Small, nonfarm businesses in nine Oregon counties and neighboring counties in California and Nevada are now eligible to apply for low-interest federal disaster loans from the SBA.

The agency said the loans offset economic losses because of reduced revenues caused by the drought that occurred June 18 through Aug. 12 in the following counties:

Primary Oregon counties: Jackson, Josephine, Klamath and Lake; Neighboring Oregon counties: Curry, Deschutes, Douglas, Harney and Lane; Neighboring California counties: Del Norte, Modoc and Siskiyou; Neighboring Nevada county: Washoe.

Several counties in Colorado, Idaho and Utah are also eligible for the disaster loans, the SBA said.

Small, nonfarm businesses, small agricultural cooperatives, small businesses engaged in aquaculture and most private, nonprofit organizations of any size may qualify for the SBA's economic injury disaster loans of up to $2 million to help meet financial obligations and operating expenses which could have been met had the disaster not occurred, according to Alfred Judd, director of SBA's Disaster Field Operations Center-West.

Eligibility for the loans is based on the financial impact of the disaster only and not on any actual property damage, the SBA said.

The loans have an interest rate of 4% for businesses and 2.875% for private, nonprofit organizations, a maximum term of 30 years, and are available to small businesses and most private, nonprofits without the financial ability to offset the adverse impact without hardship, Judd said.

The deadline to apply for the loans is April 14, 2014.