RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — Virginia leadership is responding after an aggressive bipartisan push on Capitol Hill to fund the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) program was met with an objection from a U.S. Senator in Kentucky on Thursday. The 'Restoring an Economic Lifeline with Immediate Emergency Funding (Relief) Act', sponsored by Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), sought to fund the SBA with $550 million, providing a projected $2.47 billion in lending capacity to last until the end of 2024. These funds would have benefited the thousands of small businesses in need of relief after Hurricane Helene as, just a month ago, the SBA said it was running out of money under an influx of applications. “We have people suffering, we have businesses suffering -- we have a disaster that we have to respond to," Tillis said. Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) showed his support on the Senate floor. "Instead, thousands of Virginians who asked for that right to apply for this loan have gotten a note saying, 'We can’t send you the money until Congress does its job,'" Warner said. RELATED: Governor Glenn Youngkin discusses Hurricane Helene recovery in Virginia Another North Carolinian senator said many of his constituents are suffering similarly. “Every day that this sits empty, it further slows the process of rebuilding the lives for thousands of North Carolinians," said Sen. Ted Budd (R-N.C.) An objection from Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) was given after he called for an amendment, advising his fellow colleagues of where the funds should be taken from. "All we got to do is take some money that's laying around in a pot of money — green new deal boondoggle money going to big corporations -- and put it in for disaster," Paul said. "We can do that today." Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) told reporters his thoughts on the matter, saying he expects Congress to handle the funding all at once, considering the funding estimates that still need to be provided. "In the course of the next couple of weeks, the funding estimates that we will be providing -- along with other states -- will be incorporated in the need and, of course, that will be translated into specific support from the SBA, from HUD, from [the] USDA, from FEMA and other agencies," Youngkin said. This is a developing story, stick with 8News for updates.