United States 119th Congress Status: In Committee Bipartisan · 2 D · 1 R cosponsors

S 397 — Small Business Disaster Damage Fairness Act of 2025

Last action — Read twice and referred to the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship.

  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. 2
    In Committee
  3. 3
    Passed Senate
  4. 4
    Passed House
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill is in committee in the Senate. Introduced February 04, 2025. It must pass committee before a floor vote.

Next likely step: a committee vote, then a floor vote in the Senate.

Odds of enactment

Low chance

Based on the sponsor, cosponsors, and committee posture, this bill has a low chance of becoming law.

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A statistical estimate from our own model of past outcomes — an insight, not a guarantee. Policymaking is volatile.

Prognosis

Advancing 36% · moderate confidence

  • In Committee

    Current position in the legislative process.

  • 3 sponsors

    1 primary, 2 co-sponsors signed on.

  • Bipartisan support

    Sponsored across 2 parties (2 D · 1 R) — cross-party backing.

Based on stage, sponsorship breadth, committee status, recorded votes, and cross-state momentum — a description of the observable signals, not a prediction.

Summary

Small Business Disaster Damage Fairness Act of 2025This bill increases from $14,000 to $50,000 the threshold loan amount over which the Small Business Administration (SBA) may require collateral for a disaster loan.The Government Accountability Office must report on the performance, including the default rate, of such loans.Additionally, the SBA must (1) distinguish between rural and urban communities in the outreach and marketing for disaster loans, and (2) incorporate actions to mitigate challenges encountered by rural communities in accessing such loans.

Bill Text

How this bill changes current law

2 changes Share ↗

Compared against current U.S. Code AI-generated reading aid — verify against the official bill.

This bill increases the minimum disaster loan amount requiring collateral from $14,000 to $50,000 and modifies the definition of eligible disasters.

  • 15 U.S.C. 636(d)(6)

    $14,000 → $50,000

    The minimum disaster loan amount for which collateral is required is increased.

  • 15 U.S.C. 636(d)(6)

    major disaster → disaster

    The terminology for the types of disasters that qualify for loans is broadened.

Action History

  1. Introduced in Senate

  2. Read twice and referred to the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship.

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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1 sponsors · 2 co-sponsors · 544 not signed on

Sponsors (1)

Co-sponsors (2)

Not signed on (544)

544 members have not signed on to this bill.

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"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Subjects

public-safety finance housing labor
Cross-referencing the record. Reading this bill against every other bill in the corpus by meaning, not keywords. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Matching · Ranking · Engrossing

Frequently asked questions

What does S 397 do?
Small Business Disaster Damage Fairness Act of 2025This bill increases from $14,000 to $50,000 the threshold loan amount over which the Small Business Administration (SBA) may require collateral for a disaster loan.The Government Accountability Office must report on the performance, including the default rate, of such loans.Additionally, the SBA must (1) distinguish between rural and urban communities in the outreach and marketing for disaster loans, and (2) incorporate actions to mitigate challenges encountered by rural communities in accessing such loans.
Who sponsors S 397?
S 397 is sponsored by Kennedy, John (Republican), Booker, Cory A. (Democratic), and Hirono, Mazie K. (Democratic).
What is the current status of S 397?
This bill is in committee in the Senate. Introduced February 04, 2025. It must pass committee before a floor vote.
Where can I track S 397?
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Last checked for changes 3 months ago · updated continuously

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