American has a score of about 700, according to WalletHub. Residents in the South have reportedly lower scores on average, usually about 20 points. Age is a factor as well.

“While the average credit score in the South hovers around 667, it’s about 20 points higher in all other parts of the country,” WalletHub said. “Additionally, individuals in their 20’s have an average credit score of 662, while people in their 50’s have an average credit score more than 40 points higher.”

The top seven states to see approvals and money were California, Florida, New York, Texas, New Jersey, Georgia and Illinois. Florida, Georgia and Texas were the only southern states to make it into the top earners from the SBA-EIDL program.

Money was distributed regionally, and in Region IV, Florida got the most, compared to its other regional neighbors. Region IV included Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. Texas was in Region VI.

In all, Florida’s region received a total of $67.85 billion for just under one million applicants. Florida took home 48.8% of the cash delivered, for fewer than 50% of the overall applicants in the region. Nationally, Florida businesses got about 10% of all money loaned through the EIDL program, with 12% of all applicants in the U.S. calling the Sunshine State home.

Pandemic relief money has played a part in the current economic success in the state, with leaders at the state capitol reporting record levels of state revenue during the pandemic, even as other states lost businesses and jobs. The increased budget for the state has played into policy directives and legislative agendas for the past two years, and more heading into the 2022 legislative session.

In 2021, Florida’s state budget was $101.5 billion. While the 2022 budget request from Gov. Ron DeSantis was just a hair short of $100 billion, state reserves are expected to top $15 billion this year.

Check out which states got the most cash from COVID-19 relief, and how many businesses were approved, below.