Missouri State Treasurer Vivek Malek visited with local leaders on Nov. 14 at the Barry County Courthouse in Cassville, part of a tour of rural counties where he is promoting the MOBUCK$ low-interest loan program.
‘The state treasurer’s office doesn’t have a marketing budget, and banks don’t promote it much, so I am going around county to county to meet with officials, chambers and leaders in each community,’ he said.
MOBUCK$ is a state program for farmers and small business owners. It is funded by investment returns and has grown from $360 million available to $800 million available, and Malek wants to raise that cap again.
‘MOBUCK$ is unique because even though the program is over 40 years old, the usual response is people don’t know about it,’ Malek said. ‘But, it has helped small businesses and farmers lower their interest by 30 percent. Hopefully, we will get an extra $400 million approved when we reopen MOBUCK$ on Jan. 2.’
The program, which had a maximum of $10 million per loan, ran out of funds in May, but Malek said most of those loans were in urban areas. To help spread funds further, Malek has requested the $400 million cap and reducing the max loan amount to $5 million.
‘Due to inflationary pressures, the Federal Reserve Bank has continued to raise interest rates,’ a press release from Malek’s office said. ‘As a result, MOBUCK$ has become a lifeline for farmers and small business owners. Since March 2022, the Fed has increased interest rates 11 times, resulting the highest rate in 22 years. Through the MOBUCK$ program, lenders are allowed to lower interest rates to the borrower by about 2-3 percent.’
Malek said for a $100,000 loan, new or existing, a business could expect a rate of about 8.59 percent. The applicant can then ask the local bank to apply for MOBUCK$, which will supplement the loan to allow an interest rate as low as 5 percent to the applicant.
Malek said it’s a win-win because the applicant has a lower rate, the bank retains the liquidity via CDs, and the state makes its money back in the end in taxes from the business. In the last MOBUCK$ cycle, Barry County had two applicants awarded a combined total of $572,500.
‘That tells you how many people know about it,’ Malek said. ‘McDonald County had zero loans, and Jasper County had 87.’
Due to expiration of some existing MOBUCK$ loans, funds will become available to resume acceptance of applications. As a result, the Malek’s office will begin accepting new applications for loans beginning Jan. 2, 2024. However, if demand remains high, and the statutory limit is not increased, available funds are likely to be exhausted and the application portal will be closed again, which will force Missouri small businesses, including farmers and ranchers, to pay higher interest rates.
While in Cassville, Malek also touted the unclaimed property program, which could give residents a bit of pocket change.
Each year financial institutions, businesses, government agencies, and other organizations turn over millions of dollars in cash and the contents of safe deposit boxes to the Treasurer’s Office. These entities are required to turn over Unclaimed Property to the State Treasurer’s Office after there has been no document transaction or contact with the owner for five years. One in ten Missourians has Unclaimed Property, and the average return is $300.
To check for unclaimed property, residents may visit www.showmemoney. com.
For more on Malek’s office and programs available, people may visit https://treasurer.mo.gov/.
Missouri State Treasurer Vivek Malek speaks to local leaders on Nov. 14 at the Barry County Courthouse about the MOBUCK$ low-interest loan program available through his office. Applications for the program will open again in February 2024. Kyle Troutman/ktroutman@cassville-democrat.com
