# Summary of H.R. 7061 — HEAL Maui Act
The HEAL Maui Act provides emergency financial assistance to small businesses affected by the Hawaii wildfires that occurred in August-September 2023. The legislation creates two main assistance programs: emergency grants and loans for affected businesses, plus loan forgiveness provisions.
Under the first program, eligible small businesses and nonprofits with principal offices on Maui can receive emergency grants of up to $15,000 without repayment requirements, distributed within three days of application. The bill prioritizes businesses that experienced at least 30 percent economic losses. The legislation also relaxes typical lending requirements by waiving personal guarantees, collateral requirements, and the need to prove inability to obtain credit elsewhere. A second program creates a "Maui Wildfire Paycheck Protection Program" modeled on pandemic relief, allowing businesses to borrow up to 2.5 times their average monthly payroll costs for purposes including payroll, rent, utilities, mortgage interest, and property damage repair. These loans carry a 4 percent interest rate, no prepayment penalties, and include 6-month to 1-year payment deferrals for affected borrowers.
The bill includes loan forgiveness provisions allowing qualifying businesses to have portions of their loans forgiven if funds were used for eligible purposes. The legislation authorizes $1 billion in emergency grants and $400 billion in loan commitments, with funds available through May 10, 2024. The Federal Reserve is instructed to establish a lending facility to support the program.
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