|
www.ire.org |
|||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
Resources for using disaster loan data Nearly $1 billion in federal loans have gone to businesses and individuals to help them recover from the Sept. 11 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center, according to records from the U.S. Small Business Administration's disaster loan program. The more-than-9,000 recipients include corner delis, nail salons, travel agencies and trading firms. And the recipients aren't just from New York. Loans went to people or businesses in all 50 states, including a skydiving company in Missouri, aviation firms in Washington state and a plastic surgery center in Florida.
Current through September 2002, the database has 751,154 records of disaster loans going back to 1980. Journalists can see who has received federal assistance, for how much, and for what reason. The database also shows whether those who received loans paid them back. The cost of the 1980-2002 data for all states: 50-200 market or circulation below 50,000 -- $40; 25-50 market or 50,000-100,000 circulation -- $80; top 25 market or circulation above 100,000 -- $105. To order the data, contact NICAR at 573-884-7711. Stories Several stories, available through the IRE Resource Center, have been produced using SBA and other disaster data: #16808: In March 2000, two tornadoes hit the Fort Worth, Texas area, killing five people and causing an estimated $450 million in damage. President Clinton declared the area a national disaster, allowing victims to apply for federal assistance. But less than 20 percent of those who sought loans from the SBA and the Federal Emergency Management Area obtained them, according to an analysis by the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Those who needed help the most received the least, the paper found. #16655: Also in 2000, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported how the federal government has used taxpayer dollars to subsidize an unprecedented construction boom along America's shores, on very risky real estate. The paper analyzed disaster payments and municipal tax rates to show that most money goes to some of the wealthiest towns in the nation. Taxpayers are footing the bill to repair roads, buildings, utilities -- even golf courses and marinas - and other things public officials chose not to insure. #14380: The federal government provided more than $1 billion in disaster relief to North Carolina after Hurricane Fran hit in 1996. The next year, The News & Observer of Raleigh disclosed how millions of those dollars were waste on foolish projects along North Carolina's fragile coastline. Money went to rebuild beachfront homes, fishing piers and other buildings likely to wash away again when the next big storm blows through. Tipsheets The IRE Resource Center also has tipsheets that deal with covering disasters. For instance: #1232: The best disaster web sites - 10 of them, from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to the Natural Hazards Center at the University of Colorado. The tipsheet also explains FEMA's various disaster aid programs. From the 2000 IRE Conference. #773: Covering disasters. How to plan your coverage before disasters strike. How to find experts. Disaster listservs, news groups and Web sites. They're all here on this tipsheet from the 1998 CAR Conference. More tipsheets can be found in the tipsheet database. Uplink and The IRE Journal IRE members can search the indexes of The IRE Journal and Uplink. Back issues of The IRE Journal and Uplink may be purchased for $10 each. There is an additional $10 user fee for nonmembers. Check with the Resource Center at 573-882-3364 or rescntr@ire.org for availability.
| |||||
