For ideas on how local leaders might use some of their American Rescue Plan Act money to support small business development, check out our report:
Small Business’s Big Moment
This post was updated on April 18, 2022.
During the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, we compiled an ongoing list of grant and loan programs created to help small, locally owned businesses weather the pandemic. While we are no longer adding new programs to this list, it may serve as a useful resource for communities seeking to create or modify a program to provide continued support for small businesses.
Grant programs were in greatest demand and were almost always depleted within hours or days. Programs that offered no-interest loans, with deferred loan repayment, were also in great demand, serving as bridges until federal aid was available. Many of these grant and no-interest, deferred-repayment programs were quickly exhausted, but we included them in this list as potential models for new programs. If you have updates on the status of any of the programs included here, please email kennedy[at]ilsr.org.
Many local and state governments are using portions of their American Rescue Plan Act money to support small, independently owned businesses. While most are using it to make grants, a growing number are using some of their ARPA money in innovative ways to improve the overall environment for small business development and to help ensure equitable access to financial, technical, and marketing support. For ideas about how civic leaders might use ARPA money, check out our report, Small Business’s Big Moment.
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FEDERAL
As part of its COVID-19 response, Congress has created several small business relief programs since March 2020:
Tax credits for required paid leave by small and midsize businesses: The Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA), signed into law on March 18, 2020, provides small and midsize employers refundable tax credits that reimburse them, dollar-for-dollar, for the cost of providing paid sick and family leave wages to their employees for leave related to COVID-19. Workers may receive up to 80 hours of paid sick leave for their own health needs or to care for others and up to ten additional weeks of paid family leave to care for a child whose school or place of care is closed or child care provider is unavailable due to COVID-19 precautions. Certain self-employed individuals in similar circumstances are entitled to similar credits. The American Rescue Plan of 2021, enacted on March 11, 2021, amended and extended the tax credits for wages paid between April 1 – September 30, 2021.
Paycheck Protection Program: Part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, signed into law on March 27, 2020, the first tranche of Paycheck Protection Program provided $350 billion in government-backed loans to help small businesses pay their workers and cover fixed expenses. The application process opened on April 3rd for small businesses and sole proprietors and on April 10 for independent contractors and self-employed workers. The Program’s small business was exhausted within two weeks, making 1.6 million loans. On April 23, Congress approved legislation to replenish the Program with an additional tranche of $320 billion, bringing the total to $670 billion. Businesses could apply to borrow up to 2.5 times their average monthly payroll costs, up to $10 million. Loans made to businesses that maintained their payroll levels for at least eight weeks, through June 30, 2020 and that spent at least 75 percent of their loan on payroll were eligible for full forgiveness. In addition to using loan proceeds for payroll expenses, business owners could use loans for rent, utilities, mortgage payments, and other essential business expenses. Businesses could apply for the program through qualified SBA lenders. On June 5, the Paycheck Protection Flexibility Act became law, making PPP loans more flexible in three important ways: 1) businesses needed to spend only 60 percent of the loan amount on payroll; 2) extending the period of time over which they must use the loan from eight weeks to 24 weeks. By June 23, there was still roughly $128 billion still available in the Paycheck Protection Program; and 3) borrowers had until December 31, 2020 to apply for loan forgiveness, a six-month extension beyond the original deadline. On July 3, 2020, Congress extended the deadline to apply for a PPP loan to August 8, 2020. The program ended with more than $100 billion still unexpended. The Consolidated Appropriations Act extended the Paycheck Protection Program, retaining most of the characteristics of the PPP loan program authorized by 2020’s CARES Act, but with a few changes (for example, in addition to being open to businesses that have not yet received a PPP loan, businesses that did receive a PPP loan in 2020 will be eligible to apply for a second time, and businesses in the “food services and accommodation” category (NAICS 72) could apply for a loan equal to 3.5 times their average monthly payroll costs. The relaunched program began accepting applications on January 11, 2021 from businesses that did not receive a PPP loan in the first round and on January 13 from those that are applying for a second loan. Some PPP amounts were set aside for minority, underserved, veteran, and women-owned businesses. The Program was extended one more time, by the PPP Extension Act (signed into law on March 30, 2021), then closed on May 31, 2021.
Employee Retention Credit: The CARES Act created a refundable tax credit for employers whose businesses were suspended due to a shutdown order or whose gross receipts dropped by more than 50 percent over the same time period last year. The credit is worth 50 percent of payrolls paid between March 13-December 31, 2020, up to a maximum of $10,000. On December 27, 2020, the credit was extended for an additional six months, through June 30, 2021, by the Taxpayer Certainty and Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2020. The credit was also modified, making it possible for eligible employers to claim a refundable tax credit against the employer share of Social Security tax equal to 70 percent of qualified wages paid to employees between January 1 – June 30, 2021, with a limit of $10,000 in qualified wages per employee per calendar quarter in 2021.
SBA’s Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program: The CARES Act also expanded lending capacity for the SBA’s existing Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program. Through this program, business owners can borrow up to $2 million. The program initially also offered a $10,000 advance on the loan, which did not need to be repaid, but these advances are no longer available. The interest rate is 3.75 percent for businesses and 2.75 percent for nonprofit organizations.
In addition to these COVID-19 specific new programs and appropriations, there are several existing SBA programs that might be useful to small businesses affected by the pandemic. In particular, the 7(a) Program provides loans up to $5 million for working capital, physical facilities; equipment; inventory; seasonal lines of credit; and other basic business expenses; the Express Loan Program provides loans up to $350,000, with a 36-hour turnaround time; and the Microloan Program, which makes loans up to $50,000. through nonprofit lending intermediaries to underserved markets.
A number of federal agencies received appropriations through the CARES Act in 2020 and the American Rescue Plan Act in 2021, with which they offered, and in some cases continue to offer, specialized grants and other types of financial assistance. These include:
- The National Endowment for the Arts received $75 million through the CARES Act to re-grant to state and regional arts agencies and to nonprofit arts agencies to help them and their employees weather the economic hardships caused by forced closure due to COVID-19. Applicants had to be previous recipients of a National Endowment for the Arts grant within the last four years. Direct fund grants were awarded in a fixed amount of $50,000; subgranting grants were available in fixed amounts of $100,000 or $250,000, of which up to $50,000 could be used for the subgranting entity’s own operations. Applications were due April 22, 2020. By July 5, the Endowment had awarded 855 grants, totaling $44.5 million. Through the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, the Endowment received an additional $135 million, 40 percent of which will be directed to regional arts organizations and state arts agencies to be distributed through their funding program and 60 percent of which will be distributed directly by the Endowment.
- The US Economic Development Administration (EDA) received $1.5 billion through the CARES Act for economic development assistance programs to help communities prevent, prepare for, and respond to coronavirus. A number of communities received EDA CARES Act assistance to create revolving loan funds and other financial resources to help small businesses during the pandemic. EDA received an additional $3 billion from the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, which will be released through competitive grants to communities for economic development projects and infrastructure needs.
- With CARES Act funding, the US Department of Agriculture launched the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP) to help farmers and ranchers affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. A total of $16 billion was made available in direct payments to agricultural producers and $3 billion in food purchases. In its first tranche, direct payments compensated producers for 85 percent of price losses that occurred between January 1 – April 15, 2020. Its second tranche covered 30 percent of anticipated losses through the next two quarters. For the food purchase program component, USDA partnered with regional and local food distributors whose sales were impacted by restaurant and other food service business closures, with distributors providing pre-approved boxes of fresh food to food banks, community and faith-based organizations, and other nonprofits helping needy Americans. Through the American Rescue Plan Act, USDA received additional funding, some of which may support small farmers, food production facilities, and other small food-related businesses.
- The CARES Act included $5 billion for the Community Development Fund, enabling the US Department of Housing and Urban Development to make special Community Development Block Grant (CDBG-CV) awards to states and communities to design programs to support small businesses and provide community services. Small business loan and grant programs funded by CDBG-CV must meet most of the conventional CDBG program requirements, such as creating or retaining jobs for low- and moderate-income workers or benefitting communities in which 51 percent or more of residents are low- and moderate-income. Of the overall $5 billion allocation, $2 billion supplemented the conventional CDBG program, $1 billion was for areas unusually hard-hit by COVID-19, and $2 billion was distributed to states and local governments on a rolling basis.
The CARES Act also included $150 billion for the Coronavirus Relief Fund, which was distributed to state, territorial, local, and tribal governments with populations over 500,000. States and cities could use their allocations from the Coronavirus Relief Fund for, among other things, “expenditures related to the provision of grants to small businesses to reimburse the costs of business interruption caused by required closures.” State and local governments were required to commit their CARES Act allocations by December 31, 2020.
On December 21, 2020, Congress passed the Consolidated Appropriations Act, which, in addition to extending the Paycheck Protection Program, included $15 billion for live venues (theatres, museums, etc.) and $12 billion to help businesses in low- and moderate-income communities.
On March 11, 2021, the American Rescue Plan Act went into effect. In addition to some of the agency-specific appropriations mentioned above, the American Rescue Plan includes a $350 billion State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund, making direct payments to state, local, territorial, and Tribal governments to help them recover funds spent responding to the pandemic, compensate for falling revenues, and continue to support community needs, including small business assistance. State, local, territorial, and Tribal governments will determine how to allocate the money they receive from this Fund. There are a few specific limitations on how government entities may use the funds. For example, funds cannot be used to pay the principal or interest on outstanding debt, to create or add to a rainy day, or to pay a judgment or settlement. But, the Fund’s rules provide government entities with considerable latitude in how they use the resource, including providing aid to small businesses and affected industries. As of June 1, a number of states and communities had already announced plans to use some of their State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund allocations to create or continue a variety of small business relief programs.
STATE AND LOCAL
Alabama
The State of Alabama accepted applications between July 16-25,2020 for its $100 million Revive Alabama Small Business Grant Program. Qualifying businesses could receive grants up to $15,000 to cover expenses incurred due to business interruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and economic shutdown. The program was funded from Alabama’s $1.9 billion CARES Act allocation. On November 18, 2020the State announced a new small grant program, Revive Plus, offering an additional $200 billion in grants of up to $20,000 for businesses with 50 or fewer employees. The application period is November 23 – December 4, 2020.
The Chamber of Commerce of West Alabama and the Community Foundation of West Alabama created a Small Business Relief Fund offering grants to businesses with between 2-50 employees, be in good standing with local and state government, and be located in one of the nine counties in West Alabama. As of March 31, 2020, the Fund had awarded more than $60,000 to 18 businesses.
The City of Auburn approved a resolution allowing the City to use municipal funds to cover interest payments on loans of up to $25,000 from participating banks to small businesses within Auburn. The City has committed $500,000 for the interest payments — half from the general fund and half from the economic development budget — to the Working Capital Loan Interest Subsidy Program. Each of the nine participating financial institutions is committing up to $500,000 to make loans with terms of 1-3 years and at an interest rate of up to four percent.
The City of Birmingham used $1 million from its general fund, plus $200,000 from the city’s Department of Innovation and Economic Opportunity, to create the BhamStrong Fund, a small business emergency loan fund. The Fund offered zero-interest, 180-day loans to small businesses (less than 50 employees) of up to $25,000 to prevent staff reductions and offset losses.
The City of Florence created Florence First, a grant program for small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. To be eligible, businesses must be locally owned or, if the business is a chain or franchise, its parent company must be based in Florence. The program is capitalized by a $187,000 supplemental Community Development Block Grant allocation provided by the CARES Act. Applications were available until May 14, 2020. The City received requests for $2.6 million in, almost 14 times more than the $187,000 available. The City was able to award grants to 37 businesses, representing a combined 759 years of operation in Florence.
The Greater Limestone Chamber of Commerce is sponsoring the Athens-Limestone County Small Business Assistance Initiative, providing micro-grants to Limestone County businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. To qualify, businesses must have employed 2-50 employees and be in good standing with local and state government. The program is funded by contributions from area companies and members of the public.
The Mobile County Commission and Mobile Area Chamber of Commerce created the $500,000 Small Business Relief Fund Program, offering grants of up to $25,000 to small businesses negatively affected by the pandemic. To qualify, businesses must be located within the County, have 100 or fewer employees as of February 29, 2020, must be able to demonstrate a financial hardship as a result of COVID-19, and must be in good standing with state and local government. Grants can be used for payroll and for rent/mortgage payments.
Alaska
The Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority (AIDEA) created a COVID-19 loan guarantee program, Sustaining Alaska’s Future Economy (AK SAFE). AIDEA made $50 million available initially for loan guarantees, increasing to $100 million. The program provided loan guarantees of up to $1 million per borrower. The program had no restrictions on the size of businesses eligible for loan guarantees.
The State of Alaska began accepting applications for its $290 million AK Cares Grant Program on June 1, 2020, offering grants of $5,000 – $100,000 to small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. In its first round, businesses with fewer than 50 full-time employees and that were in operation on March 11 could apply. In it second round, which opened on August 6, commercial fishermen, 501c6 organizations, and businesses that received $5,000 or less in PPP or EIDL funds were eligible to apply. In its third round, beginning August 31, businesses that received any amount of support from PPP or EIDL were eligible to apply. By September 2, 2020, all funds were exhausted.
At the end of August, 2020, the Anchorage Assembly approved a $14.1 million grant program for hospitality industry businesses.
On May 12, the Municipality of Anchorage dedicated $1 million for grants to small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Businesses are eligible to apply if they have no more than seven employees at any one time in 2019, had less than $1 million in gross revenue in 2019, have a physical location within the city limits, and have not received federal COVID-19 relief funding. Certain types of businesses, including franchises, payday lenders, pawn shops, bingo halls, and businesses whose clientele must be over age 18 or 21, are not eligible. Up to 20 percent of the program’s grants have been earmarked for sole proprietors, and 20 percent for nonprofit organizations. The application window closed on May 22. Then, in late August, the city added $5 million to the program and reopened it, offering $10,000 grants, with a September 12 application deadline.
The City of Fairbanks is using a portion of its CARES Act allocation to make grants of up to $100,000 to eligible small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The deadline for applying for a grant from the $6.25 million Business Relief Grant program is September 30.
Juneau’s Economic Development Council is offering emergency small business loans to affected businesses with 25 or fewer employees that are physically located in Juneau and current with property and sales tax payments. Loans are available up to $25,000 for businesses with ten or fewer employees and up to $50,000 for those with eleven or more employees. The maximum loan term is 30 months, with an interest rate not to exceed two percent. Interest paid on loans paid back within 12 months will be refunded.
The Ketchikan Gateway Borough and the City of Ketchikan are using $5.4 million of their CARES Act funds for a small business relief program, the Business Impact Grant Program. To qualify, a business with more than $25,000 in revenue per quarter must have suffered a revenue decline of 40 percent or more during the second quarter of 2020, compared with the prior year. The maximum grant available is $25,000. The application window opened on July 1.
The Nome Common Council allocated $750,000 of CARES funding for a small grant relief program for businesses and nonprofits. The city is using gross sales from 2019 tax returns to determine a sliding scale for grant eligibility. The lowest sized grant will be $1,500 awarded to vendors who made between $10,000 and $15,000 during the last fiscal year. The largest grant available is $20,000 for a business making greater than $600,001.00. Applications closed on August 20.
Arizona
On August 13, the State of Arizona announced the launch of emergency relief grant program for small businesses and child care, capitalized with $10 million from the state’s Crisis Contingency and Safety Net Fund). The Arizona Small Business Rent and Mortgage Relief grant fund, which is being offered in partnership with Local First Arizona, offers grants of up to $25,000 to cover up to two months of rent and mortgage payments for businesses with fewer than 50 employees. To qualify, businesses must have been in operation in Arizona before January 1, 2020; must not be home-based; and must be directly impacted by the state’s Executive Order 2020-43, which affects gyms, fitness centers, bars, water parks, and several other types of businesses. The application window opened on August 20.
The Arizona Hispanic Chamber of Commerce offered Small Business Success Grants totaling $100,000 to 65 small and microbusinesses. Three-quarters of the grantees are family-owned businesses. Businesses receiving grants have been in business an average of seven years, with median revenues of $176,615 in 2019. The program was capitalized by the Arizona Public Service Co.,Raza Development Fund, and US Bank.
The City of Chandler used $9.5 million in federal COVID-19 relief funding to support small businesses through the “I Choose Chandler Business Hiring and Retention” program. The grants were allocated for small businesses with fewer than 100 employees in the industries hardest hit by COVID-19, like restaurants, hotels, and retail shops. Businesses could receive up to $10,000, meaning the program will support approximately 900 businesses, with money awarded on a first come, first serve basis. The initial application window opened August 17 and closed on September 7, during which the City received 374 applications, with 90 pending for review. The second application period, which will close on October 5, has been expanded to include small businesses in other industries, such as hair care, automotive repair, construction, professional services, wholesale sales, and education services (including martial arts and cosmetology).
Growth Partners Arizona (GPAz), a certified Community Development Financial Institution, offers two loan programs for small businesses affected by COVID-19. In partnership with Kiva, GPAz and the Community Investment Corporation (CIC) are offering globally crowdfunded no-interest, no-fee loans of $1,000-$15,000. In partnership with the Business Development Finance Corporation (BDFC), GBAz is offering Small Business Success Loans, with loans ranging from $1,000-$75,000, to qualified small businesses.
Invest Southwest, a nonprofit organization that connects investors with entrepreneurs, has created the Arizona Local Impact Fund to help businesses affected by COVID-19. Businesses must be headquartered in Arizona, be selling or servicing Arizona customers, and have been in business for 1-3 years.
Local First Arizona raised $1 million for a small business relief fund, making micro-grants to businesses with annual revenues of less than $250,000 and three or fewer workers. The program gave priority to businesses owned by a family with children under 18 in the household. The fund ultimately received more than 2,700 applications and is now closed.
July 31 was the deadline for the first round of the $23 million Maricopa County Small Business Relief Program. The program offered grants of up to $25,000 to businesses with 25 or fewer employees and $3 million or less in annual revenues. Businesses that received COVID-related assistance from another government source were not eligible. The program was administered by the Arizona Community Foundation.
Maricopa County opened the application process for the second round of its Maricopa County Small Business Relief Program on August 14. The program offers grants of up to $25,000, on a reimbursement basis. For-profit businesses and nonprofits are eligible. To qualify, businesses must have 50 or fewer employees, no more than $5 million in gross revenues in 2019, and must certify that its revenues declined by at least 25 percent between March-June 2020 as a result of COVID-19. Applications are due on October 2. Like the first round, the program is being administered by the Arizona Community Foundation. The total pool is $22.5 million.
The City of Mesa is using $20 million of the $90 million in supplemental Community Development Block Grant (CDBG-CV) funds the City received from the CARES Act to create the Mesa Small Business Reemergence Plan. The program launched on May 11, with applications due two weeks later. Businesses must have a physical commercial address within the city limits and not have received other federal COVID-related financial assistance. Certain types of businesses are not eligible for the program, including real estate investment firms, rare coin and stamp dealers, firms involved in lending, and franchisees whose franchises are not headquartered in Arizona. The grants will cover essential expenses, like rent and utilities, for up to 90 days.
The City of Phoenix is using $19 million of its nearly $300 million in federal CARES Act funds to make grants to small businesses affected by the pandemic and economic shutdown. It offers two programs. The Small Business Relief Grant offers grants of $3,000-$10,000 to businesses with 6-24 employees, gross sales of up to $3 million, and a location in or near a low-income neighborhood. The Micro Business Resiliency Grant offers grants of $3,000-$5,000 to businesses with up to five employees (including sole proprietorships). The City is also offering a Commercial City Services Bill Relief Program, using $5 million of the $19 million to help cover water and sewer bills for commercial operations. In addition, the City has allocated $1 million for a Restaurant Restart Program, offering grants of up to $10,000 to help restart restaurants, including buying food, rehiring staff, redesigning floor plans, and implementing safety protocols.
Pima County offered a grant program to help child care providers for expenses related to reopening and operating safely during the pandemic. The county gave up to $10,000 per business owner. Eligible cost for compensation included rent, lease and mortgage payments, utilities, payroll expenses, licensing fees, liability insurance, cleaning supplies, classroom materials and supplies, personal protective equipment (PPE), and renovations to meet pandemic operational guidelines. To be eligible, businesses must be Certified DES Family Child Care Providers or Arizona Department of Health Services licensed Child Care Centers with 30 employees or less and legally established as of February 2020.
On April 28, the Scottsdale Industrial Development Authority approved $200,000 of funding for a program offering $5,000 grants to businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Grants are available for businesses with 50 or fewer people; in the food and beverage, tourism, or healthcare industries; and are legacy businesses, in business for at least three years.
In August, the City of Scottsdale set aside $3.3 million of its federal CARES Act allocation for its Small Business Reimbursement Program, offering reimbursable grants of up to $5,000 to help small businesses with expenses to improve COVID-related safety, such as buying disposable restaurant menus to upgrading ventilation systems. To qualify, businesses must have no more than 100 employees and have been owned and operated for at least three years prior to March 2019.
In early September, the City of Somerton launched the $100,000 Small Business Relief Fund. The program offers grants of up to $2,500 to businesses with fewer than 25 employees and less than $1 million in annual revenues. Businesses must have had an active City of Somerton business license prior to the COVID-19 pandemic and must operate from a commercial location. The program is being administered by Local First Arizona, which is reviewing applications on a rolling basis.
In early September, the City of Surprise allocated $275,200 of its federal CARES Act allocation to create a grant program for small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Grants of up to $10,000 are available. To be eligible, businesses must employ no more than 25 employees and have annual revenues of less than $2 million. There are five grant categories, with grants ranging from $1,500 to $10,000. Applications will be available by September 14.
The City of Tempe, in partnership with Phoenix-based Desert Financial Credit Union, have launched the Tempe Small Business Emergency Loan Program, providing loans of $5,000-$20,000 to businesses with 5-50 employees. Loans are primarily intended to bridge the gap until small businesses obtain relief from the federal Paycheck Protection Program. The interest rate is four percent, with loan terms up to 48 months, and the first payment deferred up to 90 days.
In late April, the City of Tucson authorized $1 million for the We Are One/Somos Uno Resiliency Fund, offering interest-free loans of up to $25,000 to Tucson businesses with 50 or fewer employees. The application period for the Fund, which is administered by the Business Development Finance Corporation, closed on May 26. Businesses must be locally owned; national chains are not eligible.
Tucson’s Rio Nuevo tax increment finance district launched a $2.5 million small business assistance program on April 8, offering grants of $5,000-$50,000 to businesses affected by the pandemic. The program was open to locally operated small businesses; nonprofits, national chains, and franchises were not eligible. Applications were available from April 10-17. The program offered grants to 105 small businesses. The TIF district’s board voted against a second funding round at its April 28 meeting.
Arkansas
Arkansas’s Quick Action Closing Fund offers a loan guarantee (80 percent of the principal balance of a loan by a participating lender, with a cap of $250,000 per loan) and a zero-interest loan program. The $7 million fund is capitalized by $4 million from the Governor’s Quick Action Closing Fund, plus $3 million from Attorney General Leslie Rutledge’s Consumer Education and Enforcement Fund. The Attorney General’s funds prioritize helping small businesses with job retention.
Arkansas‘s $115.8 million Ready for Business Grant Program made grants of $1,000-$100,000 (based on number of employees) to help small businesses with COVID-19 related expenses, such as personal protective equipment, deep cleaning, signage, hand sanitizer dispensers, marketing, and more. The program began accepting applications on April 29 and, as of the end of May, the state had received more than 12,000 applications and approved 10,537 grants, totaling more than $115 million.
The City of Little Rock opened the application process for its $500,000 Forgivable Small Business Loans program on June 5. The program offered loans of up to $5,000 for businesses with fewer than 20 employees. Loans will be forgiven if jobs are created, retained, or restored after one year.
The Startup Junkie Foundation has partnered with Kiva to offer zero-interest loans of up to $10,000 to small businesses in Benton and Washington Counties.
The Women’s Foundation of Arkansas raised $80,000 to create a COVID-19 small business relief fund for women-owned businesses in the state. The program received almost 1,000 applications and was able to award 18 $5,000 grants.
California
California launched a $50 million loan guarantee program for small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The program will be operated by the California Infrastructure Economic Development Bank and is intended for small businesses that might not be eligible for federal relief programs. Small businesses apply for loans from a participating lender, and the state provides a guarantee of up to 95 percent of the loan for up to seven years.
On November 30, California Gov. Newsom announced development of a $500 million COVID-19 Relief Grant program, administered by the California Office of the Small Business Advocate (CalOSBA) at the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development. Grants of up to $25,000 are available to micro and small businesses. Grants will be distributed through selected intermediaries with established networks of Community Development Financial Institutions.
The City of Alameda accepted applications for its COVID-19 Business Relief Grant Program from April 27-May 7, 2020. The $600,000 program offered $7,500 grants to 67 small businesses, plus 13 grants for small businesses at Alameda Point. The program was open to businesses with 1-25 employees, plus restaurants of any size, with a revenue loss of 20 percent or more. In late August, the City earmarked $300,000 of the $1 million it received from the State’s CARES Act allocation to offer grants of $7,500 to small businesses operating from storefronts and $3,750 to those operating from residences. The City will award grants by lottery. Applications are due on September 8.
Without a municipal fund to support small businesses, a business owner and first-grade teacher in Albany has launched a relief fund – smALBANY Business Relief Fund – on Indiegogo, with a goal of raising $250,000. The teacher is being supported by Working Solutions, which administers Oakland’s small business relief fund, and is seeking nonprofit status. As of June 24, the fund had raised about ten percent of its goal.
The City of Antioch used $315,000 from its federal CARES Act allocation, plus $120,000 from the City’s economic development department, to capitalize the City of Antioch Small Business Grant Program. The program offered grants of up to $5,000 to businesses with no more than 25 employees and with a current Antioch business license for one year before January 1, 2020, among other requirements. Funds may be used for safety expenses, such as buying PPE, improving operations, and operating expenses. In addition, the City is giving companies with 50 or fewer employees a business tax license relief, in the form of rebates. The application window closed on October 9.
The City of Arcadia is using Community Development Block Grant funds to create Arcadia Works!, providing $5,000 grants to small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The application period was May 11-20, with grants awarded on a lottery basis to all qualified applicants. Because the program uses CDBGs, it must meet one of the CDBG program’s national objectives and provide benefits to low- and moderate-income people. To be eligible, businesses must have no more than 50 employees; have a bona fide ground-floor commercial storefront within the city limits; and have an active Arcadia business license. Businesses must use the grants to help retain the job of at least one low- or moderate-income employee. Certain types of businesses are excluded, including national chains, businesses with code violations, and pawn shops. The $245,000 program includes $180,000 in new CDBG-CV funding authorized by the CARES Act.
In late September, the City of Bakersfield announced that it will use $3 million of its federal CARES Act allocation to create a small business relief grant program for businesses with 25 or fewer employees, offering grants of up to $20,000, in $5,000 increments, depending on the number of employees a business has.
On March 17, the Berkeley City Council created the Berkeley Relief Fund, authorizing up to $3 million of city funding for emergency relief grants for small businesses, nonprofit arts organizations, and worker rent support. The City has asked members of the community to contribute to a fund to match this amount (as of April 22, the community has contributed almost $1 million). Business continuity grants of up to $10,000 are available to Berkeley-based businesses and nonprofits with 50 or fewer employees. The Fund announced its first grant awards on April 28 – 352 business grants totaling $965,999 and 47 arts organizations grants totaling $790,445. Public contributions to the Fund had reached $1.3 million by June 24. By late November, the Fund had reached 4.5 million and had awarded $1.67 million to 700 small businesses, 251 restaurants, 142 retail establishments, 85 personal services and 222 other businesses, plus $955,000 to 63 arts organizations and
The City of Buena Park awarded $10,000 grants to 51 small businesses through its Small Business Emergency Relief Grant Program. Over 200 businesses submitted applications, with the 51 businesses then selected by lottery. To be eligible, businesses must have 10 or fewer employees, have been in operation for at least six months, and have not received funding through other sources, such as EIDL or PPP. The program was developed in partnership with the Small Business Development Center and was funded by the City’s CARES Act CDBG-CV allocation.
The City of Carlsbad created a $5 million economic revitalization package, consisting of a $4.4 million micro loan program (for businesses with gross revenue of $3 million or less and 50 or fewer employees) and a $0.6 million for marketing, landlord mediation services, and rent relief for small business leasing city property. The program opened on May 29.
On Janaruy 19, the City of Cathedral City created two small business assistance programs in January 2021: a micro-enterprise grant, offering reimbursement for up to $7,500 for eligible expenses, and a physical-improvement focused forgivable loan, to make safety improvements of up to $20,000. Total funding for the two programs was $450,000. The program was capitalized with CARES Act funding.
The City of Claremont opened the application process for a small business emergency grant program on May 18, offering grants of up to $20,000 to 20 qualified small businesses. The program was capitalized with two Community Development Block Grants – $176,368 from the City’s FY2019-20 budget and $106,146 from FY 2020-21, for a total of $282,514. The program received 30 inquiries from businesses within the first ten minutes of the program’s launch, and the City stopped accepting applications after an hour and forty minutes. Businesses could qualify for a grant under one of two categories, as defined by the US Department of Housing and Urban Development: Microenterprise Assistance, and Special Economic Development Activities. To be eligible under the first category, a business must have five or fewer employees (including the owner), and the owner’s household income must be at or below 80 percent of the Area Median Income. To be eligible under the second category, a business must create or retain jobs for low/moderate income workers.
The City of Coronado has created a $2 million Lifeline Loan Program, offering zero-interest loans of up to $15,000 for up to 60 months, with loan repayment deferred for six months. The City has created a two-tier system for accepting and reviewing applications. Small, locally owned businesses fall into Tier I and could submit applications beginning on April 24. Tier II includes small, locally owned businesses permitted in second-floor locations, according to the Orange Avenue Corridor Specific Plan, such as professional offices, personal services, repair services, light assembly, musicians, and publishers. The application period for Tier II businesses opened on May 25.
On June 2, the City of Diamond Bar announced the launch of a Business Recovery Grant program, offering $5,000 grants to each of 64 businesses. To be eligible, businesses must have a physical storefront in Diamond Bar, be independently owned, be in operation for at least one year, and have fewer than 25 employees. More than 200 small businesses applied, with 187 meeting eligibility requirements. Those 187 businesses were then randomly assigned a number, and those with numbers 1-64 were awarded grants in late June. The program was funded by the City’s CARES Act allocation.
The City of Dublin created the Dublin Small Business Emergency Microloan Program, offering zero-interest, unsecured, short-term loans of up to $10,000 to local, independently owned businesses with 50 or fewer employees. Loan repayment is deferred for 36 months. One-third of the loan is forgiven for each year a business remains in operation in Dublin. Loans may also be forgiven if a business generates sales tax equal to or more than the amount of the loan over the 36-month loan term. The program gives preference to restaurants and retail businesses. Businesses must demonstrate that they have lost at least 25 percent of their normal revenues and that they have applied for federal or state financial assistance. Certain types of businesses are ineligible, including nonprofits, hotels, professional services businesses, and retail chains. The Program received $1.37 million in total loan requests from 141 businesses; it was able to award $477,310 to 58 businesses.
The City of East Bay is using $250,000 of its $917,000 federal CARES Act allocation to create a Small Business Resilience Grant Program, offering grants of up to $10,000 to qualified small businesses. To qualify, businesses must have 2-50 employees and less than $8 million in gross sales; must have a physical storefront within the city; must have been in business for at least a year; and must demonstrate that they have lost at least 25 percent of revenue due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Several types of businesses, including cannabis businesses, gas stations, liquor/convenience stores, smoke shops, and smoking lounges, are not eligible. The city will select businesses by lottery from the pool of qualified applications it receives. As of August 20, applications were not yet available.
The City of El Centro is allocating $550,000 in grant money from the Department of Commerce Economic Development Administration (EDA) through the CARES Act Recovery Assistance towards alleviating the sudden and severe economic dislocation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic to the community. The city will provide business assistance loans that range from $15,000 to $50,000. To qualify, businesses must be located within the City limits of El Centro, have a valid business license, and must be able to demonstrate a negative impact to business operations due to COVID-19.
The City of El Monte is offering $10,000 grants to local businesses with fewer than 20 employees and that have been open for at least one year. The grants may be used for overhead expenses, website development, and equipment needed to continue operations. The City expects to award approximately 55 grants. Because the program is being funded by the supplemental Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds the City received via the CARES Act, businesses must either employ and retain at least one low- or moderate-income person and demonstrate that, with the grant, the job would be lost, or be located in a Census tract where at least 51 percent of the residents are low- or moderate-income.
The City of Fremont’s $400,000 Small Business Relief Grant Program offered grants of up to $5,000 for businesses with 10 or fewer employees and grants of up to $10,000 for those with 11-50 employees. To be eligible, businesses must have a physical location in a commercial building within the city, must commit to hiring or retaining at least one employee from a low/moderate income household, must have been in business for at least one year, have no more than three locations in Alameda County, and have gross sales of $8 million or less in the last 12 months. The application window closed on May 31.
The City of Fresno, in partnership with the Fresno Economic Opportunity Commission and Access Plus Capital, created the Save Our Small Business Act in March, a $750,000 fund providing interest-free loans of up to $5,000 (for businesses with five or fewer employees) or $10,000 (for those with 6-25 employees). If businesses are still afloat a year from the loan date, the loans will be forgiven. More than 2,500 businesses applied by the April 12 deadline, totaling more than $8.5 million in requests, but the City was only able to provide loans to 116 businesses. On April 24, the City allocated an additional $1.5 million to the program. The program received 2,000 applications but was only able to fund 116 of them. On May 14, the City allocated $2 million more to the program, plus $500,000 for $1,000 grants to micro-farmers who agree to donate surplus produce to the Central California Food Bank.
The Getty Trust has created a $10 million COVID-19 relief fund to provide emergency operating and recovery support to nonprofit arts organizations and museums in Los Angeles County. The relief fund is being administered by the California Community Foundation.
On July 28, the City of Grand Terrace announced that it will use $50,000 of its CARES Act allocation to help restaurants and bars offer outdoor dining as long as indoor operations are prohibited due to COVID-19. The grant program will offer grants of up to $2,500 a month for two months.
The Town of Greece recently closed its second round of small business relief grants through its GROW Greece COVID-19 Small Business Assistance Grant. The program opened on June 2nd of this year with $100,000 in funding available to help small retail and service businesses reopen in the wake of economic losses associated with the COVID-19 health crisis. Round 2 of the program made funding available to more businesses. Grants cover two months’ worth of certain operating expenses, up to $5,000 for businesses with 5 to 50 employees, or $2,000 for businesses with 3-5 employees. Eligible expenses include insurance, utilities, and inventory costs based on figures reported in your most recently filed federal tax return. The town began accepting applications on Wednesday, July 22, 2020, and awards were granted on a rolling basis until funds were exhausted.
The City of Grover Beach and the South County Chambers of Commerce created a Business Assistance Microgrant Program, offering grants of up to $10,000 to help small business owners stay afloat during the COVID-19 pandemic and economic shutdown. The program was funded in part with $100,000 from Senate Bill 1090, a law that provided San Luis Obispo County with millions of dollars to mitigate the economic impacts of the future closure of the Diablo Canyon Power Plant. The Grover Beach City Council contributed an additional $50,000 in general funds to the program. On July 1, the city announced that all 20 businesses that had applied had received a grant.
On August 12, Humboldt County opened the application process for its $3,288,650 Small Business Restart and Recovery Grant Program, funded by the County’s federal CARES Act allocation. The program offers reimbursement grants of up to $500 for expenses incurred in creating reopening plans, plus grants of up to $12,000 to assist with COVID-19 related expenses. The program will close on December 30, 2020 or after funding has been exhausted, whichever occurs first. To qualify, businesses must be independently owned, have no more than 99 full-time-equivalent employees, and be actively operating as of March 20, 2020. On October 6, the County’s Board of Supervisors approved an additional allocation of $600,000 for the program. The new allocation will be split between two different grants: the Restart grant which provides $500 for expenses related to eligible entities drafting/submitting their reopening plan, and the Recovery grant which provides up to $12,000 to assist with necessary COVID-19 related expenses. Applications opened October 12 through the county’s website.
On July 1, the City of Lathrop opened a second round of relief funding to small businesses through its Small Business Assistance Grant Program, offering grants of up to $5,000 to small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The $500,000 program was funded through Measure D, a fee that was created to support economic development. Grants are available on a first-come, first-served basis until the fund is depleted.
The Long Beach Small Business Restart Grant Program was approved by the city council on June 16, 2020 to provide up to $10,000 in small business grant funding in response to damages made to businesses through May 1, 2020. Funds can be used for replacing lost inventory, making repairs to the exterior or interior of a business, replacing lost equipment, repairing damaged equipment, paying business interruption insurance deductibles, and/or working capital to continue operations. The grant program distributed funds on a first-come, first-served basis. The total budget is $1.2 million.
In mid-September, the City of Long Beach launched a $3.3 million CARES Act Small Business Transition and Technology Grant, providing working capital grants of up to $5,000 and technology grants of up to $2,000. Eligible expenditures for working capital grants include rent, inventory, payroll, personal protective equipment, and furniture, fixtures and equipment that allow the business to operate safely. Technology grants can fund contactless payment systems, queuing systems, website development, and digital marketing and advertising.
Los Angeles County, the City of Los Angeles, and several philanthropic partners have pooled resources to create the LA Regional COVID Fund, a regional recovery fund for small businesses negatively impacted by the pandemic. The program offers grants, loans, and coaching/technical assistance. Grants of $5,000 (for micro-entrepreneurs), $15,000 (for businesses with gross revenues of $100,000-$1 million), and $25,000 (for businesses with gross revenues of $1-5 million) are available for businesses and nonprofit organizations operating in Los Angeles County. As of September 1, the Fund had launched the fourth of six planned grant rounds and announced that its loan program would be launching soon. Rounds 1, 2, and 3 each made grants totaling $3 million. Round 4 is offering $98 million in grants, with a September 4 application deadline. The Fund is being administered by LISC LA, a nonprofit community development financial institution.
The Los Angeles Small Business Emergency Microloan Program is offering loans of between $5,000-$20,000 to for-profit and tax-exempt businesses with 100 or fewer employees. Interest rates range between 0-3 percent, according to loan terms. For loans of up to 18 months, the interest rate is zero, and repayment is deferred for up to six months.
Los Angeles Council District 13 is offering $5,00 grants to qualified, randomly selected small businesses within the District, which includes portions of East Hollywood, Los Feliz, and Silver Lake, through its $1 million Emergency Small Business Grant Program. To qualify, businesses must have between 3-26 employees, have annual gross revenue of $25,000-$1 million, be current with taxes and business licenses, and have been negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The program is capitalized with $1 million in discretionary funding that would otherwise have been used for public infrastructure or other projects. The application window opened on August 13 and closed on August 21, 2020.
The Los Angeles County Department of Workforce Development, Aging and Community Services (WDACS) launched the LA County Employer Assistance Grant Fund on April 9, offering grants of up to $10,000 to small businesses with 2-50 employees and less than $2 million in gross receipts on a first-come, first-served basis. Approximately 25 percent of awards were reserved for social enterprises that serve vulnerable populations.
On June 17, the Mammoth Lakes Town Council approved a Business Assistance Program to provide grants to small businesses adversely affected by COVID-19. The Town’s primary goals with the Business Assistance Program are to retain jobs, preserve active, tenanted commercial spaces, prevent blight in the Town’s commercial sectors, and assist in sustaining the local economy. The Town has completed two rounds of funding for the Program which has resulted in a total program award of $215,750. The Town has $100,000 allocated for a third and final round of business assistance funding.
Local Love for Manhattan Beach, a private fund launched on May 4, will make grants of $5,000-$20,000 to downtown and North Manhattan businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The fund is capitalized by private contributions – and, in just its first few days, had raised $350,000 and received 21 applications. The program is being administered by One2One USA Foundation, a nonprofit organization that pairs donors and grant recipients.
The Community Foundation of Mendocino County launched a Business Innovation and Resiliency Fund during the summer of 2020, through which it makes grants to West Business Development Center which is, in turn, work individually and in groups with micro-businesses in Mendocino County to help them transition to pandemic-era business practices. Funds can be used for activities that have the potential for sustainable long-term growth (website, eCommerce fee, software, etc), or that effectively sustain or evolve business operations. To qualify for participation, businesses must have applied for federal CARES Act relief, have five or fewer employees, demonstrate a pressing need to re-tool and evolve their business operation within the next 2-6 months, and demonstrate the viability of their business. The Fund was seeded with a $100,000 grant and had an initial goal of raising a minimum of $300,000; by July 9, it had raised $1.5 million and had disbursed over $500,000.
The Community Foundation for Monterey County raised private-sector donations for its COVID-19 Relief Fund, awarding more than $3 million in grants, ranging in size from $5,000-$30,000, to nonprofit organizations within the County.
The City of Mountain View created a $750,000 relief fund on March 30, 2020, to be capitalized with $400,000 in city funds and $350,000 in private pledges, to provide loans of up to $10,000 per small business. Small businesses with 50 or fewer employees are eligible, as are landlords who own nine or fewer units. The program was no longer accepting applications by June 1.
The Nevada County Relief Fund’s Small Business Grants Program has offered three funding rounds to small businesses within the County. To qualify, businesses must have no more than 25 employees, have been in operation as of March 1, and must be in good standing with the County and local jurisdictions. The program offers grants of up to $10,000, and all successful applicants will receive technical assistance from a Small Business Development Center counselor. To date, the program has raised $757,541 towards its $800,000 goal and has awarded over $400,000 in grants in its first two funding rounds.
On March 31, the City of Oakland announced the availability of emergency grants to help vulnerable small businesses weather the impacts of COVID-19. The grants will be administered by Working Solutions, a non-profit Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI). Seeded with $300,000 in philanthropic dollars from the recently established Oakland COVID-19 Relief Fund, the Small Business Emergency Grant Program will provide rapid response working capital grants of $5,000 to small businesses owned by low-income individuals. Grants can be used to cover costs such as rent and utilities, worker payroll, outstanding debt, and other immediate operational costs. I
On May 14 the City of Palm Desert‘s city council launched the Unite Palm Desert Business Support program, funding it with $2 million it had set aside in January for an economic development incentive program. The program includes several components: a $1 million emergency loan assistance program, a $900,000 setaside for the hospitality industry, $50,000 for a nonprofit organization raising money for development of a Cal State Palm Desert campus, and $50,000 for business support organizations such as Business Improvement Districts and chambers of commerce. Forgivable loans of up to $25,000 are available, based on number of employees. The application window closed on June 3.
The City of Pasadena will be launching a small business support program in mid-July, offering $10,000 grants to locally owned businesses with 2-20 employees and less than $3 million in annual revenues. The program will be initially capitalized with $500,000 from the City; the City will also offer $250,000 to match private-sector contributions to the fund. The program will be administered by the Pasadena Community Foundation. As of June 23, program details and applications were not yet available.
The City of Paso Robles used $200,000 of its federal CARES Act allocation for a micro-grant program, offering grants of up to $10,000 to small businesses negative affected by the pandemic. To qualify, businesses must be headquartered within the city, have 25 or fewer employees, have closed or limited operations due to COVID-19 restrictions, and have completed a San Luis Obispo County Self-Certification form (for businesses that have been allowed to reopen). The program received more than 100 applications, totaling more than $1 million in requests, and was ultimately able to award grants to 33 businesses.
On April 15, the City of Pleasanton created a $3 million Business Assistance Program, offering zero-interest, short-term loans of up to $2,500 ($2,900, if the business is located downtown) to help small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. To qualify, businesses must be independently owned or locally operated, have a physical location in Pleasanton, be in good standing with the city, have a business license as of March 1, and be able to demonstrate a revenue loss of 25 percent or greater. The program is limited to restaurants and retail shops with no more than 20 employees and micro businesses with between 2-10 employees. Applications were available on May 8. There is no closing date; the City will review applications on a rolling basis.
The City of La Quinta used $1.5 million from its emergency disaster reserves to fund the COVID-19 Small Business Emergency Economic Relief Program. The program offered interest-free loans to small, independently owned businesses. Loan size depends on the the number of employees in a business, ranging from loans of up to $5,000 for businesses with 0-5 employees to loans of up to $20,000 for those with 16-25 employees. Loan repayment is deferred for one year. The program made $330,000 in loans to 36 businesses in its first round; the application period for its second round closed on May 15, with award announcements pending.
On March 25, the City of Rancho Mirage launched the Rancho Mirage Food Access Program in March, offering restaurants and other food service businesses one-time grants of $5,000-$8,000. To be eligible, businesses must agree to stay open through May 31, be open at least six hours per day and five days a week, provide a weekly report on the number of meals served and staff hours worked, and comply with health orders. Fast food restaurants, those with drive-through service, and chain restaurants were not eligible. The program was capitalized with $400,000 from the city’s emergency reserves.
On August 18, the City of Redding announced the creation of a small business grant program, using $750,000 of its CARES Act allocation. The program launched on September 15, 2020 and was able to award grants to 121 businesses.
On May 7, Riverside County launched two small business COVID-19 relief programs. The COVID-19 Small Business Assistance Microloan Program offers interest-free, one-year loans of up to $15,000 to businesses with fewer than five employees, with repayment deferred by three months. The COVID-19 Small Business Assistance Restart Loan Program offers 3.75 percent, five-year loans of $15,000-$50,000 to all small businesses, with preference given to businesses with 25 or fewer employees and that have been in operation for at least two years. Both programs have received an unprecedented number of applications and, as of May 26, the County was no longer accepting applications for the Small Business Assistance Restart Loan Program.
On May 21, the Riverside County Board of Supervisors voted to use $45 million of the County’s $431 million CDBG-CV allocation for a small business COVID-19 relief grant program. The program is being administered by the County’s Business and Community Services department and offers grants of up to $10,000 to qualified small businesses. In order to receive a grant, a small business owner must submit a plan detailing how the business will protect the health of workers and customers. The application window was originally June 29-August 31, but within several weeks the County found that the vast majority of applicants did not meet the program’s eligibility requirements, which included restrictions on numbers of employees or prior grant assistance from federal programs. The County subsequently revised the program’s requirements and reopened the application period, which closed on August 31. It then authorized a third round, which will begin accepting applications on September 15.
The City of Roseville has selected 111 local businesses to receive zero-interest secured loans of up to $20,000 from its $1 million Roseville Small Business Stabilization Program. Loan repayment is deferred until January 1, 2021. One-quarter of the $1 million pool was reserved for businesses with five or fewer employees. The program’s application period closed on March 31.
In March, the City of Sacramento created a $1 million loan program to businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, offering interest-free loans of up to $25,000 to businesses and nonprofits with up to 25 FTEs. Loans were awarded on a first-come, first-served basis, with 25 percent set aside for micro businesses with five or fewer employees. The program received overwhelming response and closed on March 20.
The City of Sacramento used $22 million of its $89 million federal CARES Act allocation to offer loans to small businesses negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The City awarded loans in two rounds. The first round of loans were awarded mostly to businesses in the central city; the second round included greater geographic diversity. Requirements for the second round were more relaxed than for the first round. For instance, the first round was open only to businesses with a brick-and-mortar storefront, with loans awarded on a first-come, first-served basis, while the second round was open to businesses without a physical location and had a longer application period. Roughly 1,400 small businesses received loans in each round.
On May 14, San Bernardino County began accepting applications for its $30 million COVID-Compliant Business Partnership Program, offering grants of up to $2,500 to businesses with 100 or fewer full-time employees. Grants may be used to help improve COVID-19 related safety measures, including providing PPE to employees, installing plexiglas barriers, and training employees on cleaning and disinfecting standards. Businesses receiving grants are required to display a window graphic showing that they are a partner in the program. The application deadline was originally August 31 but has been extended to October 31.
The City of San Diego established a Small Business Relief Fund to provide grants and loans of $10,000-$20,000 to small businesses in the cities of San Diego and Chula Vista. Businesses with more than 100 employees, chain stores, nonprofit organizations, home-based businesses, and certain types of businesses are not eligible. The program was initially capitalized with $6.1 million from California Coast Credit Union, Qualcomm, and San Diego Grantmakers and administered by the City’s Economic Development Department. The Fund received more than 10,500 applications by April 14, exhausting its pool. The City then authorized use of an additional $12.8 million in CARES Act funds, plus $700,000 in private donations, to offer a second round of funding.
In June, the City of San Diego and the Central San Diego Black Chamber of Commerce launched the Black Business Relief Grant Fund, requesting donations from individuals and businesses in order to make grants to Black-owned businesses. By September 1, the Fund had raised more than $1 million, including $500,000 from the City of San Diego’s CARES Act allocation, $100,000 from the San Diego Foundation, and $19,000 from the San Diego Padres, and had awarded 200 grants of $1,000-$5,000, with 1,000 applications still pending.
In late May, San Diego County announced development of a $5 million low-interest loan program for small businesses in unincorporated parts of the County. The Small Business and Nonprofit Loan Program will make loans of $5,500-$50,000 to businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and economic shutdown. To qualify, businesses must have 50 or fewer employees, have been in operation for at least seven months, have a current source of income, and have good credit. The program is being administered by the San Diego Foundation, with assistance from two CDFIs, Accion (for businesses) and Mission Driven Finance (for nonprofits).
On July 7, San Diego County launched a $17 million Small Business Stimulus Grant Program, offering grants to help small businesses and nonprofits reopen and operate safely. To qualify, businesses must have no more than 100 employees and a minimum one-year operating history.
On April 2, the City of San Francisco announced a $10 million relief fund to support small businesses affected by the pandemic. $9 million of this went to a Small Business Emergency Loan Fund, providing loans of up to $50,000. The remaining $1 million was added to the City’s Small Business Resiliency Fund, making $10,000 grants to small businesses in San Francisco with fewer than five employees, less than $2.5 million in gross receipts, and that can demonstrate a loss of revenue of 25 percent or more.
On April 24, the City of San Francisco launched a $1 million mini-grant program for neighborhood-serving independently owned and women-owned small businesses in underserved commercial corridors. The program provided grants of $1,000-$10,000 for urgent economic relief.
On June 1, San Joaquin County began accepting applications for its Small Business Assistance Grant Program, offering grants to businesses with 1-50 full-time employees. Grant sizes were calculated based on the number of employees a business has, with $2,000 allocated per employee. Grant proceeds must be used for unfunded rent/lease and payroll expenses incurred between March 1 and the date of the grant; and medical personnel may also use grants to help pay for personal protective equipment. The program was capitalized with $15 million of CARES Act funding, with $3 million dedicated to each of the County’s five sub-districts.
On December 28, San Joaquin County launched a new round of small business grants, using $10 million from the County’s contingency fund. The Small Business Grant Program offered financial assistance to small businesses for rent/lease, mortgage, utility, or personal protective equipment for businesses that suffered financial harm because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The maximum grant was $25,000. The program’s deadline was January 31, 2021. As of January 21, the County had received nearly 1,000 applications, with requests totaling approximately $20 million.
A San Jose-based philanthropic fund, Silicon Valley Community Foundation, offered grants to small businesses beginning in early May, offering grants of up to $10,000 to small businesses, with preference given to those retaining employees. To be eligible, businesses must be located within the city, the owner must live in Santa Clara County and have a low/moderate income, must have been in operation before January 31, 2020, must have no more than five employees, and must have lost at least 25 percent of its income due to the pandemic. The program was capitalized with a $1 million contribution from Apple and a $500,000 contribution from Google. The program ultimately made grants to 142 small businesses.
The City of San Jose is using $3.8 million of its federal Coronavirus Relief Fund allocation to create a Small Business Rent Relief Grant program. The program will be administered by the Enterprise Foundation and SBDC Hispanic Satellite. To be eligible, businesses must have a physical commercial address in San Jose, have 10 or fewer employees, must be active, and must have been in business before January 31, 2020. The business owner must live in Santa Clara County, and his or her family income must fall within certain parameters. Applications are due September 22.
The City of Santa Clara opened a $500,000 grant program for small businesses on April 17 affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The program offers $5,000 grants for essential businesses and $10,000 for non-essential businesses, with grants awarded on a first-come, first-served basis. Businesses must have no more than 25 full-time employees, operate out of a physical storefront within the city, be in good standing, and in operation for at least one year as of March 1. Chains are not eligible. The program received more than 250 applications on its first day of operation.
On September 1, Santa Cruz County launched its $1 million Santa Cruz County CARES Recovery program, offering grants of up to $15,000 to eligible small businesses. Applications are due by September 15.
Shasta County opened the application process for its $3 million small business grant program, offering grants of up to $10,000 to eligible businesses. To qualify, businesses must have no more than 25 employees (including the business owner), have been in operation on or before March 4, demonstrate a negative impact due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and be in compliance with applicable COVID-19 mandates. The program is being administered jointly with the Redding Chamber of Commerce.
Solano County began accepting applications on September 15 for its $2 million Rebuild Solano’s Small Businesses Grant Program. The program, funded with a portion of the County’s federal CARES Act allocation, offers grants to reimburse qualifying expenditures between March 1 – November 30, including buying computer equipment to facilitate remote work, converting to online or outdoor sales or delivery, buying cleaning and sanitation supplies/services to reduce virus exposure, new marketing strategies, and equipment needed to pivot product sales. Businesses with 50 or fewer employees that are locally owned and in good standing with the County and state are eligible to apply. Priority will be given to businesses with fewer than 20 employees. The County envisions being able to offer grants averaging $5,000 to approximately 400 small businesses. The program is being administered by the Workforce Development Board of Solano County and by the Solano County Small Business Development Center.
On September 1, Sonoma County’s supervisors voted to use $2.5 million of its CARES Act allocation for a small business stabilization grant program offering grants of $2,500 – $15,000 to use towards expenses such as payroll, utilities, and rent/mortgage payments. To be eligible, businesses must have between 1-30 employees. Grant applications were available beginning on September 28. The program was administered in partnership with Bay Area CDFI Working Solutions.
In early September, Tehema County’s Board of Supervisors approved development of a $300,000 program to make business assistance grants to small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. As of September 3, program details and application materials were not yet available. The program is being capitalized by a portion of the County’s federal CARES Act allocation.
The City of Temecula launched its Small Business Emergency Relief Grant on May 21, accepting applications between May 26 – June 9. The $500,000 program had two tracks – a $329,000 Rent Recovery and Job Retention track funded by the City’s Community Development Block Grant funds, and a $171,000 Business Improvement track funded by the City’s general fund.
The City of Thousand Oaks used $340,000 of its community development block grant funds to create a Small Business Assistance Grant Program, offering grants of up to $10,000 for payroll and rent/mortgage payments. The application window was July 1-20.
The Upland City Council is providing each restaurant in its historic downtown area with $1,000 to enable them to provide increased outdoor seating following the re-closure of restaurants indoor seating due to a surge in COVID-19 cases in the area. It will also close down the street each night from 10 pm to 6 am to allow for increased outdoor activity and has allocated $29,000 to pay for security to patrol the area. This program will stay in effect through October 31, 2020.
On June 17, Ventura County launched a $20 million Economic Stabilization and Recovery Program, providing $5,000 grants to small businesses to help with payroll, rent, and the costs of planning for and safely reopening. The application deadline was Jul 8.
Yolo County will accept applications between September 28 – October 4 for its Small Business Grant Program, offering grants of up to $5,000 to businesses with 1-10 FTEs and up to $10,000 for those with 11-25 FTEs. To qualify, businesses must have been in operation in Yolo County for at least one year. Grants will reimburse businesses for costs related to the negative impact of COVID-19, and business owners must submit receipts to document these expenses.
Jay King, the CEO and President of the California Black Chamber of Commerce, launched the Everybody Pitch In GoFundMe campaign on April 14, with the goal of raising $10 million in private-sector contributions to provide financial support to California-based small, Black-owned businesses. As of June 24, the GoFundMe campaign had raised $16,000.
Colorado
On September 1, 2020, the State of Colorado launched the $20 million Energize Colorado Gap Fund, offering grants of up to $15,000 to small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. To be eligible, businesses must have 25 or fewer employees. Preference will be given to businesses located in rural areas; veteran, women, or minority-owned businesses; and those that have not received funds from another federal, state, or local assistance program. In addition, the program will offer loans of up to $20,000, capitalized with an additional $5 million. There is no application deadline, but funds must be committed by December 30.
On December 4, 2020, the State of Colorado announced a new appropriation of $57 million in aid for struggllng small businesses, prioritizing those in counties experiencing severe capacity restrictions. As of December 8, program details had not yet been released.
On May 6, 2021, the Colorado Department of the Treasury, Colorado Housing and Finance Authority (CHFA), and Office of Economic Development and International Trade (OEDIT) launched the Colorado Loans for Increasing Mainstreet Business and Economic Recovery (CLIMBER) program, a statewide loan fund that will provide up to $250 million in working capital to Colorado small businesses through 2023. The fund Fund, with loans of $30,000-$500,000, is designed to catalyze borrowing that might not otherwise be available. Below-market interest rates and favorable terms provide a secure recovery option for small businesses across Colorado. Special consideration is given to small businesses located in rural, distressed, and underserved areas, including communities with low to moderate incomes.
Arapahoe County accepted applications for its $6 million Business Impact Assistance Grant Program from June 22-August 1. The program offered grants of up $20,000 (depending on number of employees) for business interruption expenses (such as lease/mortgage payments, payroll, and utilities) and up to $20,000 for infrastructure/PPE expenses.
The City of Aurora accepted applications for its $6 million Economic Recovery Grant Program from June 15-22, with $5 million supporting small businesses and $1 million supporting nonprofit organizations negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Grants of up to $15,000 were available.
Denver, through its Arts and Venues agency, recently launched its own version — the IMAGINE 2020 Artist Assistance Fund — with an initial $130,000 in grants for individual artists. As with Boston, the program will prioritize lower-income artists and those artists whose sole source of income comes from creative activity.
The City of Aspen created a $1 million Small Business Rent Grant Program, with the application process opening on April 24. Under the terms of the Program, the City would pay one-third of a qualified small business’s rent for up to three months, up to a maximum of $14,000, with the landlord paying one-third and the tenant paying one-third. To qualify, a business must have 35 or fewer employees, have a current city business license, be current on all city payments, and be open at least 32 weeks a year. The application window closed on May 1, with rent relief grants going to 112 businesses.
The City of Aspen is using $200,000 of its $6 million CARES Act appropriation for a small business revolving loan program. the program will offer loans of up to $30,000, with a one percent interest rate, a four-year payback period, and payments deferred for six months. Money returned to the fund will be loaned to additional qualifying businesses. The program will be administered by Colorado Lending Source. As of July 24, applications were not yet available.
The City of Boulder has budgeted $675,000 of its CARES Act allocation for a micro-grant program, offering grants of up to $5,000 to businesses with under 50 employees. The application deadline is September 11.
The Town of Breckenridge has expanded its Small Business Rent Relief Program, which it launched in late May. The program provides grants of up to $4,000 to small businesses to cover their rent, as we as grants of $2.58 per square feet, up to $4,000, to business owners who own their buildings. The Town allocated $1 million for the program and has so far awarded $453,229 to 153 businesses.
On May 22, the Broomfield Chamber of Commerce and Broomfield Community Foundation announced that they are launching the Broomfield Small Business Fund, offering grants to eligible small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Fund will be capitalized by contributions from the community.
The City of Centennial closed the application window for its Centennial CARES: Small Business Grants program on August 30. The $5 million program offered grants of up to $30,000 through oone of two programs: Business Interruption Grants, and Business Infrastructure and PPE Grants.
The Colorado Springs Downtown Development Authority has awarded 95 grants to downtown businesses, totaling $667,500, through its Small Business Relief Fund. The grants range between $2,500-$20,000 and can be used for payroll, rent/mortgage, utilities, and payments to vendors and suppliers. More than 120 businesses applied. The Fund was capitalized with $400,000 from the DDA, a $250,000 donation from Pinnacol Assurance, and the remainder from seven local companies and the Colorado Springs Urban Renewal Authority. The Fund was launched on April 15 and closed on April 22.
The City of Denver is creating a $44 million Small Business Emergency Relief program, offering grants of up to $7,500. The program prioritizes industries most impacted by the pandemic, such as restaurants, nail salons, barbershops, home childcare providers, and retail shops. The program is intended to be available for four months. The City has also created a microloan program, providing loans of $5,000-$50,000 to small businesses in targeted industries in vulnerable neighborhoods.
Eagle County launched a $3 million Bridge Grant program on December 15, 2020. By the end of the year, the program had awarded a total of 66 grants, in amounts ranging from $4,000 to the maximum of $15,000. The county continued to accept applications until January 23, 2021. To be eligible, businesses must have been in operation on or before March 10, 2020 and have no more than 25 FTE positions. Funds may not be used for expenses already paid for by any other local, state, or federal grant funding. Applications were reviewed on a rolling basis.
The El Paso County Economic Development Office has created a business relief fund for small businesses in the Pikes Peak Enterprise Zone. Small businesses located within the enterprise zone are eligible for grants up to $7,500. People who donate $100 or more to the fund will qualify for a state income tax credit of 25 percent of their donation.
El Paso County used a portion of its federal CARES Act allocation to create the El Paso County Regional Business Relief Fund, offering grants of up to $20,000 to small businesses and nonprofit organizations within the county. The application process opened on August 12 and closed on September 7. Applications were processed by the Colorado Enterprise Fund (CEF), a nonprofit lender certified by the Small Business Administration. CEF collected, analyzed, and scored the applications, after which El Paso County made final decisions on and disburse awards. The program’s budget was initially $7.6 million, then was increased by an additional $5 million. Response was overwhelming, and the County added an additional $1.26 million, ultimately making $13,858,527 in grants to 864 local small businesses and nonprofits.
On March 24, the City of Englewood launched its COVID-19 Small Business Support and Recovery Grant Program, offering grants of up to $2,000 for businesses impacted by the pandemic. The $100,000 program was capitalized with $75,000 from the City’s CDBG funds and $25,000 from the City Council’s budget. The program quickly awarded grants to more than 100 businesses. On April 20, the City reopened the program until May 3, allocating an additional $50,000 to the program. The City has also launched a COVID-19 Restaurant and Bar Grant and a Reopening and Marketing Grant program.
The City of Fort Collins closed the second application round for its $1.6 million Small Business Assistance Program, offering grants of up to $5,000 to small businesses and nonprofits, on October 7.
The City of Fort Morgan has distributed $375,000 to nearly 50 local businesses through its “Reopen Safe, Reopen Strong” business assistance program grants.
Fountain has allocated $1.4 million of CARES funding to support small businesses and nonprofits through the Business Impact Assistance Program. The program is open to small businesses and restaurants with a brick-and-mortar presence within the city’s boundaries, including locally-owned franchises, that can document negative financial impacts resulting from COVID-19. Home-based businesses are not eligible for the program.
On April 7, the Town of Frisco approved $500,000 in funding for the Frisco COVID-19 Business Assistance Program, offering grants of up to $10,000 to small businesses to help bridge the gap while waiting for federal and state assistance. To be eligible, businesses must have no more than 50 employees, must have revenues of less than $10 million, must have been in operation on or before March 1, 2020, must not be publicly-traded, and must have a physical location within city limits. The Program has now been depleted and is closed.
The City of Fruita and the Business Incubator Center have created the Fruita Small Business Emergency Assistance Fund, providing loans for gap financing to cover up to two month’s operating costs. To be eligible, businesses must have fewer than 20 employees, have a physical address within the city limits, be in good standing with the city and state, submit a basic business survival plan, and be owned by a Fruita resident. The application process opened on April 29 and will remain open until funding is fully allocated. Loans repayment will be deferred for the first year, then repaid over the following 24 months at Prime + two percent.
On May 6, the City of Grand Junction approved $540,000 to create the Grand Junction Business Stabilization and Recovery Fund, offering forgivable loans covering 50 percent of two months of approved uses or $7,500, whichever is less. To be eligible, a business must have a physical location within the city limits, have 50 or fewer employees, be locally owned, be in good standing with the city and state, and be able to demonstrate that it was compelled to limit operations because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Loans will be forgiven if a borrower submits documentation showing that the loan was used for approved purposes (business rent or mortgage, business insurance premiums, and software costs for point-of-sale systems or software critical to business operations).
Greenline Ventures, a Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI), has created the Greenline Emergency Microloan Program to provide loans to minority-, women-, and veteran-owned small businesses in Colorado. Loans of between $5,000-$25,000 are available, with repayment deferred for six months, then 54 month of principal and interest payments at a two percent rate and level amortization. Businesses must have fewer than 50 employees and must be able to show evidence of the negative impact of COVID-19 on sales.
La Plata County has created La Plata Cares, offering grants of up to $10,000 to eligible for-profit and nonprofit businesses negatively affected by COVID-19. The $810,000 program is capitalized with a portion of the County’s federal CARES Act allocation and is being administered by Local First. The application window closes on October 23, with awards announced by November 1.
Several agencies and organizations in Wellington and Larimer County have launched a fundraising campaign to raise $20,000 to provide grants to small businesses that have been deeply affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. SERVE 6.8, a nonprofit church support organization, and the Larimer County Sheriff’s department have pledged $5,000 each, and local churches, the Town of Wellington, the Wellington Main Street Program, and the Wellington Area Chamber of Commerce are raising $10,000 to match their contributions.
A group of organizations in Larimer County launched a $5 million Larimer County Small Business Recover Loan Fund on April 26, offering loans of $2,500-$50,000 at 3.5 percent interest to businesses with 20 or fewer workers. Loans are being made in two rounds. Round 1, with $2 million in loans, was seeded by the Bohemian Foundation, the City of Fort Collins, and the Fort Collins Area Chamber of Commerce. The $3 million for Round 2 is being contributed by local foundations, banks, municipalities, private businesses, and individuals. On May 7, the Fund closed the application process due to funding limitations, although it is still accepting inquiries in the event additional funds become available. As of May 26, the Fund had awarded 71 loans, totaling $2 million, and had 298 outstanding loan requests totaling $9 million.
Logan County launched the The Logan County Small Business Grant Program to cover indoor and outdoor infrastructure modifications, operational expenses, and at-home business interruption. Applicants may apply for up to $7,500. To qualify, businesses or nonprofits must be located within the boundaries that define Logan County, have been in operation prior to March 1, 2020, and been forced to temporarily close or modify/limit operations due to the Public Health Orders related to COVID-19. Applications close on August 30.
In mid-October, the City of Longmont announced the launch of the $1.1 million Boost Longmont Business Grant program, offering grants of up to $15,000 to eligible small businesses and nonprofits. To qualify, businesses must have 25 or fewer employees, operate from a brick-and-mortar location (not from a personal home), have been in operation since January 1, 2020, and be in good standing with regard to permits, licenses, fees, and taxes. As of October 17, the application as not yet available.
The City of Loveland allocated $750,000 to the Loveland Small Business Assistance Program. According to a press release from the City of Loveland, applications for the program were open from December 18, 2020 through January 8, 2021. Eligible businesses included restaurants and bars; breweries, wineries, and distilleries; gym and fitness studios; personal services and spas; independently owned retail businesses (less than 10,000 square feet); arts, creative, and entertainment industries; and privately-owned hotels.
The City of Pueblo used $5 million from its half-cent sales tax fund, which is used for job creation, to create a small business emergency relief loan and grant program. The program began accepting applications on April 17; by May 6, 527 small businesses had requested applications. The program offered grants of up to $20,000 and loans of up to $100,000.
On February 2, 2021, the Town of Vail announced that it is launching a program to aid local small businesses and the town’s lodging industry. The program will dedicate $500,000 for direct aid to businesses that are locally owned, with no more than 50 full time equivalent employees. The application window is February 15 – March 31.
Connecticut
The State of Connecticut is offering no-interest loans of up to $75,000 for affected small businesses, hoping to provide around 600 businesses with a quick cash infusion averaging around $40,000 each in its first round. The first round of funding was $20-25 million, enough to finance about 600 businesses with a quick cash infusion in the range of $40,000. This round closed on March 27, and the state is now encouraging small businesses to apply for federal support.
Connecticut is also offering one-to-one matching grants of up to $75,000 to Connecticut-based manufacturers interested in and able to produce critical supplies and equipment for combatting the COVID-19 virus. Grants can be used to buy equipment, developing prototypes, obtaining patents, and other related expenses. The state reviewed applications on a first-come, first-served basis until May 1.
On October 20, the State of Connecticut rolled out its $50 million Connecticut CARES Small Business Grant Program, funded with a portion of the state’s $1.4 billion CARES Act allocation. The program offers grants of up to $5,000 to businesses with no more than 20 employees, or an annualized payroll of less than $1.5 million. Businesses must also demonstrate that their revenue dropped by at least 20 percent during the COVID pandemic and that the money fills a “material financial need” that cannot otherwise be filled. Half of the $50 million is reserved for businesses in one of the state’s 25 economically distressed municipalities. The state’s goal is to make $5,000 grants to 10,000 qualifying businesses. All funds will be disbursed by December 30, 2020.
The City of Meriden is partnering with Capital for Change to allocate $300,000 to launch the Small Business COVID-19 Emergency Relief Grant Program. The program will provide at least 50 small Meriden businesses with grants of up to $5,000 to pay for rent or mortgage payments, salaries, supply costs, and other eligible business expenses. This grant is intended for non-essential small businesses in Meriden with a demonstrated need for assistance due to the impacts of COVID-19 that either do not qualify for, or have not been able to fully access, other funding provided by federal and state initiatives. In order to be eligible for the grant, businesses must: be located within the City of Meriden; employ 5 full-time employees or less; have been established and operating prior to February 15, 2020; have positive revenues for 2019 not exceeding $500,000; have an owner that is low/moderate income; and have a DUNS number. Applications open October 14th.
The City of Fairfield’s $250,000 COVID-19 Small Business Assistance Program offered grants of up to $5,000, on a first-come, first-served basis to eligible Fairfield small businesses that employ five or fewer employees and that have been adversely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The City of Hartford, in partnership with the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving, HEDCO Inc., and Capital for Change launched a $1 million Small Business Emergency Assistance Grant Program, making grants of up to $10,000 for Hartford businesses with annual revenues below $500,000. The Program began accepting applications on May 4, but its funding was quickly depleted.
The City of Middletown began accepting applications on June 8 for its Business Operating Grant Program, funded by the supplemental CDBG-CV allocation the City received through the CARES Act. Grants of up to $5,000 are available, based on documented business losses. To qualify, businesses must be based in Middletown, must have been in operation in Middletown for at least 24 months, must be in good standing with the state, and must be owned by a low/moderate income individual, employ low/moderate income workers, or create a position that employs a low/moderate income worker.
Delaware
In late August, the State of Delaware announced that it is launching a $100 million Delaware Relief Grants Program, making grants of $30,000-$100,000 to small businesses and nonprofits negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The program hopes to provide grants to more than 3,000 small businesses and nonprofits. Grants will be based on a business’s 2019 revenue: businesses with up to $500,000 in gross revenue will be eligible for grants of up to $30,000; those with revenue between $500,000-$1 million will be eligible for grants up to $50,000; those with between $1-2.5 million for up to $72,500; and those with 2019 gross revenue of $2.5 million or more will be eligible for up to $100.000. Grants will be awarded in three rounds – one in September, one in October, and one in November. Grants may be used to cover fixed expenses accrued during the pandemic, advertising expenses undertaken as a result of the pandemic, refinancing of debt incurred due to COVID-19, and purchasing equipment and making modifications to improve COVID-19-related workplace safety. The program is capitalized with $90 million of the state’s federal CARES Act allocation and $10 million from New Castle County’s CARES Act allocation. In October, Governor Carney set aside an additional $50 million for the program.
In early March, Delaware’s Division of Small Business created a Hospitality Emergency Loan Program (HELP), making no-interest loans of up to $10,000 per business per month to help businesses in the hospitality industry. To be eligible, businesses must have less than $1.5 million in annual revenues; have been in operation, with revenue, for at least 12 months; and operate in one of 15 four-digit NAICS industry codes. The program was expanded in late March.
Wilmington Alliance and West Side Grows Together launched the Wilmington Strong Small Business Fund, offering $1,000 grants to help businesses with rent, mortgage, utility, and supplier expenses. The Fund began with $10,000 and grew to $100,000, with contributions from the City, regional foundations, corporations, and individual donors. The program is open to businesses with less than $1 million in annual revenues; chains, franchises, insurance companies, check cashing businesses, and AirBnBs are not eligible. The application period closed on June 8.
District of Columbia
The City of Washington, DC created a $25 million Small Business Recovery Microgrants program, offering grants of up to $25,000 to small businesses, nonprofits, and self-employed business owners. The application period closed on April 1. The City received more than 7,600 applications but will only be able to award roughly 2,000 grants. On April 29, Mayor Muriel Bowser announced that the City will be adding an additional $8 million to the program.
In September, the City of Washington, DC launched a $4 million grant program to help restaurants winterize their outdoor dining spaces. Funds will be dispersed starting October 1 and can be used to cover expenses for tents, heaters, propane, furniture, advertising, and operational costs. Grants of up to $6,000 are available. To be eligible, restaurants must have active sidewalk cafe permits, including temporary “streatery” permits, or private outdoor spaces, and must be independently owned. Applicants must submit a budget for planned winterization expenses for approval before grants are awarded.
In early October, the City of Washington, DC launched a $3 million Small Business Resiliency Fund, offering small businesses $10,000 in emergency funds to help them with business plan pivots, marketing expenses, purchasing PPE and disinfectant, and continued development of e-commerce and online shopping platforms. The fund was managed by City First Enterprises, a community development financial institution and the nation’s largest Black-led depository institution. The application deadline was October 15.
On November 18, Washington, DC Mayor Muriel Bowser announced the launch of a $100 million Bridge Fund, offering grants to struggling retail businesses, restaurants, and hotels. The grants will be split among four categories: $35M to restaurants, $30M to hotels, $20M to entertainment and $15M to retail. The restaurant grants will range from $10K to $50K and could reach up to 700 businesses. The hotel grants will range from $10,830 to $270,750 for up to 140 hotels. The entertainment grants will be between $4K and $100K and reach up to 400 venues. The retail grants will reach up to 575 businesses with awards ranging from $5K to $25K. The application period will open on December 22. The program is funded by a portion of the City’s CARES Act allocation.
Florida
The State of Florida has created a Small Business Emergency Bridge Loan Program, offering loans of up to $50,000 to affected small businesses to cover the gap until businesses are able to get federal assistance or assistance from other programs. The interest rate is zero percent in the first year, but then zooms up to 12 percent after that. Businesses must have between 2-50 employees and cannot have any other current bridge loans. On April 13, the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity announced that the program had made more than 1,000 loans, totaling more than $49 million. The program received more than 38,000 applications.
On May 28, the Boca Raton City Council approved $500,000 from the city’s Economic Development fund to create a Small Business Recovery Relief Grant program. The program will make one-time grants of up to $5,000 to local businesses. To qualify, businesses must not have received assistance from CARES Act programs; must have been in business for at least one year prior to March 1; must have between 3-25 employees; must have annual revenues of $1 million or less; and must have experienced a 50 percent reduction in revenue due to the pandemic. The application window opened on June 1.
Clay County’s CARES Act program offered $2,000 grants to small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. To qualify, businesses must have no more than 25 employees and less than $2 million in 2019 gross receipts. Grants may be used to reimburse the cost of business interruption.
The City of Clearwater used $4 million in emergency relief funds to support small businesses hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Clearwater Back-to-Business Grant and Professional Services Program is intended to 1) help offset the significant, temporary loss of revenue to these qualified businesses during this pandemic; 2) assist businesses in retaining and paying employees; and 3) prepare businesses for recovery and resiliency post-pandemic. It provides $3,000 grants for building expenses, access to up to $1,000 in professional services, and $2,000 grants upon completion of professional services obligations. Applications were due by May 31.
The City of Coral Springs’s Back in Business Grant Program will award $1,000 grants to 250 small businesses. The Program is capitalized with funds from the City’s Business Incentive Program and Economic Development operating budget. To be eligible, businesses must have no more than 50 employees with at least two payroll employees in addition to the business owner; must be located within the city limits; must be in good standing with the City; and must sign a letter of understanding certifying that the grant will be used for personal protective equipment and for the safety of the business, employees, and residents. Home-based businesses are not eligible. Grants will be made in order of approval. The Program began accepting applications on June 3.
Escambia County accepted applications from April 20-27 for its $125,000 Small Business COVID-19 Recovery Grant program, offering grants of up to $2,500 to help small businesses with immediate cash flow needs. The program was administered by the Small Business Development Center at the University of West Florida.
In early April, the Florida Small Business Development Center at the University of West Florida launched the Northwest Florida Small Business Covid-19 Recovery Grant Program, using an initial $250,000 contribution from Gulf Power’s economic development fund. The program offered grants of up to $5,000 to help offset losses that small businesses experienced due to the COVID-19 pandemic. To qualify, businesses must have a physical location within an eligible Northwest Florida county (Escambia, Santa Rosa, Okaloosa, Walton, Jackson, Washington, Calhoun, and Bay), must have 2-10 employees, and must have lost 25% or more in sales revenue due to the pandemic. The application period was April 8-15. In September, Gulf Power provided an additional $300,000 to the program to enable it to offer a second round, open to businesses with up to 29 employees. The second round remained open until funding was exhausted.
On March 25, the Food Network & Cooking Channel South Beach Wine & Food Festival launched the SOBEWFF & FIU Chaplin School Hospitality Industry Relief Fund to support independently owned and operated restaurants and bars negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic in Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach Counties. The program ultimately awarded over $1.6 million to more than 500 restaurants and bars.
The City of Gainesville used $1,593,000 from its general fund, CDBG funds, and Gainesville Community Reinvestment Area fund to establish the GNVCares About Business program, providing small businesses with a $5,000 working capital grant to cover payroll, rent, and utilities. The application deadline was May 14.
On April 24, the City of Hialeah launched the $2 million Save Our Business Fund, a forgivable loan program offering forgivable loans of up to $5,000 to 400 businesses. By June 1, the program had awarded all its funds and had closed.
The City of Jacksonville has partnered with Vystar Credit Union to offer loans of up to $100,000 for businesses with between 2-100 employees and that have been in business for at least one year. The program provides a $1,000 grant plus a line of credit that can be tapped for six months.The City will cover interest payments for the first year.
On June 8, the City of Jacksonville began accepting applications for its $9 million Business Relief Grant program, offering grants of up to $2,000 to small businesses on a first-come, first-served basis. To qualify, businesses must be located in Duval County, have been in operation for at least one year prior to February 29, and have no more than 100 employees.
Lake County is allocating $15.5 million of CARES funding to launch the Lake CARES Small Business Assistance Grant Program, which provides local businesses with grants of $2,000-$10,000 to help them recover from the negative financial consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. To qualify, businesses must have been in operation before January 1, not be a subsidiary or partially owned by a hedge fund, and be in good standing. Nonprofit organizations are eligible to apply for grants of up to $5,000. Applications are accepted on a first come, first served basis until funds run out.
Lee County’s $25 million Business Rehire program offers grants of $5,000-$8,000 to help businesses rehire employees who lost their jobs because of COVID-19. Businesses must have 250 or fewer employees, and the business owner must be a County resident. Applications for the second round are due by September 18.
Leon County is using $7.5 million of its CARES relief funding for a Small Business Assistance program in the form of grants. The maximum amount of assistance that a business can receive is $8,500, which can then be used for employee wages, vendor bills, rent, utilities, and business promotions. To be eligible, businesses must be located in Leon County; been in operation prior to March 16, 2020; have between 1-100 employees; and negatively impacted by COVID-19. The application window opened on August 17.
On June 15, Manatee County launched Recover Manatee, offering grants of up to $5,000 to small businesses that have lost revenue due to the COVID-19 pandemic. To qualify, a business must have 15 or fewer employees, must not have received financial assistance from the SBA’s EIDL or PPP programs, and must fall into one of several business categories that have been severely impacted by the Governor’s Safer At Home Act (retail, personal services, medical/dental practices, restaurants, hospitality/tourism, childcare, and other severely impacted categories). Grants may be used for expenses related to reopening, including sanitation and safety supplies, signs, marketing, outdoor seating, inventory, and software. The program is being capitalized by former CRA funds and Southwest Tax Increment Funds. The program will be administered by the County’s Redevelopment and Economic Opportunity Department, which anticipates opening the application process in late June.
The City of Miami approved a $1 million small business relief program on April 23, capitalized with Community Development Block Grants. The program will use $400,000 to make grants of up to $10,000 for micro businesses with five or fewer employees, and $600,000 in emergency loans of $5,000-$20,000 for businesses of any size. The loans will be eligible for forgiveness if a business retains its current number of employees for one year and if at least half of the jobs created or maintained are filled by low- and moderate-income workers. The application is not yet available.
Miami-Dade County is using $5 million of its CDBG-CV allocation from the CARES Act to create the Small Business Assistance Forgivable Loan Program. Forgivable loans of up to $25,000 will be available to businesses with 25 or fewer employees and that has not received assistance from other COVID-19 relief programs. Loan forgiveness will be based on a business retail jobs held by low or moderate income employees and other criteria. Loans will be administered by Partners for Self-Employment and Tools for Change, two local Community Development Financial Institutions.
The North Miami Community Redevelopment Agency is offering two grant programs for small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Emergency Relief for Essential Business Program will make $1,000 grants to each of 25 businesses to buy inventory to continue limited operations during the public health emergency. The Emergency Relief to Jump Start Businesses fund will provide grants of up to $5,000 to 150 small businesses for future operating expenses, once the disaster declaration has been lifted. In order to be eligible for a grant from the Emergency Relief to Jump Start Businesses fund, small businesses must have applied for an SBA disaster loan and a Florida disaster loan.
Orange County opened the application process for its $72.9 million Small Business Grant Program on June 8. The Program will provide $10,000 grants to qualifying small businesses. To qualify, businesses must have no more than 25 employees, have been in operation since at least January 1 and through February 29, not have received a PPP loan or a business interruption insurance settlement, and commit to following all recommended COVID-19 safety guidelines. Home-based businesses are also eligible to apply if they have 3-25 employees, not including the owner, and if they have employees who are not residents of the home where the business operates. Grants will be awarded on a rolling, first-come, first-served basis until funding is depleted. Grants will be made by the Orange County Comptroller’s Office. By June 11, the program had received almost 3,000 applications. On June 23, the County expanded the program to include businesses with up to 100 employees and those that might have received up to $50,000 from the federal Paycheck Protection Program. As of July 21, the County had received 8,207 applications. Of those, 3,148 were approved and $3,575 were denied.
On October 5, the City of Orlando launched the CRA Small Business Rental Assistance Program, providing grants of up to $5,000 a month for up to six months to help small downtown businesses pay rent. The monthly rent subsidy a business receives is based on a 1:1 match equal to the amount that a business’s landlord abates, reduces, or defers. To qualify, businesses must be a retail or consumer service business, have been in operation for at least one year as of March 17, 2020; have no more than 50 FTE employees; and must have applied for EIDL, PPP, or Orange County’s Small Business Assistance Program.
In early June, the Osceola County Commission approved a plan for spending the $65.5 million it received from the CARES Act. The County plans to launch a small business assistance program in phases, with 20 percent of the $16.3 million released in phase one to be used for small business assistance. The phase one application window opened on June 10.
Palm Beach County is using $60 million of its $261 million allocation from the CARES Act to create the PBC Cares for Business – Restart Business Grants program. The program offers grants and forgivable loans of up to $25,000 to eligible businesses for payroll, inventory, rent/mortgage payments, utilities, and expenses related to new safety provisions. To be eligible, businesses must have 25 employees or less; must have been in operation from October 1, 2019 through at least February 29, 2020; have $3 million or less in total gross receipts; and not be publicly traded. The program plans to provide assistance to at least 2,000 small businesses.
Pinellas County is using $35 million of the supplemental Community Development Block Grant allocation it received under the CARES Act to create a small business relief program. The program, Pinellas CARES, provides grants of up to $5,000 for businesses with 25 or fewer employees that have operated in the County since at least October 2019. Home-based businesses are not eligible. The application period opened on May 4 and closed on June 1. As of May 25, the County had received 3,743 completed applications and has already awarded grants to 307 businesses, totaling $1.5 million.
Polk County’s $20 million Small Business Grant program offered grants of $5,000 to help small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The program closed on July 17.
The City of Sarasota launched the $2.28 million Small Business and Safety Assistance Grant Program on May 18, offering grants of up to $5,000 to Sarasota businesses with 25 or fewer employees. Priority will be given to businesses that have not received a loan from Sarasota County’s COVID-19 relief loan program, and businesses are not eligible if they have received at least $5,000 from the federal Paycheck Protection Program or Economic Injury Disaster Loan program. Home-based businesses, nonprofits, and professional services businesses are not eligible.
Sarasota County used an untapped economic development fund to make $4.3 million available in resiliency loans to tide over small businesses until federal relief is available. Small businesses could apply for loans of up to $25,000. Loan repayment will be deferred for the first year, then the interest rate is 3.5 percent for the next three years.
On September 16, Sarasota County began accepting applications for its $10 million Small Business Assistance Grant Program, offering grants up to $20,000 to eligible small businesses and nonprofit organizations. To qualify, businesses must have been in operation on March 1, have 100 or fewer employees, have its principal place of business within the County, and be able to demonstrate that it has lost income because of the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, businesses must be in good standing with regard to taxes and licenses, and the business owner(s) must not have been convicted of a felony involving dishonesty and/or fraud in the last five years. Businesses may use grants for rent/mortgage payments, utilities, payroll, PPE, and expenses related to reopening, including marketing and inventory. The program is funded with a portion of the County’s $75.7 million CARES Act allocation.
St. John’s County began accepting applications on May 24 for the Back to Business Grant Program, offering grants of up to $10,000 to help small businesses offset costs like payroll, rent, and utilities. To be eligible, a business must have 75 or fewer employees, have revenues of less than $5 million in 2019, have been in business for at least one year prior to March 17, not be home-based, and be in good standing with the county and state. The program closed on June 1.
The City of St. Petersburg announced the launch of the Fighting Chance Fund on Friday, April 3rd. The program offers $5,000 grants to eligible small businesses, plus $500 to impacted workers. Businesses must have 25 or fewer employees and be locally owned and independently operated. As of April 16, the program had received about 1,800 applications and awarded roughly $77,000. On April 14, Mayor Rick Kriseman announced that the city was expanding eligibility requirements and would now accept applications from travel agencies, businesses open for six months (rather than one year), and businesses whose owners do not live within city limits. The program has since been expanded
Seminole County has used $1 million of its CDBG-CV allocation for a Small Business Grant Program, offering grants of up to $5,000 for payroll, rent or mortgage payments, utilities, employee support programs, and investments in materials or equipment needed for reopening and safely operating. To qualify, businesses must be independently operated, be physically located within the County, have a non-residential bricks-and-mortar location, have no more than 25 employees, have been in business on February 28, and affirm that it lost revenue due to the pandemic. The pre-application period ran from June 1-5. Pre-applications will be reviewed by staff as they are received, and businesses meeting the program guidelines will then be emailed with instructions for completing the application, which is due on June 19. Grant announcements will be made on July 6, with grants distributed by mid-July.
The City of Tampa established the Relief Now, Rise Together Fund to provide financial relief to eligible small businesses negatively impacted by local COVID-19 orders. The relief program was an emergency grant focused on the most basic needs – rent and essential utilities. The One Tampa: Relief Now, Rise Together program provided direct payments for eligible businesses up to $4,000 for rent/mortgage; up to $1,000 for utilities. The program hit its capacity after a day and a half, with more than 10,000 inquiries. The Fund was initially capitalized by $300,000 in CDBG funds, $1 million in interest funds from the city’s community redevelopment areas, and private contributions from the owners of Tampa’s four professional sports teams ($100,000 each) and others. The City then contributed $3 million more to the program for a second round, then an additional $1.2 million for a third round.
The Tarpon Springs City Commission has created a $100,000 Small Business Endurance Grants program, providing one-time $1,000 grants to small businesses. Businesses must be public-facing, have 50 or fewer employees, be current on taxes, and able to demonstrate a revenue loss due to the pandemic. The program is funded by the City’s emergency reserve fund. Applications were accepted between April 9-23.
The City of Titusville is offering $75,000 of its CDBG-CV funds to make grants of up to $5,000 to small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The application deadline is September 30.
Volusia County has allocated $10 million of its CARES Act allocation to create the Relaunch Volusia Small Business Reopening Grant Program, offering one-time grants of $3,000 to businesses with 25 or fewer employees. To be eligible, a business must have a brick-and-mortar location, not be publicly-traded, be in operation before December 1, 2019, be in good standing with local and state government, and have lost revenue due to the pandemic. The County opened the application process on May 14 and had received 1,690 applications by May 18, at which point the County decided to expand the program, offering $5,000 grants to businesses with 26-50 employees in addition to $3,000 grants to smaller businesses. The County has also committed $3 million to make $1,500 grants to each of 2,000 home-based businesses, on a first-come, first-served basis, and $1 million to buy personal protective equipment for local businesses.
Georgia
Augusta-based CSRA Business Lending, a nonprofit small business lending agency, has received a $3.7 million grant from the US Economic Development Administration to launch a COVID-19 Relief Loan program to area businesses. Loans of between $10,000-$250,000 are available and may be used for working capital, fixed assets, and limited debt consolidation. Loan repayment is deferred and is interest-free for the first 90 days, at which point the loans revert to a fixed four percent rate for up to 15 years.
Cherokee County is partnering with the Cherokee Office of Economic Development (COED) to administer the Cherokee County Low to Moderate Income (LMI) Grant for Small Business. This grant is a $300,000 pool of funds providing local small businesses relief in meeting urgent financial needs, including ongoing operational costs such as payroll, vendors, utilities, rent and personal protective equipment (PPE). Businesses can apply for between $2,500 and $10,000. Applications closed on October 14, 2020.
On May 26, the Cobb County Board of Commissioners approved using $50 million of the City’s $132 million CARES Act stimulus grant to help small businesses retain employees and meet other expenses to remain open. Grants of $20,000-$40,000 are available, depending on a business’s number of employees. Businesses must spend at least 60 percent of the grants on payroll, with the remainder available for rent, utilities, and other operating expenses. The application deadline was June 26.
The City of Decatur offered a $500,000 loan fund to help businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, providing loans of up to $25,000, interest free, with a payback period of four years. The program was open to businesses with 2-30 employees and that were in operation on March 1.
On August 11, the DeKalb County Commission approved creation of the DeKalb Better Business Loan Program. The $15 program will offer forgivable loans of up to $40,000 to small businesses for payroll, employee benefits, business property rent, utilities, and interest on other business debt. To be eligible, businesses must have annual gross revenues under $1 million; 20 or fewer employees; operating for at least 12 months prior to June1; and not have received a PPP forgivable loan. Loans will have 24-month terms, at one percent interest, with payments deferred for the first three months. Loans are eligible for forgiveness after three months, dependent on at least 60 percent of the business’s employees having been retained and a minimum of 60 percent of the loan proceeds spent on payroll, state payroll and unemployment taxes, and on 100 percent of the loan being spent on eligible expenses. The application window is August 27 – September 7. The program is capitalized by a portion of the County’s federal CARES Act allocation. Citizens Trust Bank will administer $10 million of the loans.
Select Fulton, the Development Authority of Fulton County, and the Fulton County Board of Commissioners created a $1.5 million Business Contingency Loan Program, offering loans of up to $50,000 to small businesses in Fulton County negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Within 72 hours of opening on April 16, the application process was temporarily closed due to the overwhelming number of applications submitted. The program was expanded to $3 million and is now depleted.
Gwinnett County launched a Small Business Assistance Program on June 30, using $20 million of its federal CARES Act allocation. The program will offer $10 million in grants of up to $75,000, to be administered by the Gwinnett Community Development Program, and $10 million in loans of $50,000-$200,000, to be administered by Access to Capital for Entrepreneurs, Inc., a Community Development Financial Institution. Grants are available to businesses with no more than 200 businesses and that have been in operation for at least one year. Grants may be used for payroll, rent/mortgage, utilities, inventory, equipment, and COVID-19 response. Loans are available to businesses with no more than 500 employees and that have been in business for at least two years. Loans will have 36-month terms, at five percent interest, with the possibility of having the first nine months of principal and interest payments forgiven. Loans may be used for inventory, working capital, equipment, and COVID-19 response. Applications will be reviews and awards made until funds are depleted.
The City of Milledgeville’s Main Street/Downtown Development Authority offered grants of up to $500 to help downtown businesses pay their utility bills. Applications were accepted throughout May, on a rolling basis, until funds are exhausted.
The Macon 30 Day Fund makes forgivable loans of up to $3,000 for small businesses in Macon-Bibb. The Fund is privately capitalized by Blake Sullivan and Kathy McArthur, based on a similar fund they launched in Virginia, with additional contributions from the public.
The City of Rome used a new $258,000 Community Development Block Grant to make grants of up to $5,000 to small businesses with no more than 20 employees. The program, which is still under development, will score applications using a point system, with additional weight given to the smallest businesses. Applications were accepted from June 8-19.
The City of Savannah partnered with the Savannah Small Business Assistance Corporation (SBAC) to provide grants of up to $20,000 through the City’s CARES Act small business assistance program. Businesses that are at least 51-percent minority-owned, those with five employees or less, and those in Community Development Block Grant target neighborhoods as identified by the Census were given priority. More than 400 businesses submitted applications, totaling roughly $7 million in requests. The City was able to award $1.6 million in the first of two funding rounds, then will award the remaining amount in its second round.
The City of Tybee provided 29 small businesses with grants totaling $14,000 through the Business Recovery Grant program. Local leaders say that the majority of that money went towards paying rent and utilities.
Hawaii
On October 20, the State of Hawai‘i, in partnership with the Chamber of Commerce Hawai‘i, announced the launch of the Hawai‘i Business Pivot Grant program. The program will distribute $25 million in financial and training support to struggling small businesses in Hawai‘i to help them adjust to marketplace changes resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. The program will provide approximately 2,500 small businesses with reimbursement grants to cover expenses up to $10,000 that they incurred implementing changes to their operations, products and services.
On May 12, the City of Honolulu announced the creation of a $25 million Small Business Relief and Recovery Fund to help local businesses that have been negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Fund, which is using supplemental Community Development Block Grant funds authorized by the CARES Act, will provide grants of up to $10,000 to qualifying businesses for rent, utilities, and other business expenses, plus expenses for enhancing safety, such as installing Plexiglas barriers or hand sanitizing stations. Businesses must have a commercial address, have no more than 30 employees, and have annual revenues of $1 million or less. The application period opened on May 18. Grants will be distributed through four Hawaii-based credit unions. Mayor Kirk Caldwell has said that, if the relief fund is successful, he will add another $25 million to the Fund.
Kauai’i County has established a $5 million Small Business Boost grant program, offering grants of $7,500 to small businesses throughout the County. The program was funded through the County’s federal CARES Act allocation. The application window opened on August 24, but the website nearly crashed due to high demand. The program received 886 applications by 4:30pm, exhausting the $5 million allocation. The program was administered in partnership with several credit unions.
Maui County is partnering with six federal credit unions to create the $3 million Kokua Maui County Small Business Recovery and Relief Fund, a grant program for small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Grants of up to $7,500 are available to businesses with a physical location in Maui County, less than $1 million in annual gross revenue, and in operation before March 20, 2019. The application period opened on August 3. All $3 million was disbursed to 557 small businesses by the third week of the program, including grants to 19 businesses from Moloka’i. On September 1, the County announced that it was doubling the size of the program by adding $3 million from its CARES Act allocation. The deadline for the expanded program is October 31.
Hawaii Electric has launched a $1 million Energy Relief Grant program, offering grants of up to $25,000 to small businesses and nonprofit organizations experiencing economic loss due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Grants are intended to help businesses make energy-efficiency improvements, such as upgrading to LED lighting, installing occupancy sensors, upgrading inefficient air conditioning units, and replacing aging commercial kitchen equipment with ENERGY STAR appliances.
Idaho
The State of Idaho offered cash grants of up to $10,000 to small businesses negatively affected by the pandemic. To be eligible for a grant from the $300 million Idaho Rebound program, businesses must have 50 or fewer employees and must have not received a PPP loan of more than $10,000. The application window opened on May 18.
Illinois
In March, the State of Illinois established a Small Business COVID-10 Relief Program, an impact investment loan program. The State’s Treasurer has made roughly $250 million in deposits available to financial institutions throughout the state to re-lend to affected businesses, either as low-rate loans or as loans to businesses or nonprofit organizations that would otherwise not qualify for a loan. The State increased the pool by an additional $250 million on April 27. The resulting Illinois Small Business Emergency Loan Fund, offered in partnership with banks throughout the state, is offering low-interest loans of up to $50,000 to businesses located outside Chicago with fewer than 50 workers and less than $3 million in revenue in 2019. Loans will be made with a five-year term, at three percent interest, with repayment deferred for six months. Nonprofits and farm businesses are not eligible.
The State of Illinois is using $20 million of its Community Development Block Grant funds for a Downstate Small Business Stabilization Program, providing grants of up to $25,000 for businesses with 50 or fewer employees to cover up to 60 days of working capital. The Program is available to businesses in non-entitlement communities or in an urban county that receives entitlement funds. The State announced the first round of grant awards – $1.3 million in grants to 65 businesses – on June 5. The Program is accepting applications on a rolling basis.
On March 23, the State of Illinois created a Hospitality Emergency Grant Program, in partnership with Accion, a Community Development Financial Institution. The program offered $14 million in grants to small bars, restaurants, caterers, and hotels to support working capital, job training, and operational shifts (such as carry out and delivery). The Program received 12,128 valid applications by its April 1 deadline, from which 708 were selected by lottery to receive grants. As of June 24, 699 of those had been awarded, with bars and restaurants receiving an average grant of $14,000 and hotels $30,000.
On June 17, Illinois Governor Jay Pritzger announced that the state would make $60 million available for the Business Interruption Grant (BIG) program for small businesses, offering grants of $10,000-$20,000 to help businesses with working capital expenses. The program opened on June 22. More than 5,000 businesses applied for funding, with grantees selected via random lottery.
The Arts for Illinois Relief Fund is providing one-time grants of $1,500, on a lottery basis, to workers and organizations in creative industries that have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Fund is a partnership between the City of Chicago, the State of Illinois, private-sector philanthropists, and private citizens.
On January 25, 2021, the City of Alton opened the application process for a second round of small business grants, funded by the City’s federal CARES Act CDBG allocation. Businesses with up to five employees may receive up to $5,00; those with 6-10 employees may receive up to $10,000; and those with 11-25 employees may receive up to $15,000. Because the program uses CDBG funds, businesses must meet certain income criteria. The application window will close on February 8, 2021. In its first round, the City awarded roughly $435,000
On April 28, the City of Aurora launched the Standing Together with Aurora Business Local Emergency (STABLE) Fund, offering forgivable loans of up to $25,000 to small businesses with 50 or fewer employees and of up to $15,000 for businesses with five or fewer employees. Businesses must have been in operation for at least three months. Certain types of businesses, including nonprofits, tobacco or vaping shops, pawn shops, tattoo parlors, and corporate owned chain stores are not eligible. The application deadline was May 15.
On June 24, the City of Champaign began accepting applications for its Small Business COVID-19 Relief Grant, offering grants of up to $15,000. To qualify, businesses must have fewer than 50 employees, have been in operation on January 1, be located within the city limits, and meet CDBG low/moderate income ownership or employment criteria.
The City of Chicago has awarded $5,000 grants to 959 micro-businesses – businesses employing fewer than five people, with annual revenues of $250,000 or less, in one of 36 low- and moderate-income neighborhoods. More than 4,500 businesses submitted applications during the April 28-May 4 application period, with winning businesses selected through a lottery system. Of the grants awarded, more than 55 percent are owned by women, 45 percent are owned by African Americans, and 34 percent are Latinx-owned. The $5 million Microbusiness Recovery Grant Program was capitalized by donations to the Chicago Community Trust, in collaboration with the One Chicago Fund and with the support of Accion, Chicago Neighborhood Initiatives, Chicago Urban League, SomerCor, and the Women’s Business Development Center, which helped administer the program.
The City of Chicago has launched a Small Business Resiliency Fund, offering low-interest loans of up to $50,000 to affected small businesses. To qualify, businesses must have fewer than 50 employees and less than $3 million in annual revenue, and it must have lost at least 25 percent in revenue during the pandemic. The $100 million relief fund is a partnership between the City (which contributed $25 million), the Chicago Community Catalyst Fund ($50 million), Goldman Sachs’ Urban Investment Group ($10 million), Fifth Third ($1 million), and the remainder from other private contributors. Loans will be made through a network of Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs). As of August 25, only $17 million in loans had been issued to 625 small businesses.
On June 20, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced creation of the $15 million Together Now program, offering grants of up to $4,000 to small, locally owned businesses that have lost 25 percent or more of their revenue because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The program also offers grants of up to $10,000 for repairs to small, locally owned businesses damaged during the civil unrest following the death of George Floyd. Applications will be accepted until June 29, with grants awarded on a lottery basis to qualified businesses.
In late March, the University of Chicago created a $1 million small business relief program, offering rent relief and operating grants of $2,500-$7,500 to small, locally owned businesses who rent space from the University’s Commercial Real Estate Operations (CREO). The University received more than 600 applications. It announced its first awards, to 18 tenants, on April 13 and will make additional awards in a later distribution.
Cook County launched a $10 million Community Recovery Fund on April 7, offering no-interest loans to suburban small businesses, gig workers, and independent contractors. Loans of up to $20,000 are available to small businesses and of up to $10,000 for independent workers. Small businesses must have less than $3 million in annual revenue and fewer than 25 workers; independent workers (like hair stylists, service repair workers, and freelance writers) must have less than $100,000 in gross annual income and earn at least half of their income from contract work. The fund was capitalized with county funds and Community Development Block Grants.
On September 23, Cook County launched its second small business relief program, the Cook County COVID-19 Recovery: Small Business Assistance Program. The program will offer $12.6 million in grants of up to $10,000, along with business advising and education components to help small businesses through the COVID-19 pandemic.
The City of Evanston will launch a COVID-19 Micro-Enterprise Grant Program on September 1, offering grants of up to $2,500 to income-eligible micro-enterprises within the city. To be eligible, businesses must be for-profit; located within city limits; have an active business license; have been in existence on or before March 1, 2020; must have five or fewer employees; and the business owner’s family income must be projected to be below 80 percent of Area Median Income for the next 12 months. Grants may be used for working capital to cover the business’s day-to-day expenses. The application deadline will be September 15. The $70,000 program is being capitalized with CDBG-CV funding through the federal CARES Act. The City is also offering a “Going Digital” free weekly webinar series in conjunction with local experts and, through a partnership Northwestern University, offering a small business mentoring program.
The For The People Collective created a grant program – Artists of Color Emergency Grants – to support artists and freelancers of color in Illinois. In its first round it distributed a total of $10,369 to 49 artists and freelancers. The program has temporarily closed due to overwhelming demand but is hoping to reopen in the near future.
On April 16, the City of Gibson launched an $80,000 C-19 Small Business Loan Program, offering $2,500 loans to up to 32 small businesses. To qualify, businesses must have 10 or fewer employees, be deemed non-essential, and have been in business before January 1, 2020. Loans are interest-free, and repayment is deferred by six months, after which businesses will repay the City $100 per month. The Program was capitalized with funds from the City’s Community Development Assistance Program.
Lake County began accepting applications on July 7 for its $10 million Small Business Assistance COVID-19 Grant Program. The program offers grants of up to $30,000 to cover up to four months of occupancy costs as well as expenses for COVID-related safety equipment, supplies, and training. To be eligible, businesses must have less than $2.5 million in annual revenues, must have been in business before February 15, and be able to demonstrate a significant negative business impact from COVID-19. The application window will close on July 20.
The City of Lake Forest has created a Local Business Grant Program for small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Locally owned and franchise businesses are eligible (although franchisees must operate no more than four locations). Grants of up to $12,500 are available, with amounts calculated as 0.25 percent of sales tax generated in 2019 sales in Lake Forest. The $287,000 program was funded from an operating surplus in the City’s general fund budget for FY2020.
On April 20, the Village of Milan created a $50,000 Commercial Business Assistance Loan Program to provide relief to small businesses waiting for loans from the federal Paycheck Protection Program. Businesses that were denied access to or that are ineligible for the Paycheck Protection Program may apply for forgivable loans of $2,500. Those that will be receiving a loan from the Paycheck Protection Program may apply for a zero-interest $2,500 loan, payable within one year. Applications were available on April 27, and the program will expire on December 31 or when all funds have been expended.
On April 13, the City of Pekin launched a small business relief program, offering $5,000 grants to eligible businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The program was initially seeded with $1 million of the City’s CDBG funds; the City Council then allocated another $350,000 on August 10. to qualify, businesses must have fewer than 50 employees, have less than $1 million in annual gross revenues, have been in operation on or before July 1, 2019, have a location within city limits, and be partcipating in one or more federal aid programs to enhance cash flow availability.
The City of Peoria will begin accepting applications on June 22 for its $1.6 million Small Business Assistance Program, offering grants of $7,500 for businesses with 1-5 employees and grants of $15,000 for those with 6-50 employees. To qualify, businesses must be locally owned and in operation at least since April 1, 2019. In addition, a business must be located in and serving a qualified low-income area, the business owner’s income must be at or below 80 percent of the Area Median Income, or 51 percent of the business’s employees must be at or below 80 percent of AMI. The Program is capitalized with the City’s CDBG-CV allocation. The application program will close on July 2, and grants will be awarded by lottery on July 7.
The City of Quincy established a $500,000 Small Business Emergency Loan program on April 30 to help bridge the gap to either longer-term SBA loans or conventional commercial loans. To qualify, a business must have between 2-50 employees, have been established before January 1, and not be home-based. Loans were made with 18-month terms, at one percent interest, with the first payment deferred up to six months. The program was open until July 1.
On May 5, the City of Rock Falls created a $200,000 Tourism Emergency Hospitality Grant and Small Business Grant program. Grants of up to $15,000 were available for hospitality businesses such as restaurants, bars and hotels, while grants of up to $5,000 were available for small businesses closed by the stay-at-home order. To be eligible, a business must have experienced a revenue loss because of the coronavirus; the money may be used for payroll, rent, utilities, loan payments, etc. Applications were due by May 15. The program was able to provide grants to 32 businesses.
State Farm is providing a $10 million loan to the Local Initiatives Support Corporation to re-loan to small businesses and nonprofits in central Illinois. The loans are targeted to women-, minority-, and veteran-owned small businesses; nonprofit social enterprises with revenues under $5 million, and small Community Development Financial Institutions that support small businesses.
The City of Sterling is offering one-percent loans of up to $10,000 to locally owned businesses with fewer than 25 employees. Business owners will make interest-only payments in the first year of the payback period. The $300,000 loan program is capitalized with funds that were originally part of a municipal economic development fund.
The City of Urbana opened the application window for its Small Business Assistance Program on June 19, offering grants of up to $10,000 to eligible businesses. The Program is being funded by the City’s CDBG-CV allocation via the CARES Act. To be eligible, businesses must have no more than 15 employees and must meet CDBG funding guidelines. Priority will be given to women- and minority-owned businesses on a first-come, first-served basis. Grants may be used for payroll, rent, utilities, personal protective equipment, business safety modifications, and certain other expenses.
Will County is using $24 million of its $120 million federal CARES Act allocation to make grants of up to $15,000 to small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Businesses with fewer than 25 employees and less than $2.5 million in annual revenue are eligible to apply. They must also have been in operation on or before February 15th and be in good standing with the state and county. The application window was August 24 – September 28.
Indiana
On March 29, Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb announced development of a $30 million small business relief program, the Small Business Restart Fund. The program is funded by the state’s CARES Act allocation. Businesses with fewer than 50 employees, $5 million in annual revenue, and a 40 percent revenue loss will be able to be reimbursed for up to 80 percent of qualified expenses. Reimbursements of up to $2,500 per month for each month that a business demonstrates a 40 percent revenue loss, up to a maximum of $10 million. At least $5 million of the $30 million Fund will be reserved for businesses owned by women and people of color. The Fund began accepting applications on June 3 and will remain open until September 30 or until funding is exhausted.
Bankable, a nonprofit lender in Anderson, has created two loan programs for businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The QuickBridge Loan program offers loans of up to $50,000 for businesses that are still in operation but are having cash flow problems. The Reboot Loan, which has not yet been launched, offers loans of up to $20,000 for businesses that have had to temporarily close.
The City of Bedford is using $250,000 of CDBG-CV funds for a small business grant program for businesses negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Grants are $5,000 for each job retained, with a maximum of $10,000. To qualify, businesses must have 100 or fewer employees and gross receipts of $1 million or less annually, In addition, the owner must be a low- or moderate-income individual, or 51 percent of the business’s employees must be so. The application deadline is October 2.
The Brown County Community Foundation launched its $250,000 Small Business Response Grant Program on July 1. The program made grants to small businesses, particularly those businesses in highly impacted sectors (food and beverage, personal care, professional services, and retail sectors) and prioritized businesses that are retaining low-to-moderate (LMI) income jobs. Funds can be used as short-term working capital as businesses begin to reopen/resume operations, or support remote work. Grants were based on employee count, with a maximum award of $10,000, and were awarded on a first-come, first-served basis.
Daviess County began accepting applications for its $160,000 Small Business Relief Program on July 12. The program offers grants of up to $5,000 for working capital to help businesses remain operational during the COVID-19 economic turndown and to support remote work. The program was capitalized with Community Development Block Grant funds.
The Economic Development Coalition of Southwest Indiana has created a $460,000 low-interest loan program – the Grow Local Lending Fund – to help small businesses in four counties continue to operate during the COVID-19 pandemic. Businesses in Gibson, Posey, Vanderburgh, and Warrick Counties may apply for loans of $5,000-$7,500 for working capital, operating expenses, and remote work expenses. The interest rate is one percent, with a 42-month loan term and interest-only payments for the first six months.
On April 30, the Town of Edinburgh received a $240,000 grant from the Indiana Office of Rural and Community Affairs’ (OCRA) COVID-19 Response Program, part of the state’s supplemental Community Development Block Grant allocation via the CARES Act, to establish a small business grant program in partnership with the Johnson County Development Corporation. The program will provide grants of up to $5,000 to businesses with 1-5 employees, up to $10,000 for those with 6-15 employees, and up to $15,000 for those with more than 15 employees. To be eligible, businesses must be within city limits, have been in operation for six months or longer, be in good standing with local and state government, and able to provide proof that it has lost revenue because of the pandemic-related shutdown. Applications were due on June 3.
The City of Evansville, in partnership with the Southwest Indiana Small Business Development Center, launched the $100,000 Restart Evansville Post Pandemic Loan Program on April 27. The Program will make interest-free loans of up to $5,000 to to help small businesses offset costs of re-establishing normal business hours and operations. Priority is given to businesses located within the Evansville Promise Zone. Businesses must be locally owned, with less than 25 employees. Repayment will be deferred by three months.
The City of Franklin received $200,000 on April 30 from the Indiana Office of Rural and Community Affairs’ COVID-19 Response Program, part of the state’s supplemental Community Development Block Grant allocation via the CARES Act, and will be combining this with $50,000 from the Franklin Development Corporation to make grants available to small businesses. Program details are not yet available.
The Franklin County Community Foundation created a COVID-19 Emergency Small Business Program Fund on April 16, capitalized by contributions from local businesses and individuals. The Fund makes working capital loans of between $2,500-$10,000. Borrowers must repay one percent of the principal per month, at zero interest, beginning six months after loans are awarded. If a business receiving a loan makes regular payments, uses loan proceeds for eligible expenses (such as payroll, rent, and utilities), and remains in operation through the end of 2021, the remaining principal and interest will be forgiven.
The City of Greensburg launched a $250,000 COVID-19 Response on May 28, offering grants to small business owners who are low/moderate income or whose businesses retain or hire low/moderate income workers. Applications were due on June 15, and the City made 27 awards the week of July 20.
Hamilton County’s Stabilization Fund for Small Businesses offered forgivable loans of up to $10,000 to help small businesses that were forced to close due to the COVID-19 crisis – restaurants, bars, hair salons, small retail establishments, etc. – and have not yet been helped through other government sources. The program was initially launched with $250,000, but demand was high, and the County was able to expand the pool to $750,000.
The City of Hammond has launched a Small Business Resiliency Program, offering forgivable loans of up to $10,000 to locally owned businesses with 50 or fewer employees. The application period opened on May 27 and closed on June 26.
IMPACT Central Indiana, a limited liability company created by the Central Indiana Community Foundation, has launched a fund to make emergency loans, equity investments, and grants to businesses owned by people of color and by members of marginalized communities in Hamilton and Marion Counties. Half of the $500,000 was contributed by IMPACT Central Indiana, and half was contributed by First Internet Bank.
The City of Indianapolis is partnering with the Indianapolis Chamber of Commerce to make $3 million in loans of $1,000-$25,000 available to the city’s small businesses, primarily to help cover payroll and insurance premiums. The program also offers free one-on-one business coaching.
The Arts Council of Indianapolis has launched the Indy Arts & Culture COVID-19 Emergency Relief Fund to help independent artists and staff working for small- and midsize nonprofit arts and cultural organizations. The Fund provides rapid-response $500 grants. Applicants must live in Marion County or one of the surrounding counties.
LISC Indianapolis opened the application process for its $5 million Indianapolis Small Business Recovery Grant for Minority, Immigrant, and Women-owned Businesses on May 5. The program offered $5,000 grants to 1,000 small businesses.
The City of Jeffersonville has partnered with One Southern Indiana to create Jeffersonville Sustains, a $250,000 forgivable loan fund for locally owned restaurants, bars, entertainment venues, salons, and retail shops. Loans of up to $5,000 may be used for payroll, rent, and utilities. Businesses must have a physical presence in Jeffersonville, have 50 or fewer employees, have been in business for two years (or, if less than two years, be able to show growth over a three-month period), and have no outstanding federal or state liens or judgments. Loans are forgivable after initial repayment terms of 15 payments of $100, with the first payment due on October 1, 2020. The application period closed on May 18.
The Kosciusko County Economic Development Corporation’s KEDCO Small Business Relief Fund offered zero-interest, 24-month loans of up to $10,000 to support recovery and job retention for small businesses in Kosciusko County negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Cities of Lafayette and West Lafayette are using their CARES Act Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) allocations to provide emergency grants to small businesses affected by the pandemic. Lafayette is offering grants of up to $10,000 from a total pool of $400,000 to businesses (25 or fewer employees) that have not yet received other emergency government assistance. Businesses must be located in the downtown Entrepreneur and Enterprise District or in a qualified low- to moderate-income Census tract. West Lafayette’s $500,000 pool will provide grants of up to $10,000 for micro-businesses with five or fewer workers and up to $15,000 for those with six or more workers. To be eligible, businesses must be locally owned, support low- and moderate-income individuals, and be located in targeted support areas. West Lafayette closed its first grant round of $300,000 on May 1 and will close its second grant round of $200,000 on July 1.
The City of Lawrenceburg, in partnership with the Lawrenceburg Main Street program, has created a Public Health Emergency Small Business Grant (PHESBG) program, offering $3,500 grants to brick-and-mortar small, locally owned businesses with under 25 employees and that have been closed or partially closed during normal business hours because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The City of Logansport launched a small business relief program on June 3, offering forgivable, interest-free loans of up to $5,000 to qualified businesses. Loans will reimburse businesses for business operation expenses, including rent and utilities. To qualify, businesses must have 20 or fewer staff, have been open at least six months, and be current on taxes and other city obligations. The program will reimburse up to $2,000 of expenses in the first month, then up to $1,000 per month for the next three months. For loan forgiveness, a business must remain open for one year and must remain in Logansport. The $250,000 is capitalized by County Economic Development Income Taxes (CEDIT) the city receives ($97,500 from business incentive funds and $152,000 from reserves). The deadline is August 1.
The Madison Main Street Program launched a $10,000 Business Resiliency Fund, covering up to half of a downtown business’s monthly rent for the month of May. The program was funded by contributions from the Community Foundation of Jefferson County, the John and Maureen Wurtz Charitable Fund, the Dorsey Family Endowment, members of the Main Street Program’s board of directors, and several individual contributors. The Fund awarded a total of 28 grants, ranging from $175-$750, on April 30. On May 12, the Program announced that it had received an additional $5,000, from the Duke Energy Foundation, and would be extending the program for one more round. The deadline for the second round was May 22.
The City of South Bend announced on April 16 that it is giving $600,000 to two Community Development Financial Institutions – Bankable and Accion – to provide small business loans to local businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Wayne County’s $900,000 COVID-19 Small Business Loan Program offered interest-free loans of up to $250,000 to pay rent, mortgage, utilities, supplies, equipment, insurance, inventory, labor costs, and other operating expenses. There were no loan origination fees, and payments are being deferred for six months. Businesses then have up to 54 months to repay the amount borrowed. If payments are 30 days past due, they incur a late fee of five percent of the outstanding amount. To be eligible, the business owner must live in Wayne County, the business must be physically located in Wayne County, and must have no more than 50 employees as of March 1. The program was capitalized by contributions from Wayne County, the City of Richmond, the Wayne County Economic Development Revolving Loan Fund, EDC of Wayne County, and the Economic Growth Group.
Iowa
In March, the State of Iowa launched the Iowa Small Business Relief Program to provide financial assistance to small businesses economically impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The program offers eligible small businesses grants ranging from $5,000-$25,000 in addition to offering Iowa businesses a deferral of sales and use or withholding taxes due and waiver of penalty and interest. The application window closed March 31. The program was originally budgeted at $24 million. On April 23, the Governor announced an additional $27.9 million in funding through the state’s CARES Act to assist more eligible businesses that had applied during the March application period. On April 29, the State added another $33.2 million to the program. The program is no longer accepting applications.
The City of Council Bluffs is using a portion of its $580,840 federal CDBG-CV allocation to provide grants of $2,000-$10,000 to small businesses within the city. To be eligible, businesses must employ legal residents of the US, be in operation (even if remotely), and be owned by a low/moderate income person or employ low/moderate income persons.
On October 4, the City of Davenport announced that it will use $900,000 in Community Development Block Grant funds, awarded to the City under the federal CARES Act, to launch the Small Business Resiliency Project, offering forgivable loans of up to $20,000 to small businesses with fewer than 50 full-time employees. Businesses must meet the federal CDBG national objective that 51 percent or more of its employees be part of a low- to moderate-income household. The application window opened on October 15.
The City of Des Moines used $750,000 of the supplemental Community Development Block Grant it received through the CARES Act for a small business relief fund. Grants of up to $10,000 were available to businesses with fewer than 30 employees. The Greater Des Moines Partnership offered to provide some matching funds for the program. The program was administered by the Iowa Center for Economic Success.
The Dubuque Minority Small Business Relief Grant will provide financial assistance to minority-owned small businesses is now open for applications. This program, coordinated by Northeast Iowa Community College, will award $500 grants to eligible, minority-owned small businesses in the City of Dubuque that were economically impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. There are limited funds available, and the goal is to award 20 grants to eligible applicants. NICC will receive and review grant applications for eligibility through August 31st. Notification of award decisions and disbursement of grant funds will begin in September.
Three entities in Forest City – the Hanson Foundation, City of Forest City, and Forest City Economic Development – have put together a $160,000 Small Business Recovery Fund, offering half-grant, half-loan awards of up to $5,000, interest-free and with repayment deferred for six months. Eligible businesses must have 25 or fewer employees, have a physical location within city limits, and be locally owned. The City contributed $53,000; Forest City Economic Development contributed $87,000, and the Hanson Foundation contributed $20,000. The application period closed on May 15.
The Iowa Small Business Relief Fund offers grants ranging from $5,000-$25,000, in addition to offering a deferral of sales and use or withholding taxes due and waiver of penalty and interest to eligible businesses. Funds can be used to assist businesses in maintaining operations or reopening business following the COVID-19; they cannot be used to pay debts incurred prior to March 17, 2020. The program was initially capitalized with $4 million from the state, but demand was overwhelming, and the program was increased to $24 million.
The $600,000 Iowa Targeted Small Business Sole Operator Fund supports businesses with zero employees that have been economically impacted by COVID-10. The program offers eligible small businesses grants up to $10,000 to businesses that are single owners with no employees that are also TSB certified, or have an application submitted to the Iowa Economic Development Authority (IEDA) by April 10, 2020 to become TSB certified.
The Cities of Clear Lake and Mason City, Cerro Gordo County, and the North Iowa Corridor EDC launched a $518,000 Small Business Recovery and Continuity Fund on April 8, offering grants of up to $5,000 to businesses that have experienced business disruption and revenue losses to help ensure business continuity. This assistance was intended to provide businesses with immediate, short-term cash flow that can be deployed for a variety of uses; including working capital, inventory, lease/mortgage payments, etc.
The City of Des Moines’s DSM Small Business Recovery Grant program offers grants of up to $5,000 for businesses with 30 or fewer employees that have had their operations restricted by the COVID-19 pandemic. To be eligible, businesses must have a physical commercial location within the cities of Carlisle, Clive, Des Moines, Indianola, Johnston, Norwalk, Urbandale, West Des Moines, or Windsor Heights, unincorporated Polk County, or cities/unincorporated ares of Warren County, and must have been in operation since at least July 1, 2019. Grants of up to $10,000 were available for businesses within the City of Des Moines. The $2.3 million program, which closed on May 20, was funded by a large group of local industries, plus the local jurisdictions.
Jackson County is using $50,000 from its Revolving Loan Fund to capitalize the COVID-19 Emergency Small Business Loan Program, offering three-year loans of up to $5,000. To be eligible, businesses must have 1-25 employees, have a physical establishment, and have been in operation for at least two years. Franchises and chains are not eligible. Repayment will be deferred for six months. Applications were due by June 15.
Five municipalities and organizations in Jasper County came together to create a Small Business Assistance Program, offering grants to businesses affected by the pandemic to help cover April rents. To be eligible, businesses must have no more than 25 employees and have not received other financial assistance. The five sponsoring entities – the Newton Development Corporation, Jasper County Economic Development Corporation, Jasper Community Foundation, City of Newton and Jasper County – raised $128,525 for the Program and awarded grants to 57 businesses and nonprofits, with the first round of awards issued on May 29 and the second on June 19.
The City of Muscatine awarded grants totaling $183,267 to 75 small businesses through its Economic Assistance for Muscatine Small Businesses program. The application period was May 28 – June 7.
The Ottumwa Regional Legacy Foundation created a $100,000 Wapello County Small Business Impact Fund, offering grants of up to $5,000 to provide immediate, short-term cash flow assistance to businesses with 25 or fewer employees and with a brick-and-mortar location. Home-based businesses are not eligible. Applications were due by May 15, and awards were distributed to 37 businesses on May 30.
Kansas
The Kansas Department of Commerce created a $5 million Hospitality Industry Relief Emergency (HIRE) Fund on March 20, 2020 to provide bridge loans to hospitality industry businesses in Kansas. The fund was depleted within hours of accepting its first applications. Zero-interest, 36-month loans of up to $20,000 were available, with loan payments deferred for four months. Decisions on loan applications were made within 72 hours, and funds were transferred to businesses within 48 hours of approval. The Fund continues to accept applications in the event more capital becomes available.
The City of Atchison received $132,000 in CDBG-CV funds through the federal CARES Act and used it to create a COVID-19 recovery grant program, offering grants of up to $50,000 (depending on number of employees) for working capital. The application period was June 24 – July 10.
On August 19, the State of Kansas‘s Strengthening People and Revitalizing Kansas (SPARK) Task Force opened the application process for its second round of emergency financial relief for small businesses, using $130 million of its CARES Act allocation. There are ten grant programs, and businesses may apply for more than one grant: 1) Small Business Working Capital Grants for businesses with fewer than 500 employees); 2) Securing Local Food Systems Grants; 3) PPE Procurement Grants; 4) PPE Manufacturing Grants; 5) COVID-19 Bioscience Product Development Acceleration Grants; 6) Connectivity Emergency Response Grants; 7) Broadband Partnership Adoption Grants; 8) IT, Cybersecurity & IT Project Management Certification Training Grants; 9) Kansas Tech College Advanced Manufacturing Grants; and 10) Domestic Supply Chain Fortification Grants. The application portal will remain open until all funds have been awarded.
In Douglas County, businesses that have been hit hard by the pandemic will have a chance to get a share of $450,000 in grant money starting September 23rd. The program is designed to fund retail and service businesses, but not restaurants. A separate $1.65 million grant program through the Lawrence Restaurant Association has been established.
Four organizations in the Emporia, Kansas area have pooled resources to create the Greater Emporia area Disaster Relief fund to support businesses and nonprofit organizations. The fund was seeded with contributions from the four sponsoring organizations (the Emporia Community Foundation, Emporia Main Street, KVOE, and the United Way of the Flint Hills) and is soliciting contributions from the public. Businesses can apply for grants through the Emporia Main Street program, with nonprofits applying through the United Way of the Flint Hills. The fund’s team meets every Tuesday to review grant applications, then makes funding announcements on Wednesdays. The Emporia Community Foundation manages donations; it writes a check to Emporia Main Street once the allocation is set, and Emporia Main Street then distributes grants directly to businesses.
The City of Hutchinson is using $132,000 of its CDBG-CV allocation to create a Small Business Emergency Grant Relief Program. The program will provide grants of up to $10,000 for businesses with 1-5 employees and up to $20,000 for those with 6-50 employees. To qualify, at least 51 percent of a business’s employees must fall within the CDBG program’s household income range. Applications were due on June 16.
Labette County used $331,000 in CDBG and local funds (including $67,000 left from a 1999 business loan program) to provide working capital grants to small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The City of Shawnee will use $112,000 of the $168,955 in CDBG-CV funds it received via the CARES Act to create a small business relief program, offering grants or forgivable loans to eligible businesses. As of July 16, the City had not yet finalized program details or released the application.
The City of Topeka is offering a Small Business Grant Program, open to any business that employed 1-25 people as of March 1. Applicants may request grants of up to $20,000 to help with payroll, rent/mortgage payments, utilities, inventory loss, and COID-related safety equipment or workplace reconfiguration. Business owners must be low- to moderate-income or employ low- to moderate-income workers. Certain types of businesses, including franchises, chains, and businesses engaged in illegal activities, are ineligible.
A coalition of partners in Topeka has launched the HOST Relief Program (Helps Others Support Topeka). GO Topeka was able to secure $1 million in public funds, which will be available as grants of up to $5,000 to small businesses in Topeka and Shawnee County. Private-sector organizations raised an additional $665,000, which is being used to buy gift cards from local businesses that are then distributed to other businesses to give to their displaced workers.
Kentucky
In June, a group of businesses and business organizations in Bourbon County collaborated to create the It Takes a Village Community Grant Cooperative, offering $500-$1,000 grants to small businesses to help them survive the COVID-19 pandemic. To qualify, businesses had to have fewer than 50 employees, have been open before March 13, and had to explain how they have been impacted by the pandemic and how they plan to use the grant money. The collaborative consisted of the Paris-Bourbon Chamber of Commerce, Bluegrass Federal Savings and Loan, Kentucky Bank, Hunt Advantage Group, Dan Cummins, Hinkle Contracting, Bourbon County Farm Bureau, and Hartfield & Co.
The City of Covington launched a $200,000 program to provide emergency rent and mortgage relief to small businesses negatively affected by the pandemic. The program was capitalized by the City’s economic development fund. The Emergency Rent & Mortgage Business Assistance Program offers reimbursement of up to half of a business’s monthly rent or mortgage payment, or $500 per month (whichever is less) for up to four months.
The City of Elizabethtown launched a $1 million Business Stimulus Funds Program on April 1, making grants of up to $3,000 for small, locally owned businesses with less than $1 million in annual revenue. The application deadline was April 15. The Fund was capitalized from the City’s general fund.
In late March, four organizations in Eastern Kentucky – the Foundation for Appalachian Kentucky, the Appalachian Impact Fund AIF), the Community and Economic Initiative for Kentucky (CEDIK), and Invest 606 – joined forces to create the Southeast Kentucky Downtown Business Stimulus Fund to help stabilize important downtown businesses that have been central to strengthening their district’s economies. The organizations raised more than $450,000 and ultimately awarded interest-free loans to eight businesses and mini-grants of $600-$3,000 to 153 businesses. More than 600 businesses applied, totaling more than $1.5 million in requests.
Floyd County has launched a Small Business Relief Fund, offering grants of $2,000-$5,000. The State will reimburse the County for up to $500,000 in grants made, at which point the program will close. To be eligible, businesses must employ no more than 20 people, be able to document that it lost income as a result of the pandemic, have been in operation on January 1, 2020, and have a physical location within the County (with the exception of businesses within the Prestonburg city limits, since the City of Prestonburg will be launching a separate program). Applications are available by emailing anna.allen@floydjudge.com. The application deadline was June 12.
Fort Thomas is offering $2,500 zero-interest, one-year loans to locally owned businesses. The Fort Thomas Business Assistance Program was launched on March 30 and closed on April 30.
The Downtown Henderson Partnership has established a virtual tip jar for downtown service industry workers affected by the COVID-10 pandemic.
On May 22, the Downtown Lexington Partnership and Lexington Downtown Management District launched a joint grant program to help downtown businesses with reopening expenses, such as cleaning and disinfecting supplies, interior and exterior alterations to facilitate social distancing, marketing, payroll, and rent. Businesses cannot use the grants for expenses covered by the Paycheck Protection Program or other federal small business COVID-19 relief programs. The Downtown COVID-19 Reopening & Recovery Grant Program will begin with a pool of $80,000 ($65,000 in reallocated funds from the Lexington Downtown Management District and $15,000 from the Downtown Lexington Partnership). Grants of up to $3,000 will be available to reimburse businesses for up to 75 percent of eligible project costs.
The Louisville Home Opportunities and Micro-Enterprise Community Development Loan Fund, Inc. (LHOME), a Community Development Financial Institution, has partnered with Render Capital, Louisville, Forward, Lenderfit, and GLI to create a Small Business Continuity Loan program. The program offers zero-percent loans of up to $25,000, with no repayment for 12 months, for Jefferson County businesses with ten or fewer employees and that are current on their tax payments. The loan program is intended to offer bridge financing, with borrowers applying for other assistance to pay off the loan within one year. Should a small business borrower not find other assistance, the loan will be renewed for four years, at five percent interest. The program began accepting applications on April 6.
On April 7, Louisville’s City Council approved development of a $350,000 Emergency Solutions business relief grant program, using $250,000 from the City’s general fund and $100,000 from the Louisville Urban Renewal Authority. The program awarded $5,000 grants to 70 small businesses.
The City of Louisville began accepting applications for its $21.2 million Small Business COVID-19 Relief Grants program on July 1. At least 50 percent of the funds were given to businesses in low- to moderate-income Census tracts. Grants may be used for payroll, utilities, lease/mortgage payment, fixed-cost support, and technology for online platforms to facilitate online sales. The program was capitalized with a portion of the City’s CARES Act funding. In late September, the City added an additional $6.4 million to the program. As of November 13, the program had received 1,286 applications and had made awards to 824 small businesses, totaling $27.1 million.
In early August, the City of Louisville launched a $100,000 Recovery and improvement Program, offering grants of up to $10,000 to cover 50 percent of the costs of adapting businesses for COVID safety.
On April 30, the Mt. Washington City Council authorized transferring $45,000 from the City General Contingency Fund and $45,000 from the Water Sales and Service Fund in order to create a small business relief program. The program offered grants of up to $3,000 to help small businesses survive. To qualify, businesses must have a brick-and-mortar location within city limits, have fewer than 25 employees and less than $200,000 in 2019 net profit , not be a franchise, be categorized as non-essential, and e current on licenses and taxes. The application period was May 1-19, with funds awarded beginning on May 26. Grant sizes were based on receipts for paid expenses incurred since March 1.
The City of Newport is offering rent and mortgage payment reimbursements of up to $500 per month, for up to four months, to small businesses. The program is open to businesses with between 3-100 employees and with a valid City of Newport occupational license. The application process closed on May 22.
In April, the City of Pikeville offered a $40,000 Small Business Relief Fund, providing reimbursable grants of up to $2,000 to help small businesses with rent, mortgage, payroll, and utility payments. To qualify, businesses must have 25 or fewer workers, be categorized as “non-essential”, have a brick-and-mortar location within city limits, be in operation before January 1, be in good standing with the City, and have applied for federal COVID-19 relief (even if the application was not successful). The application process opened on April 20 and closed on April 30; it received 52 applications on its first day.
On May 6, the Purchase Area Development District (PADD) launched the COVID-19 Business Relief Working Capital Loan Program to help small businesses that have not received assistance from the SBA’s Paycheck Protection Program or Economic Injury Disaster Loan program. The Business Relief Working Capital Loan Program is open to small businesses in Ballard, Calloway, Carlisle, Fulton, Graves, Hickman, Marshall, and McCracken. The program offers loans of between $5,000-$25,000, depending on a business’s three-month operating expenses. The maximum loan term is 36 months, at 2.44 percent, with an optional initial six-month payment deferral. The program accepted applications through June 30. The program was capitalized by PADD’s Economic Development Administration Revolving Loan Fund.
The West Kentucky Alliance for a Vibrant Economy (WAVE) has created the River Counties Business Stimulus Fund, offering grants of up to $3,000 to small businesses in Ballard, Carlisle, Hickman, and Fulton Counties that have been negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Businesses must be locally owned, for-profit, and either a restaurant or an “experience” retail business, such as one involved in arts, tourism, accommodations, or entertainment. The Fund is capitalized by the University of Kentucky’s Community and Economic Development Initiative, the Community Foundation of West Kentucky, and private individuals. In its first week, the Fund received over 100 applications.
Louisiana
Louisiana Economic Development (LED), in partnership with the Louisiana Loan Portfolio Guaranty Program, has launched a $50 million loan guaranty program to provide loans to small businesses within the state that have been adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Loans will be made by members of the Louisiana Bankers Association, with LED guaranteeing 20 percent of the loans. Businesses with fewer than 100 employees are eligible to borrow up to $100,000, with payments deferred for six months. Nonprofits, real estate developers, pawn shops, payday lenders, businesses that are solely engaged in gaming, and businesses engaged in speculative activities are ineligible.
The State of Louisiana is using $275 million of its federal COVID-19 aid to make grants of up to $15,000 to small businesses negatively affected by the pandemic and economic shutdown. The Main Street Recovery Program is being administered by the state’s Treasury Department. To be eligible, businesses must have 50 or fewer employees, must be independently owned, and must be able to demonstrate an interruption in operations because of the pandemic. $40 million of the $275 million is earmarked for businesses owned by women, minorities, and veterans. The application window opened on July 28 and was originally to close on November 4, with several earlier deadlines for special priority grants (businesses that have not received federal aid; and women-, minority-, and veteran-owned businesses) – but the program reached capacity before then and stopped accepting new applications on September 29.
The City of Baton Rouge has launched the Resilient Restart EBR Program, a $1 million micro grant program for small businesses and microenterprises. Qualified businesses will receive a one-time $2,500 grant. Businesses must be considered low-to-moderate income based on federal guidelines. The program is being administered by the Urban League of Louisiana.
The City of Lake Charles is using $394,000 in CDBG-CV funds to launch the Lake Charles Small Business Stabilization Fund, offering grants of $2,500-$5,00 to small businesses with brick-and-mortar locations within the city limits. Program details are available by contacting kimberly.dellafosse@cityoflc.us.
On May 11, the City of Monroe launched the COVID-19 Small Business Enterprise Loan/Grant program. Small businesses that employ low- to moderate-income workers could apply for forgivable loans of up to $15,000 to cover payroll and operating costs. The program is one of three that have been capitalized by $436,000 in supplemental Community Development Block Grant funds via the CARES Act. The program received 111 requests in its first few days.
On August 14, the City of New Orleans has launched a $100,000 Outdoor Dining grant program, offering grants of up to $2,000 to help restaurants expand their outdoor seating areas. To qualify, restaurants must already have a sidewalk cafe permit or possess an off-street parking lot. Thirty-five percent of the grants have been earmarked for businesses owned by people of color or women in the first four weeks of the program. Applications will be accepted until funding is exhausted. The program is being administered by the New Orleans Business Alliance (NOLABA).
The New Orleans Business Alliance (NOLABA) has established a grant fund for gig economy workers. NOLABA contributed $100,000 to launch the fund and hopes to grow it to $500,000. The fund will provide grants of $500-$1,000 to workers who live within Orleans Parish, earn 60 percent or more of their income from gig work, have lost income because of the pandemic, and are at or below 100 percent of the area’s median income.
The Greater New Orleans Foundation, with support from one of the owners of the McIlhenny Company (which makes Tabasco sauce), has created a family assistance program for service and hospitality workers. The program offers $1,000 grants to service and hospitality workers within the Foundation’s 13-parish service area. To qualify, a worker must have worked more than 32 hours per week in a restaurant, bar, or hotel before March 9, 2020; must have children or other qualified dependents in the household; and must have a household income at or below 80 percent of the area’s median income. Grants are awarded by lottery to 1,000 workers.
The New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival and Foundation has created a Jazz and Heritage Foundation Relief Fund to support Louisiana musicians who have lost income because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Foundation launched the Fund with $250,000 and is seeking additional contributions.
Maine
On August 20, the State of Maine announced the $200 million Maine Economic Recovery Grant Program, offering grants of up to $100,000 to small businesses and nonprofits to sustain their viability. To qualify, businesses or nonprofits must demonstrate a need for financial relief based on lost revenues since March 1, 2020 due to the pandemic; must have significant operations in Maine; must employ less than 50 people; have been in operation for at least one year as of August 1; be in good standing with the state; and be in consistent compliance with COVID-19 prevention checklist requirements. The application deadline is September 9. The program is capitalized by the state’s CARES Act allocation.
The Finance Authority of Maine (FAME)’s $5 million COVID-19 Relief Business Direct Loan Program provides FAME Direct Loans of up to $50,000 for Maine-based businesses experiencing interruption or hardship due to COVID-19 and that have exhausted all other sources of capital. Loan terms are one year, with an option for extension, at Wall Street Journal Prime minus one percent, fixed. The loans must be collateralized with business assets, and the business principals must provide unlimited personal guarantees.
The City of Bangor is offering two grant programs to help businesses whose revenues have been negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. One of the programs offers grants of up to $3,5000 to micro-businesses with five or fewer employees, with a total pool of $80,000. The second program offers grants of up to $10,000 to businesses with 20 or fewer employees with a maximum of $2.5 million in annual gross income, with a total pool of $170,000. Because the two programs are capitalized with CDBG-CV funds via the CARES Act, businesses must meet certain criteria for employing low/moderate income workers. Applications are due by June 30.
On April 15, the City of Bath created a new emergency loan program for small businesses. The Economic Relief Bridge Program provides interest-free loans of up to $7,500 to businesses affected by COVID-19. The program is funded with $300,000 in Bath Iron Works tax increment financing, revenues earmarked for economic development.
The Brunswick Development Corporation has launched the Pandemic Emergency Loan Fund, offering zero-interest, two-year loans of up to $5,000, with principal payments deferred for 12 months, for small businesses in Brunswick.
The City of Hallowell’s Business Survival Grant Program offers grants of up to $3,000 for micro-businesses with five or fewer employees. Businesses must have been in operation in Hallowell for at least two years.
The Kennebec Valley Downtown Relief Fund offers grants of up to $3,000 to businesses in downtown Augusta and downtown Gardiner. Grants must be used for payroll, utilities, rent/mortgage, and other expenses incurred while businesses are closed or operating under pandemic-related constraints. The Fund is capitalized by contributions from the public. As of June 1, it had exhausted its funding but was continuing to raise money in order to offer additional grants in the near future.
On May 18, the City of Portland finalized details of three emergency small business assistance programs: the Business Assistance Program for Job Creation (BAP-Rehire), the Microenterprise Grant Program, and the Rapid Response Microloan Program (RRMP). BAP-Rehire will provide $5,000 grants to businesses for rehiring two or more full-time low- or moderate-income employees. The Microenterprise Grant Program will provide grants of up to $2,500 for businesses with less than two full-time-equivalent employees. The Rapid Response Micro Loan Program will provide loans of up to $10,000 to businesses with 2-8 employees and less than $1 million in annual revenues. Up to $5,000 will be forgiven if half of the business’s employees are hired back within nine months of receiving a loan or when the emergency order is lifted, whichever happens first. The first two programs will be funded with the City’s CDBG-CV allocation; the latter program will be funded from the Portland Development Commission’s unrestricted loan funds. The total available for BAP-Rehire and the Microenterprise Grant is $305,000; the RRMP was funded with $400,000 from the Portland Development Commission’s unrestricted loan funds.
The City of Rockland is creating an interest-free loan program for small downtown businesses that have been negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The program will offer loans of up to $5,00 to locally owned businesses with 10 or fewer employees and that have lost revenues of 50 percent or more for the previous three months, compared to a year earlier. The program was initially capitalized by $100,000 of the city’s downtown tax increment financing district account and was available only to downtown businesses. But, on May 28, the City decided to add an additional $100,000 from the City’s reserve funds and open the program to all Rockland small businesses.
Main Street Skowhegan launched a technical assistance grant program in February, then quickly increased its funding to $20,000 in order to offer small grants of $500-$2,000 to Skowhegan businesses that need immediate financial assistance as a result of COVID-19 pandemic-related closures or reduced income. Grants may be used for immediate relief, technical assistance or equipment. The application deadline was May 31. The program received 27 grant requests, totaling $49,000, and on June 10 Main Street Skowhegan announced that grants had been awarded in varying amounts to 23 businesses, including a hotel, cafe, and fitness studio.
The City of South Portland launched its COVID-19 Hardship Small Business Grant Program in early July, using $200,000 in property taxes paid by a semiconductor company and held in a Tax Increment Financing account. The program offers grants of up to $2,000 to businesses with up to 100 employees to help with rent/mortgage payments, operating expenses, payroll, and certain taxes. Applications are due on July 31.
On May 4, the City of Westbrook created the Small Business Emergency Commercial Rental Assistance Program to provide grants of up to $1,500 each up to 67 small businesses to help them pay their rent. Businesses must have fewer than 50 employees and be able to demonstrate financial loss as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Program is being capitalized with $100,500 from the Westbrook Environmental Improvement Corporation. The application deadline is August 31.
On July 1, the Town of Yarmouth, in partnership with the Greater Portland Council of Governments, launched a small business loan program to help Yarmouth-based small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Interest-free loans of up to $5,000 were available, with 24-month terms and repayment deferred for up to six months. Businesses were eligible for up to $1,250 of forgiveness if they met certain conditions, such as bringing back at least one-third of their employees or to enhance accommodations for physical distancing. The program was capitalized with $100,000 from its Tax Increment Financing Development Fund.
Maryland
The State of Maryland’s $50 million Emergency Relief Grant Fund, launched in mid-March, provided grants up to $10,000, not to exceed three months of cash operating expenses, to businesses and nonprofits with 50 or fewer employees. The grant program was intended to be a stop-gap, with businesses or nonprofit seeking longer-term funding through the SBA, a bank, or other source. During the last week of March and first week of April, the State received nearly 20,000 applications, and the state closed the application window and started a waiting list. The State was able to approve about 4,000 applications before running out of money. The State replenished the program with an additional $45 million in July, then an additional $50 million on October 22, hoping to clear the backlog of applications on the waiting list.
Maryland’s $75 million Emergency Relief Loan Fund provides businesses with 50 or fewer employees access to three-year loans up to $50,000, not to exceed three months of cash operating expenses. There is no interest for the first 12 months, then two percent for the remaining 24 months. Also, loan payments are deferred for the first 12 months, then amortized over the remainder of the loan term. There are no collateral requirements, but business owners must have a minimum personal credit score of 575.
On October 22, the State of Maryland announced several new small business relief programs and expansion of several existing small business relief programs. These include $50 million in direct relief for restaurants, in the form of grants; $20 million in direct relief through the Department of Housing and Community Development to assist hard-hit businesses and local entertainment venues within Main Street Maryland districts; a $20 million expansion to the state’s existing COVID-19 Layoff Aversion Fund, bringing its total funding to $30 million; a $5 million expansion of the state’s Small and Minority Business Low-Interest Loan Program, bringing its total funding to $10 million; a $3 million expansion of the existing Arts Organization Funding program, bringing its total funding to $7 million; and a $100 million Emergency Rapid Response Fund for Small Businesses, which can be deployed quickly to areas where there is greatest need as the pandemic continues. As of October 22, application materials and program details were not yet available.
Allegany County created the COVID-19 Small Business Assistance Fund in March, awarding $109,000 in grants to businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. On May 11, it reopened the Fund, using money it received from the supplemental Community Development Block Grant appropriation authorized by the CARES Act. To be eligible, businesses must have a physical address in the County, have no more than 15 employees, have no tax liens or legal judgments, and be in good standing with the State of Maryland.
The City of Baltimore launched a $5.5 million Small Business Assistance Initiative on April 23. The Initiative will be administered by the Baltimore Development Corporation. $500,000 will be made available as grants to Baltimore personal protective equipment manufacturers; $3.5 million will be made available as grants of up to $15,000 for small businesses in certain Baltimore commercial districts; and $1.5 million will be used to support social distancing when businesses reopen. The application window opened on May 4.
Baltimore County opened a $10 million COVID-19 Small Business Relief Grants Program on May 11, targeting businesses that have not been able to get assistance from the federal Paycheck Protection Program. Grants of up to $15,000 were available on a first-come, first-served basis to businesses with 2-25 employees and that commit to keeping its employees on the payroll through January 1, 2021 (not including business owners). If a business fails, the business owner must return the grant within 14 days.
Baltimore County used $100,000 to provide $100,000 stipends to up to 100 local artists who had been negatively affected by the pandemic and economic shutdown, with priority given to those earning $37,500 or less per year. Following an outpouring of interest, the County doubled the fund to $200,000. Artists must be over 18 years of age, lived in the County for at least one year, be current on taxes and loan repayments, and have a strong artistic portfolio.
On July 14, Baltimore County announced creation of a $3 million grant fund to reimburse service industry businesses for COVID-19 safety expenses, such as hand washing stations, glass barriers, carryout windows, and other equipment or space modifications. Grants of up to $10,000 are available to businesses with 2-25 employees and in good standing with the county and state. The application period opened on July 15, and grants will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis until funding is depleted.
Calvert County has offered two funding rounds in its COVID-19 Small Business & Nonprofit Relief Fund Grant, offering grants of $1,500 to $10,000, depending on business or organization size. The total amount available for small businesses is $1.25 million, with $500,000 available for nonprofits. The round 2 application deadline was August 19.
Charles County has launched a $2.5 million COVID-19 Small Business Relief Grant Program, using part of its CARES Act distribution. The program offers grants of up to $5,000 to businesses with 0-4 employees and of up to $10,000 to those with 5-75. Grants can be used for operating expenses, such as rent, utilities, payroll, and inventory, and/or for costs related to protecting customers and workers from the virus. To qualify, businesses must be headquartered in Charles County, have been in business for at least one year as of May 2020, have revenues under $5 million, and be able to demonstrate lost revenue as a result of COVID-19. Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis.
On March 25, the City of Frederick launched a Small Business Resiliency Micro-Grant Program, offering $2,500 grants to businesses with up to 15 employees and with a physical location within the City. The program was capitalized by reallocating funds from the City’s Department of Economic Development and by private contributions made to the Community Foundation Economic Development Fund. Grants were awarded on a first-come, first-served basis, while ensuring that grants were made to each of five major commercial districts. The program stopped taking applications when funding was depleted.
The Frederick Arts Council’s Frederick Artist Relief Fund offers grants of $250-$500 to individual artists who live in Frederick County and whose work has been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Fund is raising money through a GoFundMe campaign.
Howard County will use $5.7 million of its $57 million CARES Act funding to help small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and economic shutdown. This will include a Storefront Retail Assistance Program ($2.7 million), a Restaurant Assistance Program ($2 million), and an Agricultural Assistance Program ($800,000). As of June 2, program details were not yet available.
Until April 25, Montgomery County offered COVID-19 pandemic relief grants of up to $75,000 for businesses with up to 100 employees. One-quarter of the Public Health Emergency Grant Program was reserved for restaurants and retail businesses. Businesses could also apply for up to $2,500 for teleworking equipment. The $20 million program (plus an additional $10 million for local hospitals) was capitalized with funding from the County’s undesignated reserves. Because of overwhelming demand, the Program stopped accepting applications.
Montgomery County accepted applications from June 10-16 for its Microenterprise Stabilization Program, funded with $1 million in CDBG-CV money from the federal CARES Act. To be eligible, businesses had to have five or fewer employees, have been in operation on January 1, have a DUNS number, had to demonstrate lost revenue due to the pandemic, and had to either be physically located within the County, or the owner had to reside within the County and at least 51 percent of the business’s revenue must be generated within the County.
On July 7, Montgomery County launched the $14 million Reopen Montgomery Grant Program, offering grants of up to $5,000 to businesses with 100 or fewer full-time employees. To qualify, businesses must be physically located only in the County or generate at least 50 percent of its gross sales within the County, and it must not have already received financial assistance from the County or the Montgomery County Economic Development Corporation. Applications will be reviewed using a rolling random lottery system until funds are exhausted. The last of the lotteries will take place on September 14.
Prince George’s County has made $20 million in grants and loans to businesses impacted by the pandemic. Businesses could apply for loans of up to $100,000 and grants of up to $5,000 (for businesses with less than 10 employees) or $10,000 (for businesses with 10 or more). $10 million of the fund came from the Economic Development Incentive Fund, a loan program managed by the PG County Economic Development Corporation. The remaining $10 million came from a mix of state and private funding sources. The program awarded grants or loans to 506 small businesses, 78 percent of which were minority-owned and 43 percent of which were owned by women.
On May 21, Queen Anne’s County announced creation of the Queen Anne’s County Small Business Assistance and Recovery Fund. The Fund will offer small grants to help businesses meet CDC guidelines for personal protective equipment and social distancing and to help cover reopening expenses. It will also pair eligible low income workers with businesses that need to hire new staff. Program details will be available in late May. More information is available by emailing recoveryfund@qac.org.
St. Mary’s County’s $2 million COVID-19 Small Business and Nonprofit Relief Fund was created to support certain small businesses and non-profit agencies countywide that have realized a significant financial hardship as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak. A business or non-profit with 15 or less employees is eligible for a grant of $6,000 and a business or non-profit with 16 to 30 employees was eligible for a grant of $8,500. Grants may be used for working capital to support payroll expenses, rent, mortgage payments, utility expenses, or other similar expenses that occur in the ordinary course of business incurred between March 15, 2020 and December 30, 2020. As of September 10, applications were still being accepted.
Washington County began accepting applications for its $8.9 million Rise Up Business Stabilization grant program on June 1. The program offers grants of up to $10,000 on a first-come, first-served basis to businesses with 50 or fewer employees in Washington County and the City of Hagerstown. To be eligible, businesses must have been in operation before September 1, 2019; must have revenues of $5 million or less; must be in good standing with the state; and must make a good-faith effort to retain/rehire employees and to continue operating the business for at least the next 12 months. As of June 16, the County had processed 424 applications and awarded $1.1 million to 111 small businesses, and it extended its original June 15 deadline to June 30. The program is jointly administered by the City of Hagerstown’s Department of Community and Economic Development and the Washington County Department of Business Development.
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts created a $10 million Small Business Recovery Loan Fund on March 16th, administered by the Massachusetts Growth Capital Corporation. The Fund provided loans of up to $75,000 to businesses (including nonprofits) with under 50 employees, with payments deferred for six months. But, once the SBA began offering Economic Injury Disaster Loans to businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Commonwealth closed the program.
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts’s Empowerment Grant for Small Businesses provides small grants of up to $2,500 to small businesses in one of the Commonwealth’s 26 Gateway Cities (Attleboro, Barnstable, Brockton, Chelsea, Chicopee, Everett, Fall River, Fitchburg, Haverhill, Holyoke, Lawrence, Leominster, Lowell, Lynn, Malden, Methuen, New Bedford, Peabody, Pittsfield, Quincy, Revere, Salem, Springfield, Taunton, Westfield, and Worcester). Businesses must have been in operation for at least one year and have had annual sales of less than $5 million in its most recent fiscal year. Preference is given to businesses in industries that have been particularly hard-hit by the COVID-19 pandemic, such as home cleaning services, fitness/personal training, personal care services, and brick-and-mortar businesses. Chains and franchises are not eligible. The application deadline was May 29, with funding decisions announced June 12.
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts’s Attorney General’s Office has awarded $500,000 through its Small Business Relief Partnership Grant Program to regional planning agencies and municipalities that will, in turn, make grants to small businesses to help cover working capital expenses incurred during the COVID-19 pandemic. The grant program was funded by settlement funds secured by the Attorney General’s office.
In December 2020, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts announced creation of a $668 million Sector-Specific Relief Grant Program. The program is funded through an appropriation from the Commonwealth’s Operating Budget for FY2021 and by a portion of the Commonwealth’s CARES Act allocation. Grants will be targeted to the neediest businesses – those that have suffered operating losses, that do not have access to other sources of relief, and that lack adequate reserves. The program will give preference to food service businesses (restaurants, bars, caterers, etc.), indoor recreation and entertainment establishments, gyms/fitness centers, personal services businesses, and independently owned retailers. The program is administered by the Massachusetts Growth Capital Corporation. Grants of up to $75,000 are available, but are capped at up to three months of operating expenses, as evidenced by 2019 federal income tax returns.
The Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) and Citizens Bank have launched the LISC Small Business Recovery Grant Program, offering grants of up to $10,000 to small businesses in Massachusetts. Applications were accepted between April 20-24. Priority will be given to minority- and women-owned businesses and other vulnerable businesses.
The City of Boston created a $2 million Small Business Relief Fund, making grants of between $2,500-$10,000 to businesses impacted by COVID-19, with priority given to those most directly affected by closures or other policies directly related to the pandemic. To be eligible, businesses must have fewer than 35 employees and annual gross revenue below $1.5 million. In addition, it has created a $3 million fund to help tenants make their rent payments. The program began accepting applications on April 6, 2020 and, as of May 14, was no longer accepting new applications. By that date, the City had awarded 556 grants, 95 percent of which are going to businesses with 15 or fewer employees, 50 percent to people of color, and 48 percent to women-owned businesses.
On May 26, Boston Mayor Martin Walsh announced the launch of the $6 million Reopen Boston Fund, providing grants to help small, forward-facing businesses prepare for reopening by buying personal protection equipment, managing outdoor spaces, and installing safety partitions. Businesses must have fewer than 15 employees, operate from a brick-and-mortar commercial space within the city, and physically engage closely with the public (personal care businesses, retail shops, food businesses, arts and entertainment businesses, fitness facilities, event spaces, etc.). The application window will open on May 28, and the City will accept applications on a phased basis, paralleling the phased approach the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is taking to reopen businesses.
The City of Boston’s Arts and Culture Department has created the Boston Artist Relief Fund, offering grants of $500 to individual artists living in Boston and whose income has been adversely impacted by COVID-19. The Fund opened on March 12 and closed on April 30.
The Boston Main Streets Foundation launched an Emergency Response Fund on April 1, offering $1,000 grants to small businesses in one of the city’s 20 Main Streets districts. To qualify, businesses must have ten or fewer employees, must offer face-to-face contact (such as salons, barber shops, and storefront retailers), and must have been classified as “non-essential” by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The Emergency Response Fund has been overwhelmed with applications and is now crowdfunding to raise additional capital.
In March, the City of Cambridge created a Small Business COVID-19 Relief Grant, offering grants of up to $10,000 for retail, food, personal services, and creative for-profit businesses with brick-and-mortar locations. Grants may be used for paying rent, mortgages, and other operating expenses; employee wages; perishable inventory lost because of business interruption; and resources to get the business established online. The program was funded by contributions from residents and corporations.
The City of Chelsea has committed $1 million to help small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and economic shutdown. One-half of the fund will be used for a Restaurant Recovery Program and one-half for a Small business Relief Program. As of June 4, program details and application materials were not yet available.
The City of Chicopee has reallocated $150,000 from its Community Development Block Grant funds to create an emergency Business Operating Grants Program, with grants of up to $10,000 to businesses affected by the pandemic. To be eligible, businesses must be Chicopee-based, in operation for at least 24 months, and current on state and local taxes. Because the Program uses CDBG funds, grants must be compliant with federal Block Grant regulations, including continued employment of low- and moderate-income workers.
The Town of Clinton launched a Small Business Resiliency Program on March 26, capitalized with $150,000 from its Community Development Fund. The Program offers loans of up to $5,000, with case-by-case consideration of applications for more than that amount. Loans have a three percent interest rate, with repayment deferred for 12 months following the lifting of the Commonwealth’s State of Emergency.
The Dorchester Bay Economic Development Corporation is offering Quick Capital Loans of up to $20,000, at six percent interest, to Boston businesses. Loans are approved rapidly, with no application fee. It is also offering a Neighborhood Loan Fund for businesses in the Dorchester, Roxbury, Mattapan, Hyde Park, Roslindale, and Jamaica Plain neighborhoods. This Fund offers loans of up to $250,000 at seven percent interest, for up to five years.
The City of Fitchburg launched a Small Business Grant Program on March 18, using $100,000 from its Community Development Block Grant allocation to make grants of up to $2,500 to small businesses in Fitchburg. The program gave precedence to businesses with five or fewer employees; restaurants, bars, retail, and entertainment businesses; and businesses with existing loans with the Community Development Small Business Loan Program. It awarded 40 grants. The City then allocated $130,000 of its $600,000 federal CARES Act allocation to small business assistance and plans to allocate an additional $200,000 in the fall and winter of 2020. In addition, the Fitchburg Redevelopment Authority launched two parallel grant programs, in April and July; by September 1, FRA had awarded $167,500 to 43 small businesses negatively affected by the pandemic.
The Foundation for Business Equity created a Business Equity COVID-19 Emergency Fund, providing loans, grants, and crisis support teams to Massachusetts-based Black and Latinx businesses with revenues of at least $250,000. The Fund is not currently accepting applications.
The Greater Holyoke Chamber of Commerce is collaborating with the City of Holyoke’s Community Development Office to offer a $90,000 Business Emergency Operation Grant Program, capitalized with Community Development Block Grant funds. Businesses must have been in existence as of January 20, 2020 and must demonstrate that it will benefit low/moderate income workers and meet other CDBG requirements.
On May 22, the City of Greenfield, in partnership with Buckland, Montague, and Shelburne, created a Microenterprise Assistance Program for small businesses that have lost revenue due to the COVID-19-related economic shutdown. The forgivable loan program will be administered by the Franklin County Community Development Corporation. To be eligible for a forgivable loan of up to $5,000, businesses must have been in operation for at least six months, be a for-profit business, must have five or fewer employees (including the owner), must have more than $20,000 in annual sales, and must be owned by an owner whose household income is less than 80 percent of the median area income, adjusted by household size. The program gives priority to businesses with brick-and-mortar locations. Grants are available on a first-come, first-served basis.
The Greenfield Community and Economic Development office, in partnership with other communities in Franklin County, has also launched the Franklin County COVID Recovery Business Assistance Program, using its CDBG-CV allocation from the CARES Act. The Program will provide forgivable loans of up to $10,000 to businesses with five of fewer employees and that are owned by low- and moderate-income business owners. In addition, businesses must provide goods and services to multiple clients or customers, be in good standing with local and state government, and have been established before January 1, 2019. The program will be administered by the Franklin County Community Development Corporation. As of May 30, applications are not yet available.
The Mass Cultural Council partnered with the New England Foundation for the Arts to create a COVID-19 Relief Fund for artists and arts teachers who have lost income as a result of COVID-19 related cancellations and closures in Massachusetts. The Fund provides $1,000 grants.
The City of Medford launched two small business relief grant programs: the Small Business and Microenterprise Relief Grant Programs. The two programs were initially funded with $450,000, but this was later increased to $530,000. The Microenterprise Relief Grant was open to businesses with five or fewer employees (including the owner) to apply. The Small Business Relief Grant application was available to businesses with six or more employees (including the owner). Applicants could apply for up to $10,000.
The Town of Montague is offering forgivable loans of up to $5,000 to micro businesses with five or fewer employees. Loan repayment will be forgiven for business owners who can document that they used the loan proceeds for permissible expenses, such as payroll, rent, inventory, or working capital. To be eligible, a business’s owner must be 80 percent or less of the area’s median income, must have been in business as of December 1, and must do at least $20,000 in annual sales. Businesses that have received federal relief assistance are not eligible. The $58,000 loan pool is being funded with 2019 Community Development Block Grant funds that had been designated for a park renovation but that were unexpended when bids for the renovation were lower than anticipated. The application window opened on May 26.
In mid-June, the City of Newburyport announced creation of the Small Business Relief Grant Program, offering grants of up to $2,000 to up to 15 small, locally owned businesses. To qualify, businesses must have fewer than 10 employees and revenues of $250,000 or less. The application will be available on June 30, with grants awarded on a first-come, first-served basis to qualified businesses. The Program is being funded by the state attorney general’s Small Business Relief Partnership Grant Program. The City has applied for a $400,000 CDBG-CV grant – which, if the City receives it, will also be used for small business relief.
On April 6, the City of North Andover created a COVID-19 small business relief program to help business owners with rent or mortgage payments. The program, capitalized with $222,529 from a gas settlement fund, will provide grants of up to $3,000 to cover one month of rent or a commercial mortgage payment. The program received 214 applications before its April 27 deadline and made grant awards on May 1.
The North Central Massachusetts Chamber of Commerce launched an Emergency Micro-Loan Program on March 17, offering loans of up to $20,000 to qualified small businesses.
In late September, the Town of Saugus announced a $360,000 Microenterprise Business Assistance Program, providing grants of up to $10,000 to qualifying microbusinesses (five of fewer employees) adversely impacted by COVID-19. The program is funded with Community Development Block Grants.
The City of Springfield’s Prime the Pump grant program has offered four funding rounds since its launch on March 24. In Round 1, the City received over $1 million in grant requests from 80 businesses and was able to award 30 grants, totaling over $225,000, for restaurants. In Round 2, the city received over $1.5 million in requests from 114 small businesses; it was able to award grants to 76 businesses, totaling $500.000. In Round 3, the City was able to award 84 grants, totaling over $500.000. The City accepted applications until July 17 for Round 4, which focuses on nonprofit organizations.
Through the CARES Act, the City of Westfield received a supplemental appropriation of $216,737 to its Community Development Block Grant Program and is using a portion of this to make grants to small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
On March 19, the City of Worcester created a Small Business Resiliency Program, using $500,000 of its Community Development Block Grant funds. To be eligible, a business must have less than $2 million in annual revenues, the business owner must have low- or moderate-income status, and the business must have experienced a loss of 50 percent or more due to COVID-19 since March 10. The first round of applications closed on March 27.
Michigan
The Michigan Small Business Relief Program offered grants of up to $10,000 and loans of $50,000-$200,000, at a 0.25 percent interest rate. Businesses with 50 or fewer employees are eligible for grants; those with 100 or fewer are eligible for loans, assuming they are unable to obtain financing elsewhere. The application deadline closed on April 1. The program was deployed through a network of community organizations, including chambers of commerce and United Way organizations, and capitalized by a coalition of local, regional, and statewide foundations and corporations.
Michigan Women Forward has created an Entrepreneur Resilience Fund, offering grants of $1,000-$5,000 and microloans of $5,000-$10,000 to help diverse entrepreneurs and small businesses from under-represented groups in Michigan reopen or pivot their businesses. Franchises, nonprofit organizations, chains, adult entertainment, and lending businesses are not eligible. Grants and loans may be used for rent, payroll, utilities, working capital, online store development, inventory, and personal protective equipment. Applications were available on May 12 and are being accepted on a rolling basis. The $1.5 million Fund is capitalized by $500,000 from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, $500,000 from Michigan Women Forward’s SBA microlending funds, and contributions from Consumers Energy Foundation, the New Economy Initiative, General Motors, Fifth Third Bank, and Comerica Bank.
The Michigan Economic Development Corporation has expanded its Match on Main Program to provide up to $50,000 to downtown management organizations to re-grant to small downtown businesses. Business grants can be no smaller than $2,000 and no larger than $10,000. Applications were available through May 29.
The Michigan Economic Development Corporation has partnered with Patronicity, a Detroit-based crowdfunding platform, to offer 1:1 matching grants of up to $5,000 for capital crowdfunded by Michigan small businesses. Retail businesses and businesses offering face-to-face services, with 25 or fewer employees, are eligible for the MI Local Biz program. Priority will be given to businesses meeting two of three criteria: location in a geographically disadvantaged area, location in a certified redevelopment-ready community, and location in a traditional downtown or neighborhood commercial district. Businesses must raise at least $1,000, from at least 10 donors, in order to receive a matching grant.
On July 8, the Michigan Strategic Fund approved the use of $100 million of its CARES Act funding for the Michigan Small Business Restart Program. The Program made grants of up to $20,000 to help small businesses that are reopening and that have lost income as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The grants were made through a network of 15 local and nonprofit economic development organizations. Applications were accepted from July 15-August 5. Thirty percent of the funds were earmarked for women-, minority-, and veteran-owned businesses.
On November 30, the Michigan Economic Development Corporation announced that it would be using an additional $10 million of its CARES Act funding to provide Pure Michigan Small Business Relief Initiative grants of up to $15,000 to help small businesses affected by the state’s latest shutdowns. The grants will go to at least 666 qualifying small businesses on a first-come, first-served basis. Grants must be used to support payroll, rent, mortgage payments, and/or utilities. In order to qualify, businesses must have 2-50 employees, have at least $25,000 in 2019 revenue, and be in good standing with local and state government on taxes, licenses, and registrations. Businesses must also be in compliance with COVID orders from the state or their county health department. Applications will be available before December 16.
Battle Creek Unlimited, a nonprofit economic development organization, launched a small business relief fund (the Battle Creek Area COVID-19 Microgrant Fund) on March 19, using $500,000 of its own funds. The fund offered grants of up to $5,000. To be eligible, businesses must have 15 or fewer employees and annual revenues of $1 million or less. The fund eventually grew to $1.6 million, with sizable donations from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and Consumers Energy Foundation and additional allocations from Battle Creek Unlimited itself, making it possible for the organization to extend grants and loans to small businesses and nonprofit organizations in the City of Springfield and in the charter townships of Bedford, Emmett, and Pennfield. Applications were due on May 11. As of June 4, Battle Creek Unlimited had made 132 grants (including 25 to local nonprofits and 81 to businesses owned by women and people of color), totaling roughly $600,000, and 29 loans, totaling $955,000. Loans are low-interest, with repayment deferred for six months, and are intended to act as a bridge until businesses receive relief from the federal Paycheck Protection Program or EIDL.
The City of Dearborn created the Dearborn Small Business Relief Grant, offering grants of up to $5,000 for businesses with 17 employees or less. Applications were available from April 27 – May 1, with announcements made the second week of May. The City partnered with several organizations to capitalize and manage the program, including the New Economy Initiative, East and West Dearborn Downtown Development Authorities, and Warren and Dix/Vernor Business District Improvement Authorities. The program prioritizes service businesses, freelancers, makers, home-based businesses, small businesses, restaurants and other prepared food businesses, retail businesses, and businesses whose owners are low- or moderate-income. Franchises and chains are not eligible. The program received more than 675 applications and was able to award grants to 60 of them.
An African American hair stylist in Detroit has launched the Beauty Professionals of Color Relief Fund to help minority-owned haircare businesses in the city of Detroit. The Fund is raising money by asking people to donate what they would normally pay for a cut, color, trim, or treatment, plus tip.
Detroit’s TechTown, a small business and technology hub and business incubator, has partnered with the City, the Detroit Economic Growth Corporation, and Invest Detroit to make working capital grants of up to $5,000 to bridge the gap until federal relief is available. To qualify for the Detroit Small Business Stabilization Fund, the business owner’s personal income must be low- or moderate; the business must have ten employees or less; the business must have a physical establishment; it must have experienced a loss of income due to COVID-19. Low-income business owners in neighborhoods at high risk of displacement are prioritized.
In Detroit, the Ford Fund is teaming with the Urban League of Detroit to create the Emergency Capital Access Program. The initiative provides $100,000 to support Black owned small businesses that were hard hit by COVID-19 in the Detroit area. Additionally, businesses will receive free counseling services to assist them strategize how best to survive. Each grant will be between $2,000 and $5,000.
On May 6, the Genesee Chamber Foundation announced the launch of its Restart Flint & Genesee Grant Program, using a $200,000 grant from the Consumers Energy Foundation to help Flint and Genesee County businesses reopen. To be eligible, businesses must be independently owned, with no more than 50 employees, and must be in one of several industry sectors: barbershops/hair salons/fitness gyms; tattoo parlors; bars/restaurants; retail; construction/landscaping; daycare; senior living/care facilities; non-critical manufacturing. On May 13, the Foundation announced that it had received a $262,500 grant from the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation to provide grants of up to $5,000 to black-owned businesses in Flint, and on June 3 the Ruth Mott Foundation added $100,000 to the fund, specifically to help businesses owned by African Americans. The program’s next deadline is June 7.
The Greater Grand Rapids Chamber Foundation has launched the Rapid Response Economic Relief Fund, offering grants of $5,000-$10,000, plus technical assistance for surviving the economic shutdown, to businesses with 5-25 employees in Kent County. The fund is being capitalized by over a dozen corporate and private foundations.
The City of Kalamazoo, in partnership with the United Way of Battle Creek and Kamazoo, has created a Micro-enterprise Grant Program to help small businesses with up to ten employees and less than $1 million in annual revenues. The Program will offer $5,000 grants, with a priority focus on businesses owned by women, people of color, and indigenous people. The application deadline iswasMay 27, with awards announced on June 1. The $500,000 program is being funded by $300,000 from the City and contributions from Consumers Energy Foundation.
Kent County allocated $25 million of the $94.2 million it received via the CARES Act for a small business relief program, which is being administered by the Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce. The program offers grants of $5,000-$20,000 and technical assistance to privately-owned businesses with 25 or fewer employees and that have lost revenue because of the pandemic. The program provides grants in two phases – the first phase for businesses that have not yet received assistance, and the second phase for those that need additional support to stay afloat. As of August 18, the program had awarded grants to 721 businesses, with another 597 grants in process, and the program still had $10.3 million available.
The City of Lansing announced the launch of the first phase of a $400,000 Small Business Recovery Program on April 9. The program offers grants of up to $10,000 to businesses with a brick-and-mortar location in the city, 25 or fewer employees, annual revenues of less than $1.5 million in 2019, and demonstrated income loss related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Applications were due by April 16, and 34 grants were awarded the week of April 27. The program is funded by the Lansing Economic Development Corporation.
The City of Lansing received 1,640 eligible applications for their Lansing Economic Area Partnership (LEAP) Small Business Restart program. The program will provide an additional $1.59 million in funding for small businesses to 402 businesses — approximately 25% of the applicants. 200 grants of $10,000 each for “microbusinesses” of nine or fewer workers; 125 grants of $20,000 each to “traditional” businesses with 50 or fewer employees; and 77 grants to nonprofit organizations employing 50 or fewer people. Funds will be distributed by the end of September.
Macomb County is offering $5,000 grants to small businesses negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, using funding from the CARES Act. To be eligible, businesses must have fewer than 50 employees, have been in business for at least 12 months, and must have a physical location within the County. The $20 million Macomb County Small Business Sustainability Program began accepting applications on June 11 and had received 2,000 applications by June 21. The application deadline is June 24. The County will finalize awards by July 1 and will begin distributing grants on July 2.
The Michigan Music Alliance has created a Michigan Artist Relief Fund, offering grants of up to $500 for full-time musicians living in Michigan whose work has been negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, with priority given to those who have experienced a severe financial impact and with immediate need.
Main Street Oakland County has launched a crowdfunding campaign to fund its Mom and Pop Business Relief program. If any of the 25 designated Main Street programs in Oakland County raises $4,000, it will receive a match of up to $4,000 from the Mom and Pop Business Relief Fund. A local Main Street program will then re-grant the money to small downtown businesses.
Pure Michigan Business Connect (PMBC) is offering grants of $10,000 to $150,000 to Michigan small manufacturing businesses interested in producing Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). Businesses can use the grants to buy equipment needed to make critical supplies and for other expenses related to operationalizing new production lines.
The City of Royal Oak has set aside $265,263 of its CDBG-CV funding via the CARES Act for a loan program to provide short-term working capital to small businesses affected by the pandemic. To qualify, businesses must have no more than 50 employees, of whom at least 51 percent must live in low- or moderate-income households, and must meet certain other eligibility requirements. A loan will be forgiven if a business can demonstrate after six months that it has created new jobs or retained existing jobs for its low- and moderate-income workers. Loans are based on two months of eligible expenses, not to exceed $15,000. The application window opened on June 12 – but, by June 23, only two businesses had applied for a loan, and one of them was deemed ineligible.
The Community Foundation of St. Clair County has made a $25,000 grant to the Economic Development Alliance of St. Clair County to support minority- and women-owned businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The donation will make it possible for the Economic Development Alliance to offer grants of $1,000 and up. Applications were available from May 6-20, with recipients to be announced by June 3.
The Community Foundation of St. Clair County gifted the Blue Water Startups & Entrepreneurs $2,000 to launch a microgrant program for small business owners in St. Clair County. Grants for each recipient range from $100 – $200 depending on an organization’s need. The Entrepreneur Ecosystem Survey that accompanies the application aims to learn more about the small businesses of St. Clair County in hopes to even further nurture and grow the community. Applications opened August 17 and close August 28.
Wayne County, in partnership with TCF Bank, is offering a low-interest, fast turnaround loan program Businesses must be located in low-income Census tracts, have fewer than 100 employees, under $1 million in annual revenue, and suffered a 25 percent revenue loss during the pandemic. Loans are for $5,000-$50,000, 12-month term, interest-only payments for the first six months, followed by regular payments and a final balloon payment. 0-2% interest rate. Initial pool will be $6 million.
Wayne County received 4,000 applications for its $57.5 million Back to Work program, offering grants to businesses with 50 or fewer employers. To qualify, businesses must have been in operation for at least a year, have been profitable pre-COVID, and be in good standing with regard to taxes and licenses. Grants were available in incremental amounts up to $20,000, based on the losses applicants have experienced. Grants may be used for payroll, rent or mortgage payments, utilities, PPE and sanitation supplies, and other regular occurring expenses.
Minnesota
The State of Minnesota’s Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) is offering Interest-free Small Business Emergency Loans of $2,500-$35,000. Loans will be paid back monthly over five years, with repayment deferred for six months. Most small businesses are eligible, except those involved in gambling or adult-oriented activities or that derive income from passive investments without operational ties to an operating business. Loans are being made through a statewide network of nearly two dozen regional and statewide organizations. As of July 27, the program had made 1,020 loans, totaling more than $27 million,.
The State of Minnesota used $62.5 million of its federal COVID-19 relief money to launch a Small Business Relief Grant program for small businesses with fewer than 50 employees. The program, which was administered by a network of 17 local nonprofit organization throughout the state, made $10,000 grants to qualified businesses for payroll, rent, mortgage payments, utilities, and similar operating expenses. The program included set-asides for businesses with six or fewer workers, minority business enterprises, businesses owned by women or veterans, and tenants of retail and food markets with an ethnic/cultural emphasis. Awards were made on a lottery basis. The application period was June 23 – July 2. In mid-November, the State added another $10 million to the program in order to support more businesses who applied in July but were not selected in the lottery.
Anoka County will use $5 million of its CARES Act allocation for a relief grant program for small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, plus another $1 million for grants for nonprofits. Eligible businesses may request grants of up to $10,000. To be eligible, businesses must have fewer than 50 employees and have been in operation for at least one year before applying for a grant. Chains and home-based businesses are not eligible. The County offered an initial grant round in August, then announced a second round in September, with slightly relaxed eligibility criteria. The application deadline is September 18.
The City of Apple Valley allocated $400,000 of its CARES Act funds to create the Apple Valley Small Business Assistance Grant Program, providing grants of up to $10,000 to eligible businesses to make physical improvements to remain agile and adaptive during the pandemic. Grants are made on a reimbursement basis. To qualify, businesses must have 50 or fewer employees, have revenues of $1.5 million or less, and have a physical location within city limits. The application deadline was August 31.
Becker County created a $1 million grant program for small businesses, offered through two grant rounds. Grants are based on net business losses from March 1 – August 31 and will be determined by need and and funding availability. To qualify, businesses must have no more than 25 employees, must be directly impacted by the Governor’s emergency declaration, and must have a physical location within the County. The application deadline is September 15. The program was capitalized with the County’s federal CARES Act allocation.
Greater Bemidji, a nonprofit economic development organization, received an anonymous gift of $500,000 to support development of the Hometown Business Relief Fund. The fund made forgivable loans of up to $20,000 to businesses that have experienced at least a 50 percent reduction in sales due to the COVID-19 pandemic and economic shutdown. Businesses must be locally owned and have a storefront or other physical location outside a home office. The fund prioritized businesses that have had to shut down normal operations, such as restaurants, bars, salons, fitness centers, and small retail businesses. The loans are interest-free, with no payments for five years, and fully forgivable if the business remains in business for five years (loans will be forgiven by 20 percent per year that the business is fully operational). The application deadline was May 15.
The Blue Earth County Board of Commissioners awarded $126,753.64 in grants to 13 applicants on October 6th as a part of Blue Earth County’s Business Assistance Grant Program. The program allows small, locally owned businesses adversely affected by COVID-19 may apply for a one time grant of up to $10,000 (per applicant) to cover expenses for up to three months. Thus far, the county has awarded $1,198,404.99 of the $2 million appropriated CARES Act funding to support organizations affected by COVID-19.
The Brainerd Economic Development Authority has created a $90,000 small business relief grant program, offering grants of up to $3,000 to local businesses. To be eligible, businesses must have no more than ten employees, must have been in operation on March 1, and be in good standing with the City. Home-based businesses, nonprofit organizations, professional service organizations, businesses that derive income from passive investments, and those that earn income from gambling are not eligible. The program began accepting applications on May 27 and reviewed applications on June 1, awarding grants to 32 small businesses, including a bakery, pub, book/gift store, game store, several hair salons, and several cafes. The EDA is planning to request an additional $23,500 from the City Council on June 15 to fund eight additional grant applications.
The City of Burnsville used $1 million of its $4.7 million federal CARES Act allocation to provide grants up to $20,000 to businesses, no matter the number of employees or revenue. National and corporate chains are ineligible, but local franchisees are not. To create a level playing field, the grants will be awarded through a lottery system.
The City of Cambridge will use $100,000 of its $676,330 federal CARES Act allocation to create the Cambridge Cares for Business fund, offering grants of up to $5,000 to help businesses buy Personal Protective Equipment, modify interior and exterior space for safety, cover rent or mortgage payments, increase technology capacity, and cover other expenses associated with safely reopening. To qualify, businesses must be locally owned and operated, must have been in operation before the Governor’s Executive Order, must have fewer than 50 employees, and not received other federal or state aid for pandemic-related expenses. Certain types of businesses are ineligible, including nonprofits, chains, or gambling establishments. Applications received before October 1 will receive first priority. If the total amount of money that applicants request is greater than $100,000, each applicant will receive a proportional amount.
On August 4, Clay County approved use of $2.25 million of its federal CARES Act allocation for the Clay County CARES Act Small Business COVID-19 Relief Grant Program. The application window was August 17-September 7. The program offered grants of up to $10,000 for eligible businesses with 20 or fewer employees, plus grants of up to $3,000 for eligible sole proprietors.
Dakota County has allocated $10 million to support small businesses that have had a financial hardship as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. One-time grants up to $10,000 will be awarded to eligible applicants to assist with payroll, rent, mortgage payments, utility bills, and other operational expenses that have occurred since March 1, 2020. The application period closed in late August, and applicants were notified of grant decisions on August 27.
The Duluth 1200 Fund, an economic development program providing incentives for business expansions and relocations, created a 2020 Fast Grants program to support small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Grants of up to $10,000 were available to businesses with 2-50 employees with gross annual revenues of $5 million or less. The Fast Grants program received more than 360 applications but was only able to provide support to approximately 100 businesses.
On April 20, the City of Edina began accepting applications for its $100,000 Small Business Emergency Assistance Program, providing interest-free forgivable loans to cover up to two months of essential operating expenses, up to $10,000. To be eligible, a business must have 2-25 employees and gross revenues of $1 million or less, must have a brick-and-mortar location within the city limits, and must rely on in-person transactions for at least 70 percent of its sales. Chains, businesses owned by elected officials, nonprofits, and businesses not in operation before July 31, 2019 were not eligible. Loans will be forgiven for businesses that remain in operation in Edina for two years from the loan date, that retain at least 75 percent of their employees over that period of time, and that submit required interim and final status reports. The program closed on April 27, and checks were mailed to the selected businesses on May 14.
Freeborn County, the City of Albert Lea, and the Albert Lea Economic Development Agency are planning to create a recovery and relief grant program to help small businesses that have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Details are not yet available, but County commissioners have discussed making grants of $5,000-$20,000 to locally owned businesses, based on the amount of economic distress a business is experiencing.
The Hastings Economic Development and Redevelopment Authority created a small business grant program, Hastings Economic Assistance for Recovery Together (HEART), offering grants of up to $4,000 for businesses with fewer than 20 full-time employees. The $200,000 program was capitalized by budget reallocations and from existing reserves from a revolving loan fund. The application deadline was May 12.
The Heartland Lakes Development Commission designed the $1.9 million Hubbard County COVID-19 Business Assistance Program to provide emergency financial assistance for businesses experience financial hardships due to COVID-19 related restrictions. Grants of up to $20,000 were available, based on economic injury and funding availability. Applications for the first round of grants were due by August 21.
Itasca County, in partnership with the Itasca Economic Development Corporation (IEDC), launched the $1.8 million Itasca Business Relief Grant Program (IBR), offering direct grants to business owners in Itasca County who have faced financial hardship as a result of COVID-19. Financing for the IBR comes from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. The program consists of two grant pools available for distribution. The first will be $1.5 million available for eligible businesses, and the remaining $300,000 will be a special fund designated for loggers or logging businesses. The application window was August 25-27.
Kandiyohi County is using $1.308,900 of its CARES Act allocation for a CARES Pandemic Relief (CPR) Grant Program for small businesses and nonprofits. Small businesses may request grants of up to $15,000, based on number of employees, gross revenue loss, and available funding. Certain types of businesses, including lending institutions, law firms, chain stores, and insurance agencies, are not eligible. The application deadline is October 29. Nonprofits may request up to $50,000, with grant amounts based on numbers of employees, numbers of people served, and urgency of needs addressed.
The City of Lakeville offered $10,000 grants to local businesses until its nearly $485,000 in CARES Act money is gone. Businesses must have at least one employee in addition to the owner as of March 1, 2020, and not more than 25 full-time equivalent employees and more than $1 million in annual revenue. It also must have been operating since Dec. 1, 2019. Home-based businesses are not eligible, with the exception of in-home childcare providers.
The Little Falls Economic Development Authority is offering loans of up to $5,000 for 24 months, with deferred payments for the first six months and zero-percent interest for the final 18 months.
On August 4, Nobles County approved creation of a $2.2 million Small Business Assistance Grant program, using a portion of its federal CARES Act allocation. By late September, Nobles County and the City of Worthington had awarded $1,068,750 in Small Business Assistance Grants to 128 small businesses. On September 30, both jurisdictions voted to reopen the program for applications.
The City of Pierz is using money from the supplemental Community Development Block Grant allocation authorized by the CARES Act to create a COVID-19 Business Assistance Program, offering $5,000 to eligible businesses, of which half will be an interest-free loan and half will be a grant. Loans will be repaid beginning in March 2021 at $250/month for 10 months. Applications were due by June 1.
On September 8, the City of Plymouth began accepting applications for a second round of emergency assistance grants to small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The $1 million Plymouth Business Assistance Grant Program offers grants of up to $10,000 to locally operated businesses with 2-150 employees and that has been in business for at least one year prior to March 1. Corporate chains, home-based businesses, nonprofits, and several other types of businesses are not eligible. The application deadline is September 15. The program is funded by the federal CARES Act.
Ramsey County began accepting applications for its $15 million Small Business Relief Fund on May 27. The Fund has earmarked its first $5 million to make grants of $7,500 to 670 micro-enterprises, businesses with 20 or fewer employees. To be eligible, businesses must be locally owned, have at least one income-eligible employee as of March 1, have under $1 million in annual revenue, and have been in operation for at least 12 months prior to March 1. The application period for micro-enterprises will close on June 5; grants will be awarded only after the application window is closed, to avoid the panic created when federal Paycheck Protection Program funds were awarded while the application process was still open. The County will award the remaining $10 million to small businesses later this year. The County is working with more than a dozen community agencies to ensure that minority- and women-owned businesses are aware of the grant program.
Rethos, a nonprofit statewide historic preservation organization and the organizational home of the Minnesota Main Street Program, created a Main Streets Support Fund to provide small grants of up to $1,000 to small businesses in Main Street districts in Albert Lea, Faribault, Mankato, New Ulm, Northfield, Olivia, Owatonna, Red Wing, Shakopee, Wabasha, Willmar, and Winona. Grants could be used for marketing, customer engagement, reopening events, operational upgrades (including creating online stores), and physical space updates. To be eligible, businesses must have fewer than 20 employees, have a brick-and-mortar location in one of the 12 specified downtown districts, and have a demonstrated business sustainability plan. The deadline for the program was April 15, with grants awarded on April 24.
The Richfield Economic Development Authority launched a $150,000 Small Business Assistance Forgivable Loan Program to support small businesses affected by the pandemic. The Program provided $2,500 for a business’s first employee and $500 for each additional employee, up to $7,500. Up to 50 percent of the loan will be forgivable in 2020 for businesses that demonstrate that they spent the loan on staffing, COVID-19-related expenses, or visible capital improvements, and up to 50 percent will be forgivable in 2021 for businesses that re-establish themselves. To be eligible, businesses must have been in operation in Richfield for at least one year.
The City of Rosemount is using $500,000 of its CARES Act allocation for a small business grant program.
The City of Roseville is setting aside $500,000 for grants to help businesses, including home-based businesses, self-employed and individual contractors that can demonstrate revenue loss due to the pandemic. Businesses with an annual gross revenue of less than $1 million are eligible for up to $10,000.
St. Louis County allocated $6 million in federal aid to assist small businesses through the pandemic. Phase 1 of the grant assistance program focused on businesses and nonprofits with 25 or fewer full time employees. These businesses could apply for assistance equivalent to $1,000 per employee up to a maximum of $25,000, for COVID-related expenses incurred by the business such as to purchase PPE, cleaning supplies, signage and safety barriers. The application period for this phase was August 24 to Monday, September 7. Phase 2 grant assistance focused on providing emergency grant assistance of up to $50,000 to businesses and non-profits with 100 or fewer full time employees for COVID-related expenses. The application period for this phase was September 8 to Monday, September 21. On January 19, 2021, it opened the application process for Phase 3, with applications due by February 3. Phase 3 offers grants of up to $45,000, with greater flexibility than previous CARES Act funded grants. The total grant pool for Phase 3 is $3.8 million.
The City of Saint Paul is offering flat $7,500 grants to businesses with gross revenues of $2 million or less and that have been in operation in St. Paul for at least three months. The $3.85 million Saint Paul Bridge Fund (which also includes $1,000 grants to families with children) is supported by the Saint Paul Housing and Redevelopment Authority and a number of private donors, including the Bush Foundation, John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, Minnesota Wild, and Xcel Energy. The application window closed April 19.
Scott County’s $5.2 million COVID-19 Business Recovery Program offers grants to in-home childcare providers, small businesses, and for-profit farming operations that have not yet received assistance from other pandemic relief programs or whose impacts have exceeded other assistance received. In-home childcare providers are eligible for grants of up to $4,500; self-employed entrepreneurs (other than home-based businesses) are eligible for grants of up to $7,500; other small businesses are eligible for grants of up to $15,000; and for-profit farming operations are eligible for grants of up to $25,000. The deadline is August 27. In the event that demand exceeds the funds available, grant recipients will be chosen through a randomized lottery system.
The City of Waite Park is allocating $100,000 of the city’s CARES funding toward small business grants to help small businesses cover COVID-19 related expenses. Eligible businesses will be awarded between $500 and $7,500. To qualify, businesses must physically be located in Waite Park, have at least 50 or fewer employees, been in operation longer than 6 months prior to March 1st, and show how the business was directly affected by COVID-19. Applications close September 30.
Washington County has set aside $10 million for aid to businesses, mostly small businesses. The aid will be administered by the county’s community development agency, through its Open for Business program. It will award grants of up to $15,000. Most small businesses with fewer than 50 employees and less than $3.5 million in annual revenue will be eligible to apply.
Mississippi
Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves announced on May 14 that he signed a bill to create a grant program for small businesses, Back to Business Mississippi, using $300 million of the $1.25 billion that the state is receiving from the federal government for COVID-19 relief. Under the program, the state has earmarked $60 million to make immediate $2,000 payments to any business that was in operation prior to the Governor’s disaster declaration. There will then be a second round of grant funding, with grants of up to $25,000 awarded on a competitive basis. In the second round, $40 million will be set aside for minority business owners. Priority will be given to businesses that have not received assistance from the Paycheck Protection Program or the Economic Injury Disaster Loan program. The program began accepting applications on June 11.
The Mississippi 30 Day Fund was launched in June, offering forgivable loans of up to $3,000 to small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. By August 17, the Fund had awarded $162,463 in grants to 54 businesses throughout the state. It then received a $150,000 grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation.
Missouri
Camden County has used $540,000 of federal CARES Act funding to provide relief grants to small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Funds may only be used to cover expenditures related to business interruption caused by required closures by State or City Order related to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID–19), expenditures associated with costs to operate businesses under State or City guidelines such as PPE and other modifications necessary to conduct business, and/or expenditures incurred during or to be incurred the period that begins on March 1, 2020 and ends on December 30, 2020. The application deadline is September 30.
The City of Columbia’s Housing Program Division has offered two recovery loan programs: one for micro-enterprises (businesses with five or fewer employees) and one for small businesses (businesses with 6-49 employees), offering forgivable loans of up to $5,000 and $15,000, respectively. The $175,000 micro-enterprise recovery loan program began accepting applications on September 8 and was depleted the same day. The small business recovery loan program will begin accepting applications in October; it has a total budget of $400,000.f
On March 31, a coalition of Kansas City-based organizations announced that they were creating a $5 million KC Covid-19 Small Business Relief Fund, to be administered by AltCap, a Community Development Financial Institution. The Fund received an extremely high volume of requests, totaling more than $30 million, and was tapped out by April 3. The program was open to businesses located in the Kansas City region with 20 or fewer full-time-equivalent employees and $2.5 million or less in annual revenue. It gave priority to businesses in the retail, food service, arts/entertainment, hospitality, healthcare (if not directly involved in COVID-19 response), fitness, personal service, and transportation industries. Loans of up to $100,000 were available, with no interest and with deferred payments for the first 6-12 months. On May 22, AltCap announced that the Fund was reopening on May 27 for a second tranche of loans. The coalition consists of AltCap, the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce, the Kansas City Area Development Council, the Civic Council of Greater Kansas City, and the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation.
The Kansas City Economic Development Corporation launched the KCMO Small Business Relief Loan Fund, a $5 million program to provide funding to help small businesses within the city limits of Kansas City Missouri continue to finance operational expenses during the pandemic. The Fund allows for low interest rate loans, deferred payments for the first 6-12 months, and extended amortization periods of up to five years. There are no minimum credit score and flexible collateral requirements. As of September 10, the program was depleted and no longer accepting applications.
The Kauffman Foundation and UMKC Innovation Center launched the Kansas City Minority Business Resiliency Grant which allocated $100,000 in grants ranging from $500 to $5,000. Only the first 100 applicants were considered. Applications opened August 17 and recipients were notified by August 31.
On June 11, Nodaway County began accepting applications for its $500,000 CARES Act small business grant program, offering grants of up to $5,000. Applications are due by September 15.
The St. Louis Economic Development Partnership and the St. Louis Development Corporation have created a zero-interest loan program for small businesses in St. Louis and St. Louis County. The program offers loans of up to $5,000. Businesses must have been active for at least one year and be current on all taxes through 2018.
The St. Louis Community Foundation has launched the Gateway Resilience Fund to make emergency grants to owners and employees of restaurants, bars, entertainment venues, retail businesses, and other small establishments in the St. Louis region. Grants are $1,000, if sent directly to vendors for payment, or $500, if mailed to the grant recipient. In addition, the St. Louis Community Improvement District (CID) is offering $5,000 grants through the Foundation for small businesses within its 180-block area. To be eligible for the CID grants, businesses must have at least five employees and have been in business for at least two years.
University City has allocated $850,000 for the third round of its forgivable loan small business assistance program, providing relief for businesses that have experienced economic hardship due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Eligible local retail, service and creative for-profit businesses can use the money for short term financial operation needs like payroll and utilities or for payments to supplies or service providers. The program aims to have at least 25 percent of the allocated funding help minority and women-owned businesses. Applications will be accepted until December 31. The first two rounds of the Small Business Assistance Forgivable Loan Program awarded $1 million in forgivable loans. All three rounds have been funded by the city’s Economic Development Retail Sales Tax, a one-quarter percent retail sales tax the City enacted in 2006.
Montana
Montana has received a $1.25 billion via the CARES Act to mitigate impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic. On April 15, Gov. Steve Bullock appointed a 24-person council to make recommendations about how the money should be spent. The council completed its work on May 1. It recommended that some of the $1.25 billion be spent on business stabilization, deploying funds over an immediate- to mid-term time frame for forgivable loans, low- or zero-interest loans, and/or State-backed lines of credit guaranty. The state has subsequently launched several relief programs: the $160 million Montana Business Stabilization Program, offering grants of up to $20,000; the $10 million Live Entertainment Grant Program; the $2 million East Edge of Glacier Park Tourism Business Grant; the $125 million Montana Loan Deferment Program; the Montana Meat Processing Infrastructure Grant ($2 million); the Montana Business Adaptability Grant Program ($20 million); the Montana Innovation Grant Program ($5 million); and the Montana Working Capital loan program.
The Big Sky Chamber of Commerce, in partnership with Big Sky Resort Area District, created the Big Sky Save Small Business Relief Fund, reallocating $210,000 from their FY20 budgets to provide micro-grants of $2,500 for businesses with 1-5 employees and $5,000 for those with 6-20 employees. Businesses must be located within the Big Sky Resort Area District. The application process opened on May 1 and closed on May 6, with awards announced May 7.
On August 11th, the Butte County Board of Supervisors approved $6.1 million in local business grants from Federal Coronavirus Relief Funding. $5 million will go towards the Butte Business Stabilization Program to directly help small, local businesses while $1.1 million will go toward assisting community based organizations. These grants will assist as many as 250 businesses.
The Butte Local Development Corporation is using a $3 million grant from the US Economic Development Administration to make loans to locally-owned businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Nebraska
The Nebraska Department of Economic Development is using Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds to help qualified businesses that have been negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Communities may apply to the Department of Economic Development for funds to create local loan or grant programs. Local programs must follow federal CDBG requirements, such as creating or retaining jobs for low- and moderate-income workers or benefiting residents of communities where more than half the population is low- and moderate-income.
The State of Nebraska’s $20 million Small Business Stabilization Grant was open to Nebraska-owned for-profit businesses with 75 employees or fewer employees who are licensed for withholding as of March 13, 2020 that have closed or sustained a loss of revenue or employment since March 13, 2020. Businesses can use the SBS grant as working capital to pay for operational expenses, with the purpose of helping sustain the business during the economic downturn, or preparing it to bounce back. The program’s funding is now depleted, and it is no longer accepting applications.
Douglas County, the Omaha Foundation, and the Nebraska Enterprise Fund have partnered to offer the Douglas County Food Services Stimulus grant program, offering a total of $2 million in grants to restaurants and bars. The application deadline is February 17, 2021. To qualify, a business must be a small, locally owned food or beverage business, have been in operation within the County since January 2019, have annual gross revenue of $1.25 million or less, and have lost at least 50 percent of income/revenue in 2020 due to the pandemic.
Nevada
In July, the State of Nevada launched a $20 million Commercial Rental Assistance Grant Program, offering grants of up to $10,000 to eligible commercial tenants. Payments were made directly to landlords, who were required to guarantee that they would not begin eviction proceedings against a tenant for 90 days following the receipt of payment. To qualify, businesses must have no more than 50 full time employees, have been in operation for at least six months before March 1, have a current business license, and be able to demonstrate at least a 30 percent loss of gross monthly revenue after March 1 as a direct result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The deadline was in early September. The program received 1,465 applications and pre-approved 1,335 of them, but only 831 received grants, totaling roughly $8.5 million, because many of the applications were incomplete and required a commitment from the businesses’ landlords, which the state believes discouraged applications.
On September 25, the state’s Interim Finance Committee voted to create a new $20 million Emergency Small Business Recovery Grant Program, offering greater flexibility to business owners. The application was available online from the Governor’s Office of Economic Development.
The State of Nevada accepted applications for its $51 million Pandemic Emergency Technical Support (PETS) program from October 19-22. The program provided grants of up to $10,000 to small businesses with fewer than 50 employees and less than $4 million in annual revenue. Publicly traded businesses were not eligible. The program also provided grants of up to $20,000 to nonprofits and chambers of commerce. On February 12, the State of Nevada’s legislature added another $50 million to the program in order to provide support to additional businesses that submitted applications during the October 19-22 window, bringing the total program pool to $101 million.
In early June, Clark County announced creation of three small business assistance programs. The Small Business Stabilization Grant offered grants of $5,000 or $10,000, depending on number of employees. The Small Business Rental Assistance Program offered up to $10,000 to cover past-due rent, with payments made directly to landlords. The Small Business Protective Retrofit Grant reimbursed business owners up to $5,000 to buy protective equipment and modify business space for safety. Applications for the Small Business Stabilization Grant were accepted from June 17-24, and applications for the other two programs were accepted until August 4. On September 7, the County announced that it would be resuming the Small Business Stabilization Grant.
In August, the City of North Las Vegas launched a $3.25 million grant program to help small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Grants could be used for payroll, rent/mortgage, utility bills, inventory, COVID supplies, cleaning and sanitation, and expenses related to retrofitting on order to comply with social distancing and health guidelines. On October 26, the City announced that it was launching a second round, with a total of $4 million available in grants of $25,000-$50,000, depending on number of employees. To be eligible for these grants, businesses must have a minimum of $40,000 in gross annual revenue. There is also a $5,000 microgrant available for businesses with annual revenues of under $40,000. Applications will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis until the $4 million pool has been exhausted.
In early September, the City of Reno allocated $2.5 million of its federal CARES Act funding to create three small business assistance programs. The Small Business Economic Assistance program ($1.4 million) offered grants of up to $20,000 to businesses with 20 or fewer employees to cover costs related to the pandemic. The program’s deadline was September 8. As of September 9, the Women- and Minority-Owned Business Economic Assistance program ($1 million) and the Artists and Musicians Economic Assistance program ($100,000) had not yet been launched.
New Hampshire
On May 15, the State of New Hampshire announced creation of the Main Street Relief Fund, capitalized by $400 million of the $1.25 billion the state will receive via the CARES Act. The program offered grants to eligible small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, based on need and funding availability. To be eligible, businesses must have less than $20 million in annual revenues and have its principal place of business in New Hampshire. Healthcare, child care, agricultural, and sole proprietor businesses were not eligible. By May 28, almost 10,000 businesses had applied for relief and, by the application deadline, the program had received 13,075 applications, of which 5,466 ultimately received grants. Businesses had to submit applications and be pre-qualified by May 29, with the formal application process taking place June 1-8. Program administrators were surprised to find that more than one-third of the applications it received were from self-employed people, who were not eligible for the program. Because of that, the State launched a new fund on June 25 to provide support to self-employed workers. The Self Employment Livelihood Fund offers grants of up to $50,000 to sole proprietors. The Fund estimates it will be able to help 10,000-15,000 businesses. The application window is July 6-17.
On July 1, the Town of Londonderry approved development of a small business grant program to reimburse COVID-19 related expenses. The $50,000 Coronavirus Reconfiguration Costs Assistance and Relief (CRCAR) program will make grants of up to $1,000 to small businesses for items such as plexiglass partitions, tents/tables, sanitizing products, and social distancing materials. The program is being funded by CARES Act Municipal Relief Funds.
The City of Manchester is putting together a $1 million Small Business Recovery Loan Fund. If approved by the City’s Board of Mayor and Aldermen on April 7, the fund will be capitalized by $500,000 from the Manchester Development Corporation and $500,000 from the City. The fund will offer loans of up to $25,000 at two percent interest, with loans used to costs associated with resuming business operations.
New Jersey
On April 3, the New Jersey Economic Development Authority (NJEDA) launched several COVID-19 relief programs for small businesses. The $10 million New Jersey Small Business Assistance Loan program provided working capital loans of up to $100,000 to businesses and nonprofits with less than $5 million in annual revenues. Loans have a 10-year term and are interest-free for the first five years, then no more than three percent annually after that. Repayment is deferred for 12 months. Certain types of businesses are not eligible, including adult, gambling, and auction businesses, traveling merchants, and Christmas tree sales. On September 1, NJEDA announced that it had received a new $10 million grant from the US Economic Development Administration and would offer a second round of loans. The application process will open later in September. The $5 million New Jersey Small Business Assistance Grant program offered grants to small businesses of up to $1,000 per full-time-equivalent employee, up to a maximum of $5,000. To be eligible, businesses must have 1-10 employees and must be in one of three North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) codes: 1) Retail; 2) Accommodation & food services; 3) Arts, entertainment, & recreation; and 4) Other services. The program ran out of money within hours of opening the application portal, receiving more than 30,000 applications. On May 15, the Governor announced an additional $50 million for the program, with grants up to $10,000 available, and with priority going to businesses in the backlog from the first round of grants. $15 million of the second round will be reserved for businesses located in one of the state’s 715 Opportunity Zones, and $5 million will be used for grants to businesses that were waitlisted in the first round. The application process for the second round opened on June 9.
On July 23, New Jersey announced creation of a $6 million Small Business Lease – Emergency Assistance Grant Program (SBL-EAGP), offering grants of up to $10,000 to small businesses, including landlords, in 64 eligible communities to cover lease expenses. To be eligible, a business must lease 5,000 square feet or less. Grants are given on a first-come, first-served basis. The program is capitalized by the state’s CARES Act allocation and is being administered by the New Jersey Redevelopment Authority. The program was later expanded to $10 million. On February 2, 2021, Gov. Phil Murphy announced that an additional $5 million has been allocated to the program, again using CARES Act funding.
The New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency offered a $25 million Small Landlord Emergency Grant (SLEG) Program to reimburse small residential rental property owners for revenue lost between April-July due to the COVID-19 pandemic. To qualify, landlords must agree to forgive outstanding back rent and late fees that their tenants accrued during this time. Eligible properties must have no more than ten units, not be a vacation rental, and have a current fire insurance inspection certificate (as of March 9). The application window was August 16-25.
Bergen County’s Bergen County CARES small business grant program was launched on July 13. The program offered grants of up to $10,000 to cover rent or mortgage and utility expenses. To be eligible, businesses must have a physical location within the County, have been deemed “non-essential”, have no more than 19 full-time employees, and have been open and operating on March 1, 2020. The application window closed on July 24.
Boonton Main Street, Inc., Boonton’s downtown revitalization program, has launched a GoFundMe campaign to raise money to support small downtown businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. To qualify for assistance, businesses must have 20 or fewer employees and be located on Main Street between Myrtle and Highland Avenues or on a side street within one block of Myrtle or Highland. The program began accepting applications for assistance on May 15 and accepted applications until June 15.
Camden County is using $20 million of its CARES Act allocation to create the Camden County CARES Small Business Grant program. The program will offer grants of up to $10,000 to small businesses for expenses caused by or related to the COVID-19 pandemic. To qualify, businesses must have been located in Camden County since at least January 1, 2019; must have employed 25 or fewer workers as of March 1, 2020; must have earned no more than $5 million in total revenue in 2019; and must have been negatively affected by the pandemic. Certain types of businesses, such as banks/financial institutions and franchises, are not eligible. Applications were available beginning on July 23. The County intends to reserve an additional $13 million of its CARES Act allocation, which it might use to expand the grant program, depending on demand.
The Hamilton Township Department of Community and Economic Development has created the Township’s Small Business Assistance Program to distribute $90,000 of federal CARES funding. The objective of the program is to provide working capital funds, such as employee salaries, general operating expenses, inventory, and advertising/marketing expenses, to the community’s businesses economically impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Grants are capped at $5,000.
A group of Hoboken residents has spearheaded development of the Hoboken Relief Fund to help small businesses weather the COVID-19 pandemic and help vulnerable residents. The Fund set a $2 million fund raising goal and organized a variety of virtual events and activities to raise money, ultimately raising $350,000. The fund offered grants to local businesses with less than $2.5 million in annual revenues and fewer than 20 employees, with priority given to businesses that have not received federal or state grants or loans. Nonprofit organizations were not eligible. The application window closed on June 5. The Fund does not specify how grants may be spent but asks business owners to certify that they will “spend the grant funds in a safe and sound manner to help position the business for survival and recovery” and “retain existing and rehire laid off staff and pay them fair wages.”
The City of Hoboken is using $1.9 million of its CARE Act allocation to launch a grant program for small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The program will offer grants of up to $20,000 to help cover payroll, rent/mortgage, and utilities. The application window opened on July 15 and will close on August 30, with applications reviewed on a rolling basis. To be eligible, businesses must have 25 or fewer full-time employees, must be located within city limits, and must be a for-prfit entity. Home-based and mobile businesses are eligible, along with brick-and-mortar businesses.
On July 16, Jersey City will launch a $7 million grant program for small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The program, which is capitalized by a portion of the $117 million allocation that Hudson County received via the CARES Act, offers grants of up to $20,000 to local businesses with 25 or fewer employees. Home-based, mobile, and brick-and-mortar businesses are eligible. The program is being administered by the Jersey City Economic Development Corporation.
Livingston Township recently partnered with the Livingston Business Improvement District (BID) to create the “LuvLiv Local Grant Program” to support independently owned businesses within the community that have been harmed by COVID-19. Any businesses that either own or rent retail space in a commercial building located in Livingston are eligible to apply for a grant of up to $1,500. The town has set aside $125,000 for small business relief. The town has also gotten creative and created a gift card subsidy that will allow businesses to sell $25 gift cards or certificates for only $15. Applications closed on June 5, 2020.
Middlesex County is using $1,062,260 of its CDBG-CV allocation to make grants of up to $30,000 to independently or family-owned businesses with 10 or fewer employees and with net annual business income of less than $100,000. Businesses must be located and operating within the County, excluding the cities of Edison, New Brunswick, Old Bridge, Perth Amboy, Sayreville, and Woodbridge, and they must hire or retain low/moderate income employees. The application period was June 3-17.
An anonymous donor in Morristown has given $250,000 to the Morristown Partnership to launch a Commercial Rent Relief Grant Program, offering grants of up to $20,000 to cover rent for local businesses for three months. Grants are contingent on the landlord’s willingness to reduce the rent by 20 percent for the months covered by the grant.
The City of Newark has redirected its recently launched $750,000 Creative Catalyst Fund to ensure that the arts continue to thrive in the city. The Fund now offers two grant streams – one providing general operating support to Newark-based nonprofit arts and cultural organizations (with grants ranging between $2,500-$50,000) and one providing artist fellowships to support individual artists or unincorporated artist collectives (with grants ranging between $1,000-$10,000). The application deadline was May 1.
The Greater Newark Enterprises Corporation has created a loan program to help businesses owned by people of color and that have been negatively affected by the COVID–19 pandemic. The Entrepreneurs of Color COVID-19 Relief Fund offers loans of up to $40,000, with an interest rate of three percent and a 36-month term, to businesses with fewer than 20 employees and annual sales of less than $1 million. Business owners must be black, Hispanic, Native American, or Asian, and businesses must be located in the greater Newark area. A few types of businesses, like gambling and adult entertainment, are not eligible. The Fund was seeded with a $375,000 investment from JPMorgan Chase.
New Jersey Community Capital, with support from the Pascale Sykes Foundation and others, has launched the Garden State Relief Fund for small businesses and nonprofit organizations in the THRIVE South Jersey service area. The program offers no-interest loans of $10,000-$75,000 to businesses with 3-50 full-time employees and low-interest loans to nonprofits in Gloucester, Cumberland, Salem, and West Atlantic Counties.
The City of Summit, Summit Downtown Inc., and The Summit Foundation created the Sustain Summit Fund on April 8, making grants of $2,000-$5,500 to help small, locally owned businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Fund raised more than $340,000 from nearly 450 residents and corporations and made grants to 127 small businesses.
An anonymous donor in Summit has provided $350,000 to create Jumpstart Summit, making grants of up to $15,000 to small businesses to help them reopen or ramp up operations impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Businesses must have a physical presence within the city, have fewer than 50 employees, been directly affected by the Governor’s restrictions on commerce, plan to resume regular operations once the restrictions are lifted, and have already qualified for a grant through the Sustain Summit Fund (see above). The program is asking grant recipients to commit to “pay it forward”, making a contribution to The Summit Foundation within the next 18-24 months.
On July 16, Union County will open the application process for the $2 million Union County COVID-19 Relief Grant Program, offering grants of up to $20,000 to eligible small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The program is capitalized by the federal Coronavirus Relief Fund.
In late June, Vineland used $290,000 of its CDBG-CV allocation to create a Microenterprise COVID-19 Assistance Program, offering $5,000 grants to businesses with five or fewer employees. To qualify, businesses must commit to stay open or to reopen; have received limited or no assistance from another government relief program; and provide a list of expenses for 60 days for which the money will be used. Grants will begin to be issued the first week in July.
The Westfield United Fund organized a We Love Local campaign, matching public contributions to the campaign with money from the Fund to make emergency grants to locally owned small businesses affected by the pandemic. The Westfield United Fund matched the first $15,000 donated, and the Westfield Foundation added a $30,000 match. In all, the fund received $270,000 in donations and was able to make grants to more than 175 local businesses.
New Mexico
The New Mexico Economic Development Department (NMEDD) has created a Business Loan Guarantee Program to facilitate emergency loans or lines of credit to small businesses by guaranteeing a portion of a loan or line of credit up to 80 percent of the loan’s principal or $50,000. Business owners seek loans or lines of credit from traditional lending institutions and, if a loan is approved, NMEDD guarantees the loan in the event the business owner defaults on repayment.
In March, the New Mexico Coalition of Community Foundations created the All Together NM Fund to provide grants to small businesses affected by the pandemic and economic shutdown. A large number of foundations, corporations, and individuals contributed to the Fund, including the Stanley E. Fulton Family Foundation, McKinnon Family Foundation, Intel Foundation, Pattern Energy, Virgini Galactic, and Comcast, raising $1.1 million. By late May, the Fund had made grants totaling $600,000 to 120 businesses and plans to make grants to 30 additional businesses. The Fund is planning a to raise an additional $750,000 for a second round of grants. Grants are being distributed through four nonprofit organizations: WESST, the Rio Grande Community Development Corporation, NM Community Capital, and DreamSpring.
On November 25, New Mexico Gov. Grisham signed into law a new relief $330 relief package, including $100 million in grants for small businesses. The CARES Continuity Grants program will be administered by the New Mexico Finance Authority. The overall package is funded from $320 million in unexpended CARES Act money, plus $10 million from the state’s general fund. As of December 1, applications were not yet available.
The New Mexico Small Business Investment Corporation has made $25 million available to lenders, at zero percent interest, to make low-cost loans to struggling businesses. Loans will be originated and processed by The Loan Fund, DreamSpring, LiftFund, and Homewise.
The City of Albuquerque created a $500,000 Micro-Business Relief Program, providing working capital grants of up to $5,000 for qualifying small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. To qualify, businesses must have fewer than five employees, been in business for at least six months, and be registered and physically located within city limits. The application period ended on April 3, and grants were announced on April 14.
In September, Albuquerque’s City Council voted to use $10 million of its federal CARES Act allocation for a second small business relief program, offering grants of up to $10,000 to qualified small businesses. To be eligible, businesses must have 50 or fewer employees, have been businesses for at least one year, and must be independently owned, among others. The program began accepting applications in mid-October, and all grants will be awarded by December 30, 2020.
Bernalillo County used $5 million of its federal CARES Act allocation to create the Bernalillo County CARES small business grant program. The program offered grants of up to $10,000 to qualifying mall businesses and nonprofits to cover costs such as employee wages, vendor bills, and rent. For a business to qualify, it must have a physical establishment located within Bernalillo County and have one-50 full-time employees, or equivalent part-time employees. Additionally, businesses and organizations must not have received more than $3 million in taxable receipts per annum. Priority will be given to businesses and organizations that did not receive funds from the Small Business Administration’s Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL), Federal Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), or small business assistance funds from the State of New Mexico or the City of Albuquerque. The application window was June 22-29.
The City of Carlsbad and Eddy County are using portions of their federal CARES Act allocations for a Small Business Continuity Grant Program, with a combined total of $2,083,783. To qualify, businesses must have 50 or fewer employees, annual revenus of $2 million or less, and must have been in operation on March 1, 2019.
The Los Alamos Community Foundation offered grants of $500-$1,500 to nonprofit organizations impacted by the COVID-19 crisis through its Nonprofit Emergency Response Fund. Applications were accepted on a rolling basis, and awards were made in two rounds, with 20 nonprofits receiving assistance in each round. The Fund was launched in collaboration with Delle Foundation, LANL Foundation, Newport News Nuclear BWXT Los Alamos (N3B), Triad National Security LLC, and United Way of Northern New Mexico. It also accepted public contributions. In all, the Foundation awarded $60,300 in grants.
The City of Rio Rancho will be using its $346,887 CDBG-CV allocation to create a Small Business Assistance Program. The fund will make grants of up to $5,000 for micro-enterprises with fie or fewer employees; up to $5,000 for businesses with 6-10 employees; and up to $10,000 for businesses with 11-40 employees. Because the fund is using Community Development Block Grant money, businesses must meet certain criteria for protecting or providing jobs for a certain number of low- and moderate-income workers. To be eligible, a business must have a documental decline in revenue and have been in business for at least one year. Real estate, multi-level marketing, cannabis, adult entertainment, firearms, and social club businesses are not eligible. The Program began accepting applications on June 1 and will operate until its funding is exhausted.
New York
On May 26, the State of New York launched the New York Forward Loan Program, a $100 million program offering working capital loans to small businesses, nonprofits, and small landlords that have not received financial support from a federal COVID-19 relief program. The interest rate is three percent for small businesses and landlords and two percent for nonprofits, with five-year terms and interest-only payments for the first 12 months. Loans will be made available to all regions of the state, proportionately, and the program will give preference to businesses in parts of the state that are reopening. The program has been capitalized by the State and a group of for-profit and non-profit partners (Apple Bank, BNB Bank, Evans Bank, M&T Bank, Morgan Stanley, Wells Fargo, BlackRock Charitable Fund, Citi Foundation, Ford Foundation, the Ralph C. Wilson Foundation, Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) Fund Management, the Community Reinvestment Fund, USA, and Calvert Impact Capital) and will be administered through five Community Development Financial Institutions (Accion East, Community Preservation Corporation (for small landlords), National Development Council, Pursuit and TruFund Financial Services). Pre-applications were accepted beginning on May 26, and participating banks began reviewing applications on June 1. By July 20, the Fund had made 19 loans, totaling $602,103, but still had millions available.
The New York City Employee Retention Grant Program offered grants to businesses with fewer than five employees to cover 40 percent of payroll costs for two months. To be eligible, businesses must be located in one of the City’s five boroughs, have no more than five employees, have been in operation for at least six months, and have no outstanding tax liens or legal judgments. The maximum grant available was $27,000. The program began with a pool of $10 million, which was later increased to $30 million.
The New York City Small Business Continuity Loan Fund offered zero-interest loans of up to $75,000 to businesses impacted by COVID-19. Businesses must be located in one of the City’s five boroughs, must have fewer than 100 employees, have no outstanding tax liens or legal judgments, and have experienced a decrease in revenue of at least 25 percent because of the pandemic.
On June 11, the City of New York announced a $3 million Restaurant Revitalization Program, making grants of up to $30,000 to small, independently owned restaurants in 27 neighborhoods that have been hard-hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Program will give preference to restaurants with “high road” employment practices that promote livable wages, greater race and gender equity in employment, and that are able to serve New York City residents in need. The Program hopes to make it possible to bring back 1,000 restaurant workers at $20 per hour for at least six weeks. The Program is sponsored by NYC Opportunity and the New York City Human Resources Administration, in partnership with the Mayor’s Fund to Advance New York City. Applications for the first round of grants are due June 19, with the first grant awards announced the week of June 22. Applications will continue to be accepted on a rolling basis as long as funds are available.
On May 5, the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce established the Bring Back Brooklyn Fund, a small business loan fund offering loans of $500-$30,000 to small businesses that have lost revenue because of the pandemic and that have not received funding from the federal Paycheck Protection Program. The loans are interest-free, with a flexible repayment time frame. The Chamber is crowdfunding capital for the loan fund through Fundrazr. As of July 14, it had exceeded its $500,000 goal, raising more than $735,000. Sixty-five percent of the loans are earmarked for minority- and women-owned businesses.
The Center for Economic Growth, with support from KeyBank, launched the Capital Region Urban Core MWBE Grant program, making grants of up to $5,000 to small businesses (up to 20 employees) with annual revenues of less than $500,000 and that are women- or minority-owned. Businesses must have been in operation for at least six months and must be located in Albany, Rensselaer, Schenectady, or Troy. The application deadline was May 15.
The Clifton Park Industrial Development Agency (IDA) is providing $150,000 in small business relief to businesses in the area. Businesses can apply for up to $7,000 through October 1st, but are encouraged to apply as soon as possible, as applications are reviewed on a monthly basis. Eligible businesses must have less than 50 employees and must have been financially viable prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Community Loan Fund of the Capital Region launched a COVID-19 Small Business Continuity Program, offering emergency grants to small businesses in the Albany County and surrounding Capital Region. Grants of up to $20,000, but no greater than three months of eligible operating expenses, are available. Businesses must have a physical storefront, must have no more than 50 employees, be locally owned, and have been in stable operation since January 1. The program received 272 applications in its first week and has made 15 grants so far. The program is accepting applications on a rolling basis. The program is funded by contributions from the Capital Region Chamber, Berkshire Bank, Citizens Bank, KeyBank, private individuals, and other municipalities and community organizations, with a goal of raising $30 million.
Dance/NYC created a COVID-19 Dance Relief Fund, offering monthly grants of $500, with a maximum of $1500, to freelance dance workers (dancer, choreographers, dance photographers/videographers, dance instructors, technicians, agents, and others) in New York City. The Fund received 653 applications for the month of April and awarded 180 grants. The Fund attracted additional contributions from Howard Gilman Foundation, the Mertz Gilmore Foundation, the Arnhold Foundation, the Ford Foundation, the NYC COVID-19 Response & Impact Fund in The New York Community Trust, the New York Community Trust, the Stavros Niarchos Foundation, the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, the Jerome Robbins Foundation, the GKV Foundation, and the Harkness Foundation for Dance. This made it possible for the Fund to award a total of $452,000 to freelance dance workers, plus $350,500 to dance making organizations.
New York City’s Downtown Alliance Business Improvement District has launched a Small Business Rental Assistance Grant, providing $10,000 grants to 80 small businesses with storefronts within the district that are currently open as “essential”. The grants may be applied to April or May rent. The program will begin accepting applications on May 1 and will close on May 15 or until funding is exhausted. The $800,000 fund was capitalized by $250,000 from redirected funds from the Alliance, with the remainder coming from Brookfield Properties, Silverstein Properties, and the Howard Hughes corporation. To be eligible, businesses must have had fewer than 20 employees on March 1, have gross annual revenue under $1.5 million, be located on the ground floor, and be an independently owned business with five or fewer locations in New York City.
The City of Dunkirk is using its $273,622 CDBG-CV allocation to create a small business COVID-19 relief program, the Back to Business Grant, providing grants of $2,000-$10,000, depending on a business’s annual revenues. Grants may be used for working capital and for costs associated with reopening the business. Businesses must remain in operation for at least six months after receiving an award. The application process opened on May 26, and grants will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis.
Businesses in East Harlem may be eligible for a grant of up to $20,000 from a $4 million program being administered by Union Settlement, a Harlem-based nonprofit working in partnership with the City’s Economic Development Corporation. To be eligible for the East Harlem Small Business Grant Program, businesses must have 20 or fewer employees, revenues of $1 million or less and be located within Manhattan’s Community District 11. Grants are available to cover three months of operating expenses or $20,000, whichever is less. The program is capitalized with proceeds from the sale of of a former grocery store site, the East 125th Street Pathmark. Applications were available as of July 27.
On July 10, Erie County announced the creation of a $1.34 million microenterprise loan/grant program, offering a 60/40 loan/grant of $5,000-$35,000 to qualified small businesses with five or fewer employees. The program is capitalized with funds from the County’s CARE Act allocation and is being administered by the County’s Department of Environment and Planning, in conjunction with the Erie County Business Task Force. The program is available to businesses in municipalities within the Erie County CDBG consortium (the cities of Lackawanna and Tonawanda; the towns of Alden, Aurora, Boston, Brant, Clarence, Colden, Collins, Concord, Eden, Elma, Evans, Grand Island, Holland, Lancaster, Marilla, Newstead, North Collins, Orchard Park, Sardinia, Wales and West Seneca; and the villages of Akron, Angola, Depew, East Aurora, Farnham, Gowanda, Lancaster, North Collins, Orchard Park and Springville).
On October 13, Erie County announced a $20 million financial relief program, the Erie County Back to Business Grant Program, capitalized with a portion of the County’s federal CARES Act allocation. Grants of $10,000-$45,000 are available, depending on the number of people a business employs. The application deadline is November 2.
The City of Geneva’s Small Business Disaster Grant Program offered grants of up to $10,000 to small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and economic shutdown. The program was funded with $100,000 transferred from the City’s Microenterprise Assistance Program, plus additional contributions from the Local Development Corporation, the Industrial Development Agency, and the City’s Revolving Loan Fund. The program’s application deadline was May 19.
The City of Hornell’s Industrial Development Agency (CHIDA) created a $250,000 Small Business Assistance Program on April 23, offering loans of up to $20,000 with no principal or interest payments for 90 days, after which the loan converts to a 33-month, one-percent loan.
The Town of Irondequoit is using $340,000 from the CARES Act’s CDBG-CV funds to launch the Revitalizing Irondequoit’s Small Business Economy (RISE) program, offering grants of $2,500-$5,000 (depending on number of employees) to help businesses reopen. Grants may be used for safety equipment, inventory, rent, utilities, insurance, and payroll; they may not be used for past-due rent, owners’ salaries, and certain other expenses. To be eligible, businesses must have a storefront presence within city limits, have been in operation since at least March 15, and be in good standing with local and state government. Chains are ineligible. The application process opened on June 18, and awards are reviewed and grants made on a first-come, first-served basis.
Kerby Jean-Raymond, founder of the menswear line Pyer Moss, for example, announced that the company is offering $50,000 for minority- and female-owned creative businesses that are struggling to keep afloat in NYC. He has also made his Pyer Moss studio into a donation center for N95 masks and latex gloves.
The Renaissance Economic Development Corporation, a Queens-based Community Development Financial Institution, is offering loans of up to $50,000 to businesses with 50 employees or less within the CDFI’s service area. Repayment is deferred for six months, at which point the interest rate is three percent. The CDFI is raising money from individuals and corporations to capitalize the loan fund.
The City of Schenectady and the Community Loan Fund of the Capital Region have started a a Small Business Assistance Program to award $250,000 in grants and technical assistance to local small businesses impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The program will offer small business grants up to $10,000 for businesses to adapt to the pandemic.
In upstate New York, Center for Economic Growth has awarded 41 small businesses a total of $200,000 under a stabilization fund provided by the KeyBank Business Boost & Build Program (KBBB) powered by JumpStart, as well as additional funds from Tri-City Rentals.The program specifically focused on providing support for minority- and women-owned businesses, and each grant was capped at $5,000.
North Carolina
North Carolina offered NC COVID-19 Rapid Recovery loans through a partnership of public, private, and nonprofit entities. Loans are intended to serve as bridge financing to support small businesses until another financing source or future business cash flow is available. Loans are capped at two months of current revenue, with a maximum of $50,000. Loan repayment is deferred for six months, after which the business repays the loan over the course of 48 months, at 5.5 percent interest. There are no prepayment penalties. Any person who owns more than 20 percent of the business for which the loan application is made must personally guarantee the loan. The program received an overwhelming number of applications and was depleted quickly. As of April 29, the state legislature was considering a new appropriation for a second round of funding.
North Carolina’s General Assembly allocated $15 million of its federal CARES Act allocation to create the Job Retention Program grant program, helping businesses and nonprofits that have kept over 90 percent of their employees on the payroll during the COVID-19 pandemic. The maximum grant available was two months of an eligible business’s average monthly payroll costs from 2019, plus an additional 25 percent of that amount, not total exceed $250,000. The deadline was September 1. The General Assembly has approved an additional $45.5 million for the program; as of September 9, it was waiting for the governor’s signature.
In late September, the North Carolina Department of Administration launched a new grant program, RETOOLNC, to help Historically Underutilized Businesses (HUBs) and Disadvantaged Business Enterprises (DBEs) impacted by COVID-19. The program offers $12 million in grants, plus technical assistance. To qualify, businesses must have been operating for at least one year, be certified with NCHUB or NCDOT DBE, be independently owned, have no more than 50 employees, and have annual revenues of $1,500,000 or less.
The Buncombe County Service Foundation raised $1.3 million for One Buncombe, a COVID-19 response fund that provided low-interest bridge loans of up to $10,000 to locally owned small businesses. Mountain BizWorks, a Community Development Financial Institution, provided loan underwriting and administration. The application period closed on April 15.
withco, a entrepreneurship consulting firm, has created RISEwithco, a loan fund offering zero-interest loans of $2,000-$20,000 to small businesses in Charlotte. Loan repayment may be deferred by six months, with loans repayable over two years after that.
Charlotte’s Center City Partners, in partnership with Honeywell and Foundation for the Carolinas, have created the Center City Small Business Innovation Fund to help downtown businesses adapt to the changes caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and economic shutdown. The Fund, which was seeded by a $2 million investment from Honeywell, will make grants of up to $40,000 to small downtown businesses, with preference given to businesses owned by minorities, women, and veterans. To be eligible, businesses must be located in Uptown, South End, Midtown, Historic West End, or within a two-mile radius of the intersection of Trade and Tryon Streets; must have 50 or fewer employees; must have experienced losses as a result of the pandemic; and must be willing to participate in interviews to document and share their lessons learned. The Fund hopes to encourage grantees to innovate and find adaptations and solutions for conducting business during the pandemic that can be replicated and scaled to help other businesses. The application period for the first round of grants (with 50 percent of the Fund’s assets) opened on June 26 and closed on July 10.
On June 22, the City of Charlotte launched a $30 million small business grant program, offering grants of up to $10,000 for businesses with up to five employees and of up to $25,000 for those with up to 25 employees. The program is being funded from the $154.5 million the City received via the CARES Act, and it is being administered by the Foundation for the Carolinas. To be eligible, businesses must be headquartered within the city limits, must have been in operation before January 1, and must have lost revenue due to the pandemic. Certain types of businesses, like liquor stores, gun shops, and adult entertainment businesses are not eligible.
The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Black Chamber of Commerce is using a $200,000 grant it received from the City of Charlotte to offer a Back-to-Business Technical Assistance Grant program. The program is opened to Black-owned businesses that have had to close because of COVID-19 as well as to new business owners. To apply, business owners can complete a brief written application or submit a video of up to five minutes describing their business, their COVID-related barriers, and how they would use technical assistance for reopening. Businesses selected will receive access to an online accelerator program, administered by The Boost Pad, that begins August 5. Fifteen applicants will also receive up to $5,000 in working capital.
In early July, Chowan County created a COVID-19 Small Business Grant Program, funded through the County’s federal Coronavirus Relief Fund allocation. Grants of up to $2,500 are available. To be eligible, businesses must be locally owned, have been in business for at least the past six months, have a brick-and-mortar location, have no more than 50 employees, and have gross revenues of less than $2 million. The program is being administered by the Edenton-Chowan Partnership. The application deadline is July 31, 2020.
On May 11, the City of Fayetteville created a $260,000 low-interest bridge loan program for small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The program offered loans of up to $5,000. The program was administered by the Center for Economic Empowerment and Development.
On May 19, Downtown Greensboro, Inc. launched the DGI Retail Revitalization Grant Program, offering grants of up to $1,500 to small downtown businesses affected by COVID-19 or by vandalism that took place in late May, following the death of George Floyd. To qualify, businesses must be a storefront retail business within the downtown Greensboro BID and must have been open before March 15. The program was initially funded by contributions from Downtown Greensboro, Inc. and the Guilford Merchants Association, plus a contribution from the Greensboro Virus Relief Fund. The program has continued to raise money, including a $250,000 contribution from the City of Greensboro and nearly $100,000 via a GoFundMe account. The deadline for the first round of grants was May 27, and the program subsequently made a second round of grants, with plans to conduct a third round, depending on fundraising.
Guilford County used $20 million it received from the CARES Act to create the Guilford CARES Small Business Assistance Grant Program, offering grants of up to $10,000 to help offset revenue losses. To be eligible, businesses must have no more than 25 employees and no more than $2 million in annual revenues, not be a publicly-traded business, have been in operation since at least October 1, not have received financial assistance from another program, and be committed to reopening. Grants can be used to reimburse the cost of business interruption, including payroll, utilities, and rent. The application window opened on June 3, and the program accepted applications on a rolling basis until funds were depleted in late October. In all, the County awarded grants to more than 2,800 local businesses. About $4.3 million was given to hair and beauty businesses, $2.7 to professional services businesses, $2.4 million to hospitality businesses, $1.7 million to logistics businesses, and $209,000 to manufacturing businesses.
The Jackson County Board of Commissioners launched the All In Jackson County Fund on May 8, providing short-term low-interest loans to small businesses (fewer than 50 employees) affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Loans of $2,500-$10,000 are available for 6-42 month terms, with four percent interest for months 1-6 and 5.5 percent interest for months 7-42, and with repayment deferred for six months. Loans may be used for payroll, accounts payable, fixed debt, and other expenses. The program will be administered by Mountain BizWorks, an Asheville-based Community Development Financial Institution. The Fund has been capitalized with an initial $324,000 from the County, which is hoping to attract additional investments from foundations and individuals.
Mecklenburg County created a Small Business Emergency Stabilization Loan Fund in partnership with the Carolina Small Business Development Fund, offering loans of $5,000-$35,000. The Fund was overwhelmed with applications and stopped making loans on April 16, although the program has now reopened. To qualify, businesses must have 50 or fewer employees and must have been in operation for at least 24 months. The loans have an interest rate of 3 percent, with terms of up to 10 years, with interest-only payments for the first 12 months. By June 5, the Fund had made 171 loans, totaling more than $3.8 million, and had $900,000 still available.
Morehead City created a $300,000 Emergency Small Business Loan Program, making emergency, short-term loans of up to $5,000 to local businesses with 25 employees or less. Loan repayment is deferred for the first 12 months. The first round of applications closed on April 28.
New Hanover County used $1.3 million of its CARES Act allocation to make $10,000 grants to 130 small businesses. To qualify, businesses must have fewer than 25 employees, have been in business for at least six months, and be in good standing with local government. Grants can be used to rehire staff or to adapt the business for safe operation. Almost 800 small businesses applied by the June 5 deadline, and grant recipients were selected based on a lottery system.
New Bern’s Swiss Bear and New Bern Area Chamber of Commerce have created a small business loan program, completely funded by donations, offering interest-free loans based on two months of rent or mortgage payments, with a maximum loan of $10,000. Loan repayment is deferred for the first year, after which the principal is to be repaid in 12 equal monthly payments. To qualify, businesses must employ at least one person, be located within the city limits, have been in operation on March 10, generate less than $2 million in revenues, and planning to reopen. The program is being administered by BEFCOR (Business Expansion Funding Corporation). The application process opened on June 5.
Piedmont Business Capital, a nonprofit community loan fund dedicated to supporting underserved communities in the Piedmont Triad Area, launched a Small Business Continuity Fund in late March, offering zero-interest loans of up to $10,000, with payments deferred for 90 days. The Continuity Fund began with $150,000 and has raised additional capital since then, including a $460,000 contribution from the City of Greensboro on April 20.
The City of Raleigh has partnered with the Carolina Small Business Development Fund to create a $1 million small business grant fund. Grants of up to $10,000 are available to local, independently owned businesses with fewer than 50 employees, annual revenues of less than $2.5 million, and a physical storefront within city limits. The application period opened on May 11 and closed on May 21.
The Roanoke Rapids Main Street Program, Roanoke Valley Chamber of Commerce, and the Rewritten Story Foundation have created the RRStrong Local Small Business Relief Program and are raising money to capitalize the fund through a series of virtual events, including an art auction and 5K, as well as through direct contributions. The Program will make forgivable loans to local businesses with 20 or fewer employees, annual revenues of $500,000 or less, and a brick-and-mortar storefront. Applications were due May 31.
In early September, Union County set aside $1 million from its CARES Act allocation to help small businesses remain viable during the COVID-19 pandemic. The program offers grants of up to $25,000 to qualified businesses with 50 or fewer employees to help offset the temporary loss of revenue and help businesses retain employees. The application deadline is November 30, or whenever funds have been exhausted, whichever is sooner.
On May 4, the Wilkes Economic Development Corporation launched two grant programs to help small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Wilkes Small Business Recovery Program is offering $2,000 grants to businesses with 2-15 employees, with preference given to retail and service establishments. Businesses selected will receive monthly payments of $500 for up to four months to help cover rent, mortgage, and utility payments. The Wilkes Business Marketing Program offers up to $500 for businesses with under 15 employees to establish a website.
Greater Winston-Salem Inc. and the Downtown Winston-Salem Partnership created a Small Business Relief Grant Program, offering grants of up to $2,500 to locally owned businesses with one to three employees and $5,000 to businesses with four or more employees. Businesses must be locally owned, located in a brick-and-mortar in Forsyth County, and have been in business before 2019. The program gave special consideration to businesses owned by people of color and women and to downtown businesses negatively affected by both the COVID-19 pandemic and recent streetscape improvements that forced closure of Business Rt. 40. The program ultimately awarded grants to 87 businesses.
Greater Winston-Salem raised $1.2 million to provide grants of up to $25,000 to Black and Hispanic businesses negatively affected by the pandemic in Winston-Salem and Forsyth County. The Minority Business Enterprise grant program will be managed by the Entrepreneurial Advisory Board, a panel of Black and Latino business leaders in Forsyth County. Grants are available to businesses with Black or Hispanic owners, a maximum of $1 million in annual gross sales, and 25 or fewer employees, and may be used for salaries, wages, lease payments, working capital, or capital improvements. The program’s organizers plan to continue raising money to make additional grants. The initial deadline is October 31.
North Dakota
The North Dakota Department of Commerce is offering grants of up to $50,000 to eligible small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Businesses with multiple locations are eligible for grants of up to $100,000. To be eligible for an Economic Resiliency Grant, businesses must be privately owned and have a permanent physical location within the state. Grants must be used for actions that decrease the spread of infection, such as installing touchless payment systems and automatic faucets, expanding outdoor dining, and buying PPE. Grants must be used within 45 days. The application window for the first round is August 12-28. If funding is not exhausted, the state will offer a second round. Applications are reviewed on a first-come, first-served basis. The $69 million program is capitalized with a portion of the state’s federal CARES Act allocation.
The City of Grand Forks is launching a $1.4 million small business loan program, using some of the city’s CARES Act allocation. In its first round, loans of $5,000-$25,000 will be available, at one percent interest and with a five-year term. Larger loans will be available in its second round. As of August 25, the application and additional program details were not yet available.
Ohio
Ohio’s Department of Commerce created a high-proof liquor buy-back program for bars and restaurants that had increased inventory in preparation for St. Patrick’s Day festivities.
The State of Ohio will launch a $125 million Small Business Relief Grant program on November 2. The program will make $10,000 grants to businesses with no more than 25 employees; grants may be used to cover a variety of expenses, including mortgages, rent, utilities, salaries, health care premiums, business supplies, and other operating costs. Grants will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis. In addition, the State will launch a $37.5 million grant program, the Bar and Restaurant Assistance Fund, specifically for bars and restaurants. This program will make grants of $2,500 to on-premise liquor permit holders.
On July 20, the Ohio Development Services Agency launched the $5 million Ohio Minority Micro-Enterprise Grant Program, offering $10,000 grants to minority- and women-owned businesses negatively affected by the pandemic. Businesses must have been certified as minority business enterprises or woman-owned businesses on or before February 29 and must have 10 or fewer employees. Grants will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis.
On June 30, Ashtabula County launched ReSTART Ashtabula County, a $250,000 grant program offering grants of up to $10,000 to qualified small businesses. To be eligible, businesses must be locally owned, in operation within the County, have 2-25 employees, have less than $2 million in annual revenues, and have lost revenue of 30 percent or more because of the pandemic. Applications will be accepted until July 31. The program is funded by the County’s CARES Act allocation.
On May 4, the City of Berea announced that it had received 57 applications for its Emergency Relief Fund grant program and had awarded 43 $2,000 grants, on a first-come, first-served basis, depleting the program’s funding. On May 25, the City announced that it had found an additional $20,000 – $14,000 from City Council members taking a five percent pay cut for the rest of the year, plus $6,000 that had been budgeted for remodeling Council Chambers – to award ten additional grants.
The Carroll County Economic Development agency launched the Carroll County CARES – COVID-19 Small Business Grant Program, which provided $150,000 for grants targeted at helping small businesses impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. It awarded up to $10,000 to small businesses who qualify for the program. To qualify, businesses must be: locally owned and operated in Carroll County; demonstrate a negative impact and revenue loss of 10% or more as a result of COVID-19; have more than two but fewer than 25 full-time equivalent employees; be current on all state, federal and local taxes; and have annual gross receipts of less than $2,000,000. The application period opened August 26 and closed September 2.
On July 8, the City of Centerville announced that it will be using $200,000 of its CARES Act allocation to offer grants of up to $2,500 to businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Grants from the COVID Relief Program will reimburse business owners for expenses they have already incurred for mortgage, rent, salaries, or social distancing requirements. The program is being administered by Centerville’s Community Improvement Corporation. Grants will be issued on a first-come, first-served basis to qualified applicants.
The Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky African American Chamber of Commerce and Mortar, a business accelerator in Cincinnati’s Over-the-Rhine neighborhood that supports minority entrepreneurship, announced on April 27 that they have launched a Minority Business Emergency Assistance Fund. The Chamber and Mortar plan to raise $100,000 through crowdfunding, with additional funding from corporations. The Fund will make grants available for payroll, rent, and other expenses. Business owners receiving grants must agree to develop strategies incorporating technology platforms into their businesses.
In early May, the City of Cleveland created three loan funds for small businesses that have lost income because of the pandemic: a $5.5 million fund for restoring working capital, a $3 million fund for emergency working capital, and a $2 million fund for emergency capital for particularly vulnerable businesses, like restaurants, barber shops, and storefront retail shops. The program was capitalized partly by Cleveland’s economic development fund and partly by the City’s CARES Act allocation. By August, the City was under fire for having failed to deliver more than 60 small business loans that were approved in May.
In late September, Columbiana County launched a Small Business Relief Grant Program, offering grants of up to $10,000 to small businesses impacted by the fallout from COVID-19. The program is funded with $250,000 of the County’s $2.2 million CARES Act allocation. To qualify, businesses must have no more than 50 employees and less than $3 million in annual gross revenues/receipts. Businesses must also have experienced at least a 35 percent decline in revenue in any 30-day period this year when compared to March-September 2019.
The City of Columbus is offering three small business relief programs: Recovery Grants, Small Business Return Safety Grants (for purchasing personal protective equipment), and Pivot Loans. The three programs, whose combined funding is $10.5 million, are supported by a number of area businesses, foundations, and agencies. Applications were available on June 9. The application deadline was extended from July 17 to August 29.
Cuyahoga County launched a $500,000 Small Business Stabilization Fund, offering grants of between $2,500-$5,000 to small businesses affected by COVID-19. The first round opened on April 17 and closed on April 23, ultimately awarding grants to 118 businesses in its first round (for a total of $187,492) and 35 additional businesses in its second round.
The City of Dayton is offering grants of up to $15,000 to small businesses affected by the pandemic. The $200,000 COVID-19 Small Business Capital Grants Program is open to independently owned businesses that were in operation before March 27, 2020. Grants may be used only for expenses that address the business impacts of the pandemic, including capital health and safety improvements or expansions that support social distancing. The grant is 100 percent reimbursaible. The deadline is September 25.
Franklin County has allocated $1.6 million for grants and $400,000 for technical assistance to Black-owned businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The program is being administered by the Urban League.
Greene County’s Department of Development is using $500,000 of its $2.5 million CARES Act allocation for a grant program for small businesses affected by the pandemic. Grants of up to $10,000 are available to businesses with 50 or fewer employees (with preference given to those with 25 or fewer), with revenues of $1 million or less, with a physical storefront or an allowable home office, and that have not yet received other assistance. Some types of businesses are not eligible, including banks, liquor/wine stores, nonprofit organizations, vaping or tobacco stores, cannabis dispensaries, and franchises (unless the franchise is locally owned and independently operated). Applications were available on August 1; on September 1, the program will begin accepting applications from businesses with revenues of $5 million or less. The program ran until funding was depleted. On October 12, the County allocated an additional $500,000 to the program.
Hamilton County used $5 million of its CARES Act allocation to launch a Small Business Relief Program, offering grants of $2,500-$10,000 to small businesses affected by the COVID-19 crisis. The Program was open to businesses with 50 or fewer employees as of March 22, annual gross revenues of $1 million or less, and that have been in business since January 2019. The application window closed on May 27.
Huron County‘s “Huron County CARES Small Business Grant Program” began accepting applications on August 24. The program offers grants of $2,500, $5,000, or $10,000 to qualified small businesses. To qualify, businesses must be locally owned and operated; have lost at least 30 percent of their revenues due to the pandemic; be current on state, federal, and local taxes; have annual gross receipts of $2 million or less; and have less than 100 employees. The application deadline is September 8. The program is capitalized with $100,000 of the County’s federal CARES Act allocation.
On June 22, Kent County opened the application process for the Kent County Small Business Recovery Program, using $25 million of the allocation it received via the CARES Act in late April. The program offers grants of $5,000-$20,000 to small businesses, based on their size, operating expenses, and several other metrics. To be eligible, businesses must have no more than 25 employees and must have been in operation before February 15. Grants may be used for working capital. In its first week, the program will accept applications from businesses that have not yet received relief funding, then all eligible small businesses will be able to submit applications on June 29. The program is being administered by the Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce.
The City of Kettering’s COVID-19 Emergency Loan Program offers zero-interest, forgivable loans to local businesses affected by COVID-19. Forgivable loans of up to $5,000 are available to businesses with 25 or fewer employees and with a physical storefront within city limits. Loans have a three-year term. Businesses that are able to retain at least one low- or moderate-income employee for the first three months after receiving the loan will have their loans forgiven; those that are unable to do so will need to repay the loan, although repayment will be deferred for the first year.
Lake County is offering two small business COVID-19 relief programs, totaling $700,000. The Microenterprise Emergency Relief Grant Program will make grants of up to $5,000 to small businesses with five or fewer employees. The Emergency Working Capital Loan Program will provide interest-free loans of up to $20,000 to businesses with 25 or fewer employees, with a percentage of principal forgiven if loans are paid off early. Both programs are capitalized by the supplemental Community Development Block Grant appropriation authorized by the CARES Act, so both programs focus on job retention and creation for low/moderate income business owners and employees.
The City of Lakewood created a Small Business Rent Relief Fund, making grants of up to $3,000 to reimburse rent payments. Only businesses operating out of a commercial or retail storefront and with fewer than 50 employees were eligible to apply. The application deadline was March 27, and the City ultimately awarded grants to 118 small businesses, totaling $187,492. The program was funded by the City’s Economic Development Fund and CDBG allocation. In late August, the City reopened the program, using $450,000 of its federal CARES Act allocation. In this round, the City is offering grants of up to $7,000 to businesses with five or fewer employees to cover rent and payroll expenses. The program will accept applications until all its funds have been awarded.
The City of Mansfield plans to launch a small business relief grant program in August, using $275,000 of the City’s federal CARES Act funding. The program will offer grants of up to $10,000. As of August 24, application materials were not available (but will be available here). The program will be administered by the Richland Area Chamber of Commerce.
The City of Mentor is using $200,000 of its CDBG-CV allocation to capitalize the Small Business Restart Program, offering $500 grants to use for rent or mortgage reimbursement. To qualify, businesses must have fewer than 25 employees, be independently owned and operated, have a brick-and-mortar location within city limits, be in good standing with the Mentor Economic Assistance Corporation, and intend to reopen and remain open for the period of time for which the grant is requested. Grants are being awarded on a rolling, first-come, first-served basis.
The Middletown Community Foundation has given Downtown Middletown Inc. $20,000 to re-grant to small downtown businesses.
Montgomery County has launched a $40 million Small Business CARES Grant program, capitalized with money from the County’s federal CARES Act allocation. The program offers grants of up to $10,000. To qualify, businesses must have 50 or fewer employees and less than $5 million in gross revenue; must have a physical storefront or be an allowable home office as reported in the business’s most recently filed tax return; and must retain one full-time employee for at least three months after grants are awarded. Grants may be used for working capital, personal protective equipment, or other operating expenses. The application deadline is November 30, 2020.
The Norwalk Economic Development Corporation is offering $2,000 Small Business Stabilization Grants to businesses with 15 or fewer FTEs and a commercial storefront and that has been in business for at least six months. Chain stores, franchises, pawn shops, thrift stores, and stores that sell tobacco or vape supplies or firearms are excluded. NEDC accepted applications through April 26 and announced awards on April 28.
Ogden Newspapers has established a $1 million fund to help local businesses by subsidizing local marketing through matching advertising dollars. The fund is open to all locally owned/operated businesses in Seneca County, Ohio, regardless of whether they are current advertisers in The Advertiser-Tribune, the local paper owned by Ogden Newspapers. Grants of up to $15,000 will be given, with the grant money being used for local print and online advertising in The Advertiser-Tribune.
On May 29, Paulding County opened the application process for its COVID-19 Crisis Fund, which is raising money from the public to make grants to small businesses negatively affected by the pandemic and economic shutdown. Throughout May, the United Way and Paulding County Area Foundation solicited donations to the Paulding County Crisis Fund. Grants will be dispersed through the Paulding County Economic Development Office. Applications are due by June 30.
The City of Portsmouth is offering grants totaling up to $200,000 to local businesses. Local businesses can apply for up to $10,000. Businesses must have been operational since January 2019 and must have ceased operations or 15 percent lower revenue in April and May 2020 than in April and May 2019. Applications can be submitted via email to tshearer@portsmouthoh.org beginning September 15th through October 2nd at 12:00 p.m.
The Richland Community Development Group, a subsidiary of Richland Area Chamber and Economic Development, is using $194,000 of its funds to provide extra collateral for small business relief loans made by three local banks. Loan terms and interest rates will be set by the lenders.
The Area 10 Workforce Development Board, which serves Richland and Crawford Counties, will use $300,000 from the Ohio Department of Jobs and Family Services to provide grants to minority-owned businesses and Black male job seekers negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. There is no formal application for the COVID-19 Business Team Outreach and Expansion Grant; interested business owners, organizations, and individuals need just send an email to the Workforce Development Board. The application window will close on July 15, with awards made on August 1.
On August 20, Richland County‘s Commissioners unanimously voted to make $250,000 of the County’s $2 million federal CARES Act allocation to provide grants to businesses with up to 20 employees, including sole proprietorships, with $1.5 million or less in income in 2019. Sole proprietorships are eligible for grants of up to $2,000, and businesses with employees are eligible for grants of up to $5,000. The program will be administered by the Richland Area Chamber and Economic Development Agency. As of August 24, application materials were not yet available.
Shelby County launched its Small Business Relief Program in the summer, offering $5,000 grants to help keep small businesses in operation. The $150,000 program is capitalized with $100,000 from the County’s CARES Act allocation and $50,000 from the City of Sidney. To be eligible, businesses must have 50 or fewer workers and been in operation since January 2019. Initially, the program also required that businesses must have experienced a decrease in gross revenue of 35 percent or more compared with their revenues between March 1 – April 30, 2019. On September 1, they relaxed this requirement.
The City of South Euclid and its One South Euclid community development corporation launched a program, the South Euclid COVID-19 Emergency Business Relief Fund, on April 2 to provide grants of up to $5,000 for local businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The application period ran from April 6-17. The Fund was capitalized by $60,000 from One South Euclid and $60,000 that was redirected from the City’s storefront renovation program. A total of 78 businesses submitted applications, and 47 businesses were chosen to receive grants, the largest of which was $2,500.
A group of faith-based business partners and philanthropic organizations in Stark County have launched Faith in Stark, a fund providing one-time $5,000 grants to small businesses with 10 or fewer employees. JumpStart Inc., and KeyBank made an initial $100,000 gift to the fund, and the Gessner Family Foundation contributed $50,000. The fund’s organizers hope to raise $1 million.
Summit County launched a COVID-19 Small Business Emergency Relief Grant Program in March, awarding a total of $1.546 million to 311 small businesses. In May, the County launched a second round, using $5 million of its CARES Act allocation, offering grants of up to $5,000 to businesses with fewer than 30 employees and of up to $2,000 for sole propietorships. As of June 19, the County had awarded a total of $6.35 million to 1,584 businesses. The program was administered by the Greater Akron Chamber. Some statistics about the program’s awards are available here.
Summit County’s Development Finance Authority, in partnership with the City of Akron and the Western Reserve Community Fund, has launched a program to help minority-owned construction businesses rebound from the COVID-19 pandemic. The Minority Contractor Capital Access Program (MCCAP) will provide loans and services to eligible businesses, which include general contractors, road construction, HVAC, electrical, plumbing, and engineering businesses. Program details and applications will be available in early June. The program is capitalized by $1.25 million from Summit County, $525,000 from the City of Akron, and a $200,000 revolving line of credit.
The City of Tiffin is using $633,000 of its CARES Act allocation to create the Tiffin Cares Small Business Relief Program, offering grants of up to $10,000 to small businesses with 40 or fewer employees and annual revenues of less than $2 million. The program will be administered by the Tiffin-Seneca Economic Partnership. As of September 9, applications were not yet online.
The City of Vienna has launched the Small Business Relief Fund Program with approximately $63,000 in Community Development Block Grant funds. It’s intended to “provide short-term working capital for the retention and/or creation of jobs for low-to-moderate income persons” and to help businesses “restart operations after being closed due to the pandemic.” Businesses in the city that have been in operation since at least March 1, 2019, and were in good standing with city fees as of Dec. 31, 2019, can apply for the assistance. Businesses also need to be owned by a low-to-moderate-income individual or have at least 51 percent of their workforce in that category. Applications are due, via mail or email, to the Regional Council by 10 a.m. Friday, Oct. 16.
The City of Zanesville used $290,154 of its federal CARES Act allocation to give grants of up to $5,000 to 55 local businesses. Grants could be used for rent, utilities, sanitizing equipment, and costs associated with remote working. They could not be used for payroll expenses, taxes, or normal business expenses.
Oklahoma
The Coweta Industrial Development Authority has budgeted $30,000 to launch Coweta Coming Together for Business, offering grants of up to $3,000 to businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and economic shutdown. Grant amounts are based on a portion of the sales tax generated by the business during 2019. To be eligible, businesses must be independently owned, have a physical storefront within the city limits, and employ fewer than 20 full-time employees, among other criteria.
The Duncan Area Economic Development Foundation (DAEDF) offered a program to help locally owned businesses restart when store restrictions are lifted. Re-Start Program grants of up to $5,000 were available to businesses in Stephens County, and applications were available until May 12 or until the program’s funding is depleted. The program gives priority to non-essential businesses. Agricultural businesses, nonprofits, businesses that engage in illegal activities, and businesses that have prospered from COVID-19 are not eligible.
Oklahoma City offered a $5.5 million Small Business Continuity Program, funded from the City’s Strategic Investment Program. The program provided: 1) cash incentives (reimbursement of up to $10,000 for the payroll expenses of retained employees, for businesses with fewer than 15 FTEs), 2) no-interest loans (forgivable loans of up to $50,000 for businesses with up to 50 FTEs, to cover payroll expenses of retained employees), 3) low-interest loans (10-year, two-percent loans of up to $100,000 for businesses with up to 50 FTEs, to cover payroll and some operational expenses), and technical assistance for small businesses. The Program earmarked 25 percent of its funding to businesses in low-income census tracts. Applications were accepted between April 6-April 17, 2020.
On October 26, Oklahoma City will open the application process for a $2.75 million small business grant program for minority-owned businesses. The program will offer $2 million in grants of up to $25,000 to small businesses with 25 or fewer employees, plus $500,000 for technical assistance and business retrofits and $250,000 for economic recovery and resiliency planning. Applications are due on December 1.
The Tulsa County Board of County Commissioners approved development of two relief programs – a $25 million forgivable loan program for small businesses and a $5 million grant program for nonprofit organizations, offering grants of up to $250,000. Funding from the Tulsa County Resources to Empower Small Enterprises for Tomorrow (RESET) can be used for operating expenses, expenses to comply with workplace modification needs, expenses incurred to help employees work from home, and certain other expenses.
Oregon
The Oregon Community Foundation offered a Small Business Stabilization Grant program, making grants to nonprofit organizations in Oregon that, in turn, provide loans or grants to small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Community Development Financial Institutions, credit unions, city and county economic development districts, and other small business lending entities were eligible to apply. The Foundation anticipated the program being open through Fall 2020 but exhausted its funding in early summer. The program was launched with $300,000 and attracted $2.1 million in additional funding from several corporate partners (Bank of America, Columbia Bank, Key Bank, NW Natural, Oregon Growth Board/Business Oregon, Portland General Electric, Umpqua Bank, US Bank, Wells Fargo) as well as by the Oregon State Lottery and private contributions.
The State of Oregon offered an Emergency Business Assistance Matching Fund, capitalized by $5 million from the state’s general fund and $5 million redirected from existing programs at Business Oregon, to make grants to entities that, in turn, can re-grant money directly to small businesses. The funding was allocated in three rounds. Round 1 was open to cities, counties, and economic development districts that have existing small business COVID relief programs or are interested in creating one. The second round was open to community development financial institutions (CDFIs) and economic development districts. Round 3 was open to public entities that have or that will develop a community business assistance program that meet the state’s parameters.
On August 24, the State of Oregon began taking applications for the Oregon Cares Fund for Black Relief and Resiliency, a $62 million grant program for Black residents and Black-owned businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Roughly 53 percent of the Fund, or $32.8 million, will be awarded to Black-owned businesses, and roughly 12 percent, or $7.4 million, will go to nonprofit organizations. The Fund is the subject of a lawsuit against the State, alleging that federal CARES Act money cannot be used to make grants based on race.
On November 17, Oregon Governor Kate Brown announced a new $55 million grant program for small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The funds, from the State’s Coronavirus Relief Fund allocation, will be distributed through county governments, which will be responsible for developing applications and allocating grants. Counties will receive a base of $500,000 plus a per capita allocation. Two days later, the State’s economic development agency, Business Oregon, began accepting applications for a $20 million State-administered small business relief grant program, with grants awarded on a first-come, first-served basis.
The Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians Economic Development Corporation has created an emergency forgivable loan program for Native-owned small businesses affected by the pandemic. The program, which is funded through the Oregon Small Business Stabilization Fund, will offer small forgivable loans, most likely $1,000-$2,000. Businesses must have five or fewer employees.
The City of Beaverton created the Beaverton Emergency Business Assistance Program, offering grants of $2,500 per month for rent or mortgage reimbursement to businesses that have been ordered to close because of the pandemic. Businesses must have a physical storefront in Beaverton and fewer than 50 employees. The Program received a large number of qualified applications and is now closed.
The Corvallis-Benton County Economic Development Office has launched an emergency capital loan program, offering loans of betwen $5,000-$10,000 to businesses with 40 or fewer employees and headquartered in Benton County. The $150,000 fund is capitalized with $100,000 from Benton County and $50,000 from Community Lending Works, a local nonprofit. $45,000 of the total amount available is being set aside for rural or minority-owned businesses. Applications were accepted from May 7-15, with loans announced May 22.
Community LendingWorks, a Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) in the Willamette Valley, is making emergency business loans to businesses in Central Oregon, the City of Albany, the City of Yachats, and Lane County. The programs differ slightly for each jurisdiction. In Central Oregon, businesses with fewer than 20 employees at the end of 2019 are eligible for loans of $5,000-$20,000 (in Crook and Jefferson Counties) or of up to $10,000 (in Deschutes County) at 2.5 percent interest, with terms up to 60 months and repayment deferred for six months. In Albany, businesses with fewer than 40 employees at the end of 2019 may apply for loans of $5,000-$15,000. Businesses must have already applied for, or committed to applying for, additional state or federal assistance, with the Community LendingWorks loans acting as a stopgap. In Yachats, all small, local businesses with valid Yachats businesses licenses that have been impacted by the pandemic may apply for loans of up to $4,000, at two percent interest and terms of up to 48 months. Loan repayment is deferred for the first year. Lane County’s program, which offered loans of $5,000-$30,000 to small businesses with fewer than 20 employees at the end of 2019, is depleted but might be re-funded.
In mid-June, Clackamas County will launch a $245,000 grant program, making grants of $2,500 available to businesses with 25 or fewer employees and that are in unincorporated parts of the county. Applications will be available on the county’s website shortly.
In July, the City of Cornelius offered a $160,000 small business relief grant program. In September, it used $60,000 of its federal CARES Act allocation to offer a new funding round, offering grants of up to $6,000 to eligible businesses. The application window for the second round opened on September 24, with grants awarded on a first-come, first-served basis until the program is exhausted.
The City of Hillsboro’s $500,000 Small Business Emergency Relief Program offered grants of $5,000 to small businesses to offset their pandemic-related losses. Priority was given to businesses that serve large groups of people (like bars and restaurants) and that have 10 or fewer employees. The City opened the application process on March 23; demand was so overwhelming that the program’s funding was exhausted that same day. The City committed an additional $500,000 to the Program and, like the first round of grants, the second round was depleted the day it opened for applications.
On April 20, the City of Keizer created a $45,000 forgivable loan program for small businesses affected by the pandemic. After initially planning to provide nine $5,000 forgivable loans, the City Council decided instead to provide 18 $2,500 loans. To be eligible, businesses must have fewer than 15 employees, have been in operation since April 30, 2019, and been subject to closure or a change-in-service order. Chains and franchises are not eligible. The program is capitalized by Marion County’s Community Prosperity program, which is funded by Oregon Lottery revenues.
The City of Klamath Falls has launched the Business and Non-Profit Emergency Assistance Grant program, which offers up to $1,000 to aid to assist businesses and nonprofits recover from the financial impact of COVID-19 and COVID-related rules. Applications opened October 6, 2020, and must be submitted by 5:00 PM on October 20, 2020. The City partnered with the Klamath Falls Downtown Association and the Chamber of Commerce to develop the program.
In early July, Lane County launched a grant program for small business owners with Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers (ITINs), offering grants of $2,500-$25,000. The program is capitalized by two grants from Business Oregon, totaling $225,000, plus $60,000 from several local governments, bringing the total fund to $285,000. By focusing on businesses with ITINs, the program reaches sole proprietors, including a number of businesses owned by people of color. The application window closed on July 13, and grants will be awarded on a lottery basis.
On January 8, 2021, the City of Medford opened the application process for a $250,000 small business relief grant program, providing approximately 83 small businesses with up to $3,000 each to use for rent, mortgage payments, payroll, and utilities. The program is open to businesses with no more than 15 non-owner employees. The program is funded by the city’s Vision Fund, which is in turn funded by the city’s marijuana tax revenue.
The City of Milwaukie created a business relief fund on April 7, providing one-time grants of up to $5,000 for small businesses. To be eligible, businesses must have a current Milwaukie business license and be a public-facing business experiencing a loss of revenue of 25 percent or less due to the pandemic. Priority was given to businesses with ten or fewer employees; owned by a woman, person of color, or veteran; and included in the city’s economic development plans. National franchises, nonprofit organizations, businesses whose primary revenue is generated from rental properties, and businesses owing fees or liens to the city were not eligible. The City awarded grants to 47 businesses, totaling $132,000. In May, the City received $35,000 from the State, plus an additional $1,000 from NW Natural, making $36,000 available for a second round of the Milwaukie Business Relief Fund. The second round offers grants of up to $2,500 for businesses with 1-5 employees and $5,000 for those with 6-10 employees.
The Pendleton Development Commission’s Retail and Hospitality Relief Program will give $2,000 grants to each of 50 small businesses located within the downtown urban renewal district. The program prioritizes essential businesses. If the City receives more applications than the program’s $100,000 budget, it will select winning applicants by lottery. The program received more than 50 applications by the time it closed on Thursday, April 23, so the Commission voted on April 30 to extend the grant pool in order to offer a grant to every business that applied. By May 1, it had dispersed $140,000 in grants to 70 businesses.
Prosper Portland, the City’s economic development agency, created a $2 million Small Business Relief Fund on March 19, providing grants of between $2,000-$10,000 and zero-interest loans of up to $50,000. The program closed on April 11, awarding more than 200 grants. The program received more than 11,000 grant applications and 3,500 loan applications. Grants were provided from $1 million from the City’s general fund; loans were provided using Enterprise Zone funds.
Small businesses located in Portland’s Jade District or Old Town Chinatown are eligible to receive support through the City’s $190,000 emergency fund. Asian and Pacific Islander business owners get priority.
The City of St. Helens used community development block grant (CDBG) funds to create the $150,000 Emergency Business Assistance grant program for small businesses. The program gave priority to businesses with 25 or fewer employees.
In late July, the City of Sweet Home announced it would be offering grants of up to $2,500 to small businesses and nonprofit organizations that have not received federal CARES Act money. As of July 24, applications were not yet available.
In early September, the City of The Dalles created a $200,000 COVID-19 Emergency Business Assistance Grant program. The application process opened on September 9. To be eligible, businesses must have 25 or fewer employees. The program is capitalized by the state’s Emergency Business Assistance Matching Fund.
The City of Tigard partnered with Micro Enterprise Solutions of Oregon (MESO) to award 94 grants of up to $1,500 through the Tigard CARES program. The program began accepting applications on March 31 and closed on April 14. Profiles of some of the businesses that received grants are listed on the program’s website.
Umatilla County is offering 68 $1,000 Small Business Emergency Grants for businesses with 25 or fewer employees. The application window closed on April 21, and winning applications will be selected by lottery.
Willamette Workforce Partnership, a workforce development nonprofit funded by the City of Salem, used $188,000 from the Salem City Council for a relief grant program for small businesses in Salem. The program will provide grants of up to $3,000 for businesses with up to five employees and of up to $5,000 for those with 6-40 employees. Applications were accepted from June 15-17, and the program ultimately made grants to nearly 100 small businesses. WWP plans to offer a second relief program later in the summer, using CDBG-CV funds.
The City of Wilsonville has launched a $400,000 Small Business COVID-19 Relief Grants Program. The program will provide $1,000 grants to home-based businesses; $2,000 grants to brick-and-mortar businesses with five or fewer employees; $4,000 grants to brick-and-mortar businesses with 6-20 employees; and $10,000 grants to three local hotels that did not receive grants from the Washington County Visitors’ Association’s hotel relief program (Wilsonville straddles Clackamas and Washington Counties). Chains are eligible, but only of the franchise is owned by someone living within 25 miles of Wilsonville. Applications were accepted beginning on April 24. The Program is capitalized with $200,000 from the City’s Urban Renewal Program and $200,000 from its Transient Lodging Tax fund.
The City of Yachats is offering a $100,000 pool of emergency loans for small businesses with a storefront location, at two percent interest and with terms of up to 48 months. Principal and interest payments will be deferred for one year. The program will be administered by Community LendingWorks.
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania’s Department of Community and Economic Development launched a $60 million Working Capital Access Program on March 25, offering small business loans of up to $100,000, zero interest (except for agricultural producers, for whom the interest rate was two percent), with no payments for the first year and principal-only payments for years 2-3. Loans were made for the lesser of three months of working capital or $100,00, and any for-profit business within the Commonwealth with 100 or fewer employees was eligible. The Program was capitalized with $40 million from the Commonwealth Financing Authority’s Small Business First Fund, plus $20 million from the Pennsylvania Industrial Development Authority (PIDA). The Program exhausted all its funding within several days and was closed on March 31. On April 26, Governor Wolf announced a second tranche of funding, capitalized with $40 million transferred from the Commonwealth Financing Authority and $61 million from PIDA.
Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf signed a bill into law on May 28 to make $225 million in grants available to micro-businesses, to be distributed through 18 Community Development Financial Institutions. $100 million will be designated for Historically Disadvantaged Business Revitalization Program, offering grants of $5,000-$50,000 for neighborhood microbusinesses, such as auto repair shops, barbershops, beauty salons, and restaurants. The Historically Disadvantaged Business Revitalization Program will be managed through 17 CDFIs, including Beech Companies, The Enterprise Center, the West Philadelphia Financial Services Institute, and United Bank of Philadelphia. The program is being funded from the Commonwealth’s CARES Act allocation, with multiple application rounds. The first round opened on June 30 and closed on July 14. The second round closed August 2. The state awarded $96 million in state grants to 4,933 small businesses in the first round. Approximately 50,000 applications were submitted in the first round. The recipients on the whole met two criteria: they employed less than 25 workers and earned less than $1 million in sales. About 95% of the award recipients were in the retail, food and hospitality, personal services, and health and wellness industries. The funds can be used to cover operating expenses during the shutdown and transition to re-opening, and for technical assistance, including training and guidance for business owners as they stabilize and relaunch their businesses. Nearly 5,000 businesses benefited from the first two rounds of funding through the COVID-19 Relief Statewide Small Business Assistance grant program. Of the 5,000, 2,512 grants went to historically disadvantaged business owners. In total, the program distributed $225 million: $100 million for the Main Street Business Revitalization Program, $100 million for the Historically Disadvantaged Business Revitalization Program, and $25 million for the Loan Payment Deferment and Loss Reserve Program. Nearly 50,000 applications were received in total.
On February 5, 2021, Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf signed an aid package passed by the state legislature that will provide grants of $5,000-$50,00 to bars, restaurants, and hotels with under 300 employees. The total amount available is $145 million, with funds available through the state’s new Hospitality Industry Recovery Program.
On May 20, Berks County announced creation of the Small Business Restart Loan Program, offering interest-free, five-year loans of $2,500-$10,000 to businesses with eight or fewer employees. The Program, which is capitalized with $2.3 million from both federal and local sources, is being managed by the Berks County Redevelopment Authority. Loan repayments are deferred for 24 months. The application window will open on June 15, with applications available here. To be eligible, businesses must be privately-held, in business for at least one year, located in Berks County but outside Reading, employ 2-8 people, have annual gross revenue of $500,000 or less, and not have received assistance from a federal relief program.
In early September, Berks County launched the $6 million Berks County Small Business New Start Grant program. The program, capitalized with a portion of the County’s CARES Act allocation, offers grants of $10,000-$50,000 to small businesses with 50 or fewer full-time employees and pre-COVID annual gross revenues of $3 million or less. Eligible business must have been in operation as of February 15, 2020 and certify their business is operating or has a clear plan to fully reopen. The grants can only be used for costs incurred due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The program will give priority to low-and-moderate income business owners and to businesses operating in disadvantaged areas, including communities experiencing higher than average poverty rates and unemployment rates. The program will focus on businesses in the hospitality, tourism, retail, restaurant and personal care industry sectors and with preference given to businesses owned by people of color, veterans, women and disabled individuals. The application deadline was September 23. The program is administered by Community First Fund, a community development financial institution.
Centre County is using $6 million of its $14.7 million federal CARES Act allocation to fund its COVID-19 County Relief Block Grant program, offering grants to businesses with fewer than 100 employees. The application window will close on September 11. Grants will be made based on need and community impact rather than on a first-come, first-served basis, with the Penn State Small Business Development Center helping review and prioritize applications.
Chester County offered grants of up to $25,000 to small businesses and agricultural enterprises through its Main Street Preservation Program. The Program accepted applications for one day only – May 11 – and was capitalized by $5 million of the County’s CDBG-CV allocation via the CARES Act. The program was administered by the Chester County Economic Development Council. To be eligible, businesses must be physically located within Chester Count, have at least $20,000 in annual operating expenses, have been in operation in 2019, and have less than $500,000 in annual revenue. Grants were limited to 25 percent of a business’s annual operating expenses, with a $25,000 cap. The program received more than 750 applications.
Crawford County has used $136,245 of its CDBG-CV allocation, plus another $180,000 in annual CDBG funds, to create a $316,245 long-term, interest-free loan program for small businesses affected by the pandemic. Loans may be used for rent/mortgage payments, payroll, utilities, and supplies. The application window will open on July 31, with awards made to eligible businesses on a first-come, first-served basis. The program is open to businesses with fewer than 100 employees, but the County is hoping to primarily target those with 15 or fewer employees. The program is being administered by the County’s Planning Department.
The Greater Easton Development Partnership has spearheaded creation of the Support Easton Small Business Relief Fund, with the goal of raising $300,000 for emergency capital for small businesses. The program has been developed in partnership with the City’s Department of Community and Economic Development. It offers zero-percent loans of up to $10,000, with repayment deferred. The first round of applications were accepted from April 7-12.
The City of Erie launched the Small Business Emergency Relief Grant Program the first week of April, offering grants of $5,000 for businesses with 2-10 employees and $10,000 for those with 11 or more employees. The $300,000 program was part of a trio of activities that also included a small business survey and a marketing program – Engaging Erie’s Economy – to spotlight the city’s small businesses. The program received more than 70 applications and ultimately made grants to 44 businesses.
The City of Harrisburg, in partnership with Impact Harrisburg, created a Neighborhood Business Stabilization Program to make grants of up to $10,000 to Harrisburg businesses whose revenues have dropped by at least 25 percent as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Each partner contributed $500,000. At last half of the grant funds are reserved for businesses with annual gross revenues of $500,000 or less. In November, the City announced a new $500,000 round of funding for the program, drawing from the City’s federal CARES Act allocation. Within the first five days after opening the application portal on December 1, the program had received 136 applications, exhausting the available funds.
Kennett Borough and Kennett Township began accepting applications on May 27 for the Community Relief Fund, offering low-interest loans of up to $10,000 to local small businesses. Repayment is deferred for 12 months, after which a business may pay off the loan or amortize it over three years at three percent interest. Priority will be given to businesses in operation for two or more years, whose sales have been reduced by 30 percent or more during the pandemic, and those that are owned by women or minorities. Chains, home-based businesses, gambling facilities, and adult stores are not eligible. The Fund is capitalized by $500,000 from the remainder of a $1 million grant the Borough received nine years ago for business revitalization. Information about the Fund is available by contacting Lorenzo Merino at True Access Capital, which is administering the Fund.
Historic Kennett Square has created the Historic Kennett Square Small Business Response Fund, providing grants of up to $10,000 to consumer-facing small retail businesses. The Fund is capitalized by donations from the community, with a commitment from the Square Roots Collective to match up to $250,000 in contributions. The Fund began accepting applications on May 27, and the first application deadline was June 12, with grants awarded ten days later. The Fund may offer additional application rounds as additional funds become available. Information about the Fund is available from Nate Echeverria at Historic Kennett Square.
The City of Lebanon is using $350,000 in CDBG-CV funding it received from the CARES Act to create a loan program for small, locally owned businesses. The program will be administered by the Community First Fund of Lancaster, a nonprofit organization. The Small Business Recovery Assistance Fund began accepting applications on June 24, offering loans of up to $7,500. The application deadline was July 8.
Lehigh County is using $5 million of its $33 million CARES Act allocation to create the Lehigh County COVID-19 Small Business Grant Program, offering grants of up to $15,000 to qualifying businesses. To qualify, businesses must employ no more than 100 workers, generate at least 51 percent of their revenue within the County, have been in operation since March 1, and meet certain other criteria. Certain types of businesses are not eligible, including banks, private clubs, and businesses engaged in illegal or predatory activities, such as check cashing businesses, pawn shops, and adult bookstores. Applications were available online as of July 27.
The Meadville Redevelopment Authority is offering working capital loans of up to $25,000 to small retail- and service-sector businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic in Crawford County. The $500,000 Working Capital Loan Fund will offer three-year loans, with a one percent interest rate, to businesses with 25 or fewer employees. Repayment is deferred for 90 days, with interest-only payments for the next 90 days. The fund is being capitalized with money repurposed from the French Creek Valley Enterprise Zone Revolving Loan Fund, which was terminated in order to create the Working Capital Loan Fund. As of July 10, applications and additional program details were not yet available.
Northampton County used $4 million of its $27.6 million CARES Act allocation to create a grant program for small businesses, offering grants of up to $15,000 to businesses affected by the pandemic and economic shutdown. To be eligible, businesses must have fewer than 100 employees, must have been in operation in the County on March 1, and must earn at least 51 percent of their revenues within the County, among other requirements. The deadline was August 7, 2020. In late August, County officials decided to use an additional $4.7 million of the County’s CARES Act allocation to extend the program; as of August 26, details of the extended program were not yet available.
In March, the City of Philadelphia created a COVID-19 Small Business Relief Fund, offering grants or zero-interest loans to small, for-profit businesses. The Fund offers $5,000 grants to microenterprises with annual revenues under $500,000; grants of up to $25,000 for businesses with annual revenues between $500,000-$3 million, and zero-interest loans of between $25,000-$100,000 for businesses with annual revenues of between $3-5 million. The Fund was launched with $9.25 million, including $7 million from the City, $2 million from the Pennsylvania Industrial Development Authority, and $250,000 from the Daniel B. and Florence E. Green Foundation. The Fund was overwhelmed with applications and, as of March 30, was only accepting and reviewing applications from businesses applying for the $5,000 microenterprise grants. In June, the City announced that it was allocating an additional $20 million from its federal CARES Act allocation.
Also in Philadelphia, The Reinvestment Fund is offering grants of up to $20,000 to child daycare organizations through its Philadelphia Emergency Fund for Stabilization of Early Education. The program’s goal is to minimize the loss of capacity and expertise in the child daycare and early education sector so that children and their families will continue to have access to high quality early learning opportunities once the pandemic has subsided.
On March 1, the Pittsburgh Urban Redevelopment Authority created a COVID-19 Small Business Emergency Loan Fund (ELF) offering interest-free loans of up to $15,000 with terms of up to three years and repayment deferred for six months. Demand far outpaced the ELF’s initial $2.5 million budget; it received 270 applications, totaling $3.6 million in loan requests. On May 14, the Urban Redevelopment Authority created a second program – the $5 million COVID-19 Small Business Recovery Fund – and has merged ELF into the Small Business Recovery Fund. The Fund will provide loans of up to $75,000 to help local businesses with inventory, hiring, safety gear, and other reopening costs. The Fund will target neighborhood-serving small businesses, minority- and women-owned businesses, and businesses in low- and moderate-income neighborhoods. Loans are interest-free for the first year, then two percent for the balance of the term, which can be up to seven years. Repayment can be deferred by one year.
The City of Reading began accepting applications on May 27 for its Small Business Emergency Fund, offering forgivable loans of up to $20,000, depending on business revenues. Preference will be given to businesses with a storefront, such as retail stores, restaurants, auto repair shops, grocery stores, and hair salons, and to businesses whose owner is a low/moderate income person or that creates or retains one job for a low/moderate income worker. Businesses with annual revenues of $1 million or more are not eligible to apply. Loans are interest-free for the first year, then one percent for the remaining two years of the loan term, with payment deferred for six months. Loans will be forgivable if they are used for agreed uses and if the business reopened (or remained open) for a minimum of 90 days once COVID-19 restrictions have been lifted. The $1 million fund is capitalized by $350,000 from the City’s Enterprise Loan Fund and $650,000 from CDBG-CV funds. It is being administered by Community First Fund, a Community Development Financial Institution. Applications are due June 10, with loan decisions completed by June 24.
The City of Scranton began accepting applications for its $560,000 Small Business Relief Program on July 17. The program offered grants of up to $2,500 and loans of $3,000-$20,000 to qualified small businesses. It stopped accepting applications for grants on July 19.
The City of Wilkes-Barre created a Restaurant Emergency Relief Loan Program in April, offering interest-free loans of up to $7,500 to locally owned, non-franchise restaurants. Loans could be used to pay employees, restock inventory, and pay operating expenses. Loans will be due in one balloon payment at the end of one year. The application deadline was May 15.
On May 14, the City of Wilkes-Barre announced development of a Small Business Emergency Relief Loan Program, offering loans to locally owned businesses to help them pay employees, restock inventory, pay rent or mortgages, and pay utility bills and other operating expenses. Businesses that have between 1-5 employees and that do not reopen until Luzerne County reaches the green phase are eligible. Franchises are not eligible. Applications were released the week of May 18, with a May 29 deadline.
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico’s Financial Oversight and Management Board has approved a $500 million relief package for individuals and small businesses. The package includes $1,500 grants for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) with 50 or fewer employees and gross receipts of no more than $10 million. Businesses organized as legal entities (corporations, LLCs, partnerships, etc.) can request this $1,500 grant from the Department of Economic Development and Commerce (DDEC). Self-employed individuals whose businesses are organized as “Doing Business As” may receive $1,500 by combining a $1,000 grant from the DDEC and a $500 grant from the Department of the Treasury. Total allocation for self-employed individuals is $100 million; for SMEs, the total allocation is $60 million.
Rhode Island
On July 29, the State of Rhode Island announced the launch of its Restore RI grant program, offering $50 million in grants to small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Businesses are eligible to apply for grants of up to $15,000, based on whether the business is in a severely impacted industry, the number of full-time employees, and the degree of revenue loss. On September 22, the State broadened the application criteria, making grants available for businesses with up to 50 employees, as well as to sole proprietors and businesses with no employees. The program has also removed the maximum grant limitation for restaurants and caterers, which have been particularly hard-hit by the pandemic and economic shutdown.
The East Providence Economic Development Commission is offering two loan programs, one for businesses with fewer than five employees and one for businesses with between 5-10 employees. Both make loans of up to $5,000. The loan program for smaller businesses offers zero-interest, three-year loans with no repayment for six months. The program for larger businesses offers loans at two percent interest, with terms between 12-36 months, and with repayments deferred by six months.
LISC/Rhode Island is administering a short term bridge loan to provide small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic with up to $5,000 to cover expenses. Applicants must have applied for and have an application number from the US Small Business Adminstration’s COVID-19 Economic Injury Disaster Loan program. There are two categories: one for restaurants and other food service businesses, and one for micro-businesses with 1-10 employees. The program is capitalized with $1 million from Bank Newport and a matching $1 million from the Rhode Island Commerce Corporation’s Small Business Loan Fund.
The Pawtucket Business Development Corporation is offering low-interest loans of up to $10,000 for businesses with 25 or fewer employees. Loan repayment is deferred for twelve months; businesses repay the loans in months 13-36.
The Providence Business Loan Fund, which offers secured loans for businesses that meet the US Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Community Development Block Grant national objectives, has modified its operations in order to provide access to capital for eligible small businesses and immediate relief for current borrowers. While the Fund typically offers loans from $50,000-$500,000, it is now offering loans starting at $10,000, interest-free for 12 months, and the first payment deferred for 6-12 months. It also suspended interest and fees on loans to current borrowers in April.
Rhode Island Commerce is offering a Microenterprise Stabilization Grant Program to provide grants of up to $5,000 to businesses with 2-5 employees in one of 14 communities (Barrington, Bristol, Central Falls, Cumberland, Hopkinton, Middletown, Newport, North Providence, North Smithfield, Smithfield, South Kingston, Warren, West Warwick, and Westerly). To qualify, a business owner’s total household income must be 80 percent or less of their area median income, based on family size, and the business must have been unable to obtain assistance from federal stimulus programs to date.
South Carolina
On October 12, the South Carolina Department of Administration announced the launch of a $40 million small business grant program to reimburse qualifying expenditures for providing services or for revenue loss due to COVID-19. To be eligible, businesses must have 25 or fewer employees, have been in operation since at least October 13, 2019, and have been negatively affected by the pandemic and economic slowdown. Priority will be given to minority-owned businesses, businesses with 15 or fewer employees, and businesses that have not received federal pandemic-related financial assistance. At the same time, the State launched a $25 million program to make grants to nonprofit organizations. Grants for both programs will range from $2,500 to $25,000. The application window is October 19 – November 1, 2020. The program is capitalized with a portion of the state’s Coronavirus Relief Fund allocation.
On March 23, the City of Aiken launched a $1 million loan program for small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Loans of up to $10,000 were available at two percent interest, with repayment deferred for six months. Security Federal Bank underwrote and serviced the loans, and the Aiken Chamber of Commerce and The Aiken Corp. offered loan guarantees. To qualify, businesses must have a brick-and-mortar presence within the city and have fewer than 25 employees. The program closed on May 22, issuing a total of $464,200 to 47 local businesses. The program received inquiries from over 350 business owners, although most were seeking information about the federal Paycheck Protection Program and other options.
The Beaufort County Black Chamber of Commerce received $500,000 from Wells Fargo as part of a program aimed at providing relief to small businesses during the coronavirus pandemic. The grant money was targeted to help minority-owned businesses in under-served areas of the Lowcountry. The money was directed towards businesses that did not receive PPP funding. Some businesses received loans of up to $35,000 at 3% interest rates, while about 15 will receive grants of up to $7,500 each. The application period ran from October 19-November 1.
The Berkeley-Charleston-Dorchester Council of Governments has received a $616,000 CARES Act Recovery Assistance grant from the US Economic Development Administration to capitalize a revolving loan fund to make loans to COVID-19 affected businesses in Berkeley, Charleston, and Dorchester Counties.
The Catawba Regional Council of Governments has received a $9 million CARES Act Recovery Assistance grant from the US Economic Development Administration, which it will use to provide loans of $35,000-$750,000 to businesses in Aiken, Allendale, Bamberg, Barnwell, Beaufort, Calhoun, Chester, Chesterfield, Clarendon, Colleton, Darlington, Dillon, Fairfield, Florence, Georgetown, Hampton, Horry, Jasper, Kershaw, Lancaster, Lee, Marion, Marlboro, Orangeburg, Richland, Sumter, Union, Williamsburg, and York Counties.
The City of Charleston will use a $935,000 CARES Act Recovery Assistance Grant from the US Economic Development Administration to capitalize a revolving loan fund for small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
On March 20, the City of Columbia created a $6 million program to respond to COVID-19 needs, of which $2 million has been earmarked for small business and nonprofit relief. Of that $2 million, $1 million is being used as a loan loss reserve fund through which the City is offering forgivable loans; $500,000 is being used for zero-interest forgivable loans for businesses with fewer than 100 employees; and $500,000 is being used for nonprofit organizations meeting critical needs during the pandemic. The City has redirected money from its water and sewer funds to capitalize the small business relief package. On May 21, the City announced that it had awarded forgivable loans to 323 businesses, totaling $1.4 million.
The City of Columbia will use the $2.9 million CARES Act grant it received from the US Economic Development Administration to create the Resilient Columbia CARES Act Revolving Loan Fund, its second revolving loan fund. As with its first revolving loan fund, loans are intended to help small businesses finance building construction, conversions, expansions, acquisition of land, buildings, machinery, equipment, supplies and materials or, in particular cases, of supplying working capital. The interest rate will be zero percent in the first year, then 2.5 percent for the remaining term of the loan. Loan origination, application, and credit check fees will be waived. Small businesses may borrow from $10,000-$200,000.
Greenville County has allocated $75 million to small business relief through its Greenville County CARES. Businesses can receive grants of up to $10,000 to cover COVID-19 related expenses. Of the total $75 million, $5 million is set aside for minority owned businesses specifically. To qualify, businesses must have fewer than 50 employees and have been in operation since September 1, 2019.
The Town of Hilton Head Island has received an additional allocation of $391,875 from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for COVID-19 relief. The Community Foundation of the Lowcountry is administering the program, which offers grants of up to $75,000 for projects or programs that meet HUD criteria. The deadline date for applications is November 16, 2020. Grants must be submitted through CFL’s online portal at https://www.grantinterface.com/Home/Logon?urlkey=lowcountry. This is the second round of grants awarded to nonprofit organizations. In the first round of funding, $155,000 was awarded to the Boys & Girls Club of Hilton Head, the Children’s Center, the Hilton Head Island Deep Well Project, the Hilton Head Island Recreation Association, Neighborhood Outreach Connection, Sandalwood Community Food Pantry, Society of St. Vincent de Paul Holy Family Conference, and Volunteers in Medicine Clinic Hilton Head Island. Island residents who need help with rent, food, childcare, medical care and other needs can reach out to those organizations.
Richland County has created a $1 million Pandemic Relief Grant program, with $500,000 available for grants of up to $10,000 for small businesses and $500,000 available for nonprofits addressing food security and assistance for low- and moderate-income residents. Businesses must have 50 or fewer employees, have been in business for at least one year, be able to demonstrate losses of 50 percent or more in revenue, and have a plan to sustain business operations. The program opened on April 27 and will close on June 30.
The Upper Savanah Council of Governments has received an $836,000 CARES Act Recovery Assistance grant from the US Economic Development Administration, with which it will capitalize a revolving loan fund to make loans to small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic in Abbeville, Edgefield, Greenwood, Laurens, McCormick, and Saluda Counties.
South Dakota
In April, the Governor’s Office of Economic Development (GOED) created a $10.5 million Small Business Relief fund, offering zero-interest loans of $5,000-$75,000, to for-profit businesses or nonprofit organizations with less than 250 employees that have been operating for at least one year. Proceeds from the loan must be held in a separate bank account within South Dakota, not commingled with other business accounts, and may not be used for distributions or dividends to business owners.
In September, the State of South Dakota launched three small business grant programs. The $400 million Small Business COVID Interruption grant program is available to small businesses with under $38.5 million in 2019 gross revenues; the $40 million Small Nonprofit COVID Interruption grant program is available to small businesses with under $38.5 million in 2019 gross revenues; and the $10 million Small Business Startup Program is available to small businesses established between September 1, 2019 and June 1, 2020 that have been negatively affected by COVID-19. All three programs initially offered grants of up to $100,000 per entity, but in mid-October the maximum grant was increased to $500,000. The program deadline is October 30, 2020.
Tennessee
On June 2, Gov. Bill Lee announced that the state will use $200 million of its $2.6 billion CARES Act allocation to create the Tennessee Business Relief Program, offering grants of $2,500-$30,000, depending on business size. Grants reimburse small businesses for expenses incurred as a result of mandatory store closures. The state later added another $100 million to the program and ultimately made grants to more than 40,000 small businesses. The program deadline was September 30, 2020.
On October 7, Gov. Lee announced the $50 million Supplemental Employer Recovery Grant (SERG) to provide additional relief to small businesses suffering during the COVID-19 pandemic. This wave of funding includes specific support for minority-owned, women-owned, and veteran-owned businesses, as well as businesses owned by disabled persons. The application deadline is December 29, 2020, or until funds are depleted. Grants of up to $30,000 are available to reimburse businesses for eligible direct expenses or costs incurred as a result of business interruption.
More than two dozen organizations and companies created RegionAHEAD (Appalachian Highlands Economic Aid Directory) to support small businesses in 17 Tennessee and Virginia counties, including launching the Local Business Recovery Fund, making grants to businesses in the arts, entertainment, recreation, accommodation, food services, retail trade, and manufacturing sectors with fewer than 50 employees. The Fund’s allocation committee began meeting bi-weekly on April 27. The Fund received 217 grant applications in its first month and announced the first 22 recipients on May 21, with grants totaling $98,650. It plans to announce additional awards on June 30.
Economic Development Growth Engine (EDGE), the economic development agency for the City of Memphis and Shelby County, has launched a $1 million Neighborhood Emergency Economic Development (NEED) Grant program to provide relief to neighborhood-serving businesses in Memphis’s most distressed areas. Grants of up to $10,000 are available to businesses in Census tracts meeting federal low-to-moderate income criteria, that have annual revenue of less than $1 million, and that have experienced a revenue loss of at least 25 percent. Some types of businesses are ineligible, including liquor and tobacco stores, adult entertainment businesses, car dealerships, gas stations, nonprofit organizations, and home-based businesses.
The City of Tullahoma is offering small business loans through its USDA-funded Small Business Revolving Loan Program. Loans of between $5,000-$15,000 are available at four percent below prime, with a one percent floor, and up to a three-year payback.
Texas
The City of Allen created a $3 million small business grant program, offering grants of up to $25,000 to businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and economic shutdown. Businesses must have a physical presence within the city limits, have fewer than 100 employees, have less than $15 million in annual revenue, and have been in operation on or before March 1, 2019. Certain types of businesses, such as adult entertainment, casinos, and home-based businesses, are not eligible. Grants will be calculated based on rent/mortgage payments, utilities, insurance, and three months of payroll costs. The application window was June 24-30. The program was funded from Collin County’s CARES Act allocation.
The City of Amarillo is offering reimbursement grants of up to $5,000 to small businesses through its Public Safety Reimbursement Program, covering expenses for personal protection equipment, signage, plexiglass, sanitization items and other materials used to protect employees and customers. To be eligible, businesses must have fewer than 50 employees, although the Program may make exceptions for restaurants and day care facilities. Businesses must also have a physical location in Amarillo (not be home-based) and must have been in operation before January 1, 2020. Applications will be available the week of June 29.
Between March – September, the City of Austin offered several financial relief programs for small businesses and nonprofit organizations. The Austin Small Business Relief Grant awarded $16.2 million in grants to 885 of 2,526 applications (with requests totaling more than $120 million). The Austin Non-Profit Relief Grant awarded $3.6 million in grants to 221 nonprofit organizations negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Austin Creative Space Disaster Relief Program awarded $987,943 in grants to 32 of 65 applicants. Collectively applicants requested $3.7 million in financial assistance, which was nearly four times the $1 million available in the fund. The Austin Creative Worker Relief Grant awarded $3.36 million to 1,877 of 5,502 applicants. Half of the funds was awarded to the 907 applicants that scored highest on the program’s equity matrix. The remaining funds were distributed through a lottery, resulting in 970 additional awards. The Austin Music Disaster Relief Fund awarded $1.5 million in grants to 1,497 performing musicians impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. These funds were awarded on a first come, first serve basis. And the Austin Economic Injury Bridge Loan Program awarded $645,000 in small business loans to 19 of 70 approved applicants. Fifty-one applicants declined the loan offer either due to acceptance of other federal disaster assistance or non-acceptance of loan terms.
On September 24, the City of Austin approved an additional $15 million in COVID-19 relief for three business sectors deemed vital in the city: music venues, legacy businesses, and childcare providers. The program – Save Austin’s Vital Economic Sectors (SAVES) – is being funded by a variety of sources – $6 million from Human Capital Management System, $4.8 million from the Pay for Success Reserve Fund, $3.7 million from temporary use of right-of-way fees, and $500,000 from the Capital Rehabilitation Fund.
On April 13, the Bastrop Economic Development Corporation awarded grants totaling $185,000 to 62 Bastrop businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Each business will receive a grant of between $750-$9,500. The program was funded from two existing programs – a $150,000 business incentive fund and a $150,000 fund for business expansion or retention. Grants were awarded in eight categories, based on gross revenues and number of employees, with sole proprietors receiving between $750-1,500 and the largest businesses receiving $9,500 each. The program was open only to non-essential businesses, and all businesses that submitted an application received a grant.
Bexar County launched a $5.25 million fund to provide loans and grants for locally owned small businesses hurt by the pandemic. LiftFund, a San Antonio-based loan provider for small businesses, administered the program. The fund was announced on March 23. It received more than 150 applications in its first eight hours and, by the end of that week, had received nearly 650 loan or grant applications, totaling $42 million. The program has been closed.
The City of Boerne created the $305,000 Boerne Strong Stimulus Program, offering grants to small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Grants of up to $2,500 were available for businesses with 1-10 employees; up to $5,000 for those with 11-25 employees; and up to $7,500 for those with 26-50 employees. To qualify, businesses must have a brick-and-mortar location within the Boerne city limits, have been in business in Boerne for at least two years, must be engaged in legal activities, and must have good standing with the city. The application process closed on May 15, and grant awards were announced on May 26.
On April 23, the Bonham Economic Development Corporation announced an emergency assistance grant program for local small businesses. The program launched with $38,500 from a fund devoted to helping small businesses, and the Economic Development Corporation hopes to tap an additional $12,000 from a promotional fund, bringing the total available to $50,000. The program will make grants of up to $2,000 on a first-come, first-served basis. The program is limited to those with 25 or fewer employees, and some types of businesses, including home-based businesses, grocery stores, and nonprofits, are not eligible.
Main Street Brenham reprogrammed $8,500 from a fund dedicated for Main Street improvement and created a small business relief assistance grant program. The organization awarded $500 grants to 17 small downtown businesses. It is considering a second grant round.
On June 16, the board of the Brownwood Municipal Development District approved development of a reimbursement grant program to help businesses adapt and innovate their operations for post-COVID success. The Brownwood Innovation and Expansion Grant Program will provide a one-time grant of up to $2,500 to reimburse businesses for equipment, supplies, or software to adapt their business model for safe reopening and operation. Businesses must be locally owned.
On April 6, the City of Bryan began accepting applications for a small business grant program in conjunction with the United Way of the Brazos Valley and the Community Foundation of the Brazos Valley. the United Way of the Brazos Valley is managing the fund. Through the Brazos Valley COVID-19 Community Relief Fund, the City of Bryan matches up to $500,000 in grants by the Community Relief Fund. Eighty percent of the funds are earmarked for small businesses, and 20 percent are earmarked for nonprofit organizations that provide personal care to Bryan residents. Grants of up to $15,000 are available.
On June 10, the City of Bryan opened the application process for its Emergency Assistance Special Economic Development Grant, offering grants of $10,000-$30,000 to small businesses. Grants can be used for working capital and to create and/or retain jobs for low- to moderate-income workers. To qualify, businesses must have no more than 500 employees, have been in operation for at least two years, and must not intend to relocate operations, among other requirements. The program is capitalized with $150,000 in reprogrammed CDBG funds, plus $364,405 from the City’s CARES Act allocation.
The Buda City Council has created the Still Budaful Stimulus Program to help affected small businesses. The $380,000 program is funded by the City and by the Buda Economic Development Corporation. Local businesses with 50 or fewer employees are eligible to apply; chains, home-based businesses, and nonprofits are not eligible.
The Cen-Tex African American Chamber of Commerce and the Center of Business Excellence have created the Cen-Tex Minority Business Equity Fund, providing grants and microloans of up to $2,500 to African American-owned small businesses in McLennan County. Program information will be released in June.
The City of College Station committed funds from its CDBG-CV allocation and reprogrammed some of its existing CDBG funds to provide grants of $10,000-$40,000 to small businesses with low/moderate income employees. Businesses with 1-5 full-time employees can receive a $10,000 grant; those with 6-10 a $20,000 grant; those with 11-20 a $30,000 grant; and those with more than 20 a $40,000 grant. Businesses must provide proof that they were impacted financially by COVID-19, and they will need to report for 60 days to demonstrate that they meet the program’s job retention or creation requirements. Businesses must register with the Brazos Valley e-Marketplace bidding system, then they may submit an application. The application window closed on June 24.
Collin County is using $15 million of its federal CARES Act allocation to create the Collin CARES Small Business Grant Program, offering grants of up to $25,000 to businesses that have experienced a gross revenue loss of more than 15 percent due to the COVID-19 pandemic. To be eligible, businesses must have less than $5 million in gross revenues and no more than 100 full-time-equivalent employees. Grants may be used for payroll, fixed overhead costs, utilities, contract labor, and COVID-19 related business improvements. The grants are taxable. Applications will be accepted through September 25.
On June 2, the Converse Economic Development Corporation announced the creation of a $250,000 COVID-19 relief grant program, offering grants of $500-$5,000. Application material are expected to be available by July 21.
In July, the City of Coppell launched two relief programs for small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic: the Coppell CARES Restaurant Assistance Grant and the Coppell CARES Business Retrofit Grant. The combined budget for the two programs was $1.6 million. In September, the City launched a third program, the $1.3 million Coppell CARES Business Rent/Mortgage Assistance Grant.
The Dallas Office of Economic Development launched a Small Business Continuity Fund on May 4, making grants of up to $10,000 and loans of up to $50,000 available to small businesses in operation for at least six months before the COVID-19 pandemic. The $5 million Fund is being capitalized with Community Development Block Grant funds from the CARES Act. The program is open to low-to-moderate income microenterprise business owners (less than five employees) or small businesses with 50 or fewer employees that retain low- and moderate-income workers. The application period closed on May 11, after which the City will conduct a lottery to select businesses to receive grants or loans.
In early May, Dallas County announced the creation of the Dallas County Emergency Business Assistance Program, using $5 million of its allocation from the federal Coronavirus Relief Fund to make forgivable loans of up to $15,000 to small businesses outside the City of Dallas that have not received any federal pandemic assistance. The County also set aside $400,000 of its allocation to make micro grants to child care facilities. On July 11, the County Commissioners approved an additional $30 million for the program (bringing the total to $35 million) and increased the maximum loan amount from $15,000 to $50,000. To qualify for the program, businesses must have no more than 100 employees and have revenues under $10 million, and they must have experienced a loss of at least 25 percent of their income since March 1, 2020. The pre-application window for the program’s second round is July 13-26, 2020.
The City of DeSoto announced in early September that it would create a $800,000 Business Assistant Grant Program to cover up to three months of expenses for eligible businesses, with a maximum of $20,000 per business. To qualify, businesses must have no more than 100 workers and less than $10 million in annual revenue. Applications were due by September 14.
On May 13, Denton County began accepting applications for its $2.2 million small business COVID-19 relief grant program, OPEN (Operational Plan for Economic Normalization). OPEN offered grants of up to $10,000 to businesses with 50 or fewer employees and no more than $7 million in gross annual revenue, with grant amounts depending primarily on whether businesses were completely or partially closed during the Stay Home Stay Safe emergency declaration period. The program was funded by CoServ’s Capital Credit retirements to the County over the past 20 years, which the County had saved as a rainy day fund. The application window was May 13-20.
Fort Bend County has launched a $30 million Small Business Emergency Assistance Grant Program, offering grants of up to $25,000, depending on a business’s annual sales. Businesses with 1-50 employees and with annual revenues of less than $5 million are eligible. Grants may be used for lease payments, utilities, payroll to bring employees back to work, remote working expenses, personal protective equipment, inventory, and reopening supplies, equipment, and renovations. Grants will be made on a first come, first served basis until the fund is depleted. As of July 14, roughly $10 million was still available.
On July 23, Fort Bend County launched the Fort Bend Entrepreneur Initiative, providing free consulting services to help businesses recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, with a special focus on minority-owned and disadvantaged businesses. The program offers one-on-one coaching, business resilience courses, a customized COVID-19 business recovery plan, and monthly strategy meetings for six months.
The City of Fort Worth is using $10 million of its CARES Act allocation for the Preserve the Fort grant program for small businesses. Of the overall $10 million, $2.5 million is earmarked for minority-owned businesses and $2.5 million for businesses in the city’s Neighborhood Empowerment Zones and Designated Investment Zones. To be eligible, businesses must have 250 or fewer employees, be located within city limits, have been in business since at least September 1, 2019, and be able to demonstrate a reduction in sales/revenue since the pandemic began. Applications will be processed in partnership with the Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce, Fort Worth Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, and Fort Worth Metropolitan Black Chamber of Commerce. The application deadline was originally June 8 but, in order to encourage more applications from minority owned businesses, the deadline has been extended to June 15.
The City of Fort Worth is partnering with PeopleFund to create a Business Resiliency Microloan Program, offering loans of up to $50,000 to businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. At least 60 percent of the loans will be earmarked for minority-owned businesses and low/moderate-income business owners. Loan repayment is deferred for the first six months, after which the interest rate will be five percent, with loans amortized over a total term of up to 78 months. The $850,000 loan fund is capitalized with $350,000 from the Fort Worth Local Development Corporation and $500,000 from PeopleFund.
The Fort Worth Hispanic Chamber of Commerce will use a $15,000 grant from the US Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and Rumba Meats to make emergency microgrants of $1,000-$2,500 to small, minority-owned businesses in the Fort Worth area. The application window is July 13-24, 2020.
The City of Frisco began accepting applications for its $3.1 million Frisco/Collin County Small Business Grants Program on June 24. The Program offers grants of up to $50,000 to businesses with fewer than 100 employees and less than $15 million in annual revenue. Applications were due on June 30, with funds awarded in early July.
The City of Georgetown and Georgetown Chamber created a Small Business Support and Recovery Grant, offering grants of up to $5,000 to all local non-home-based businesses, with priority for those that have frequent, close contact with customers. The program was capitalized with $100,000 contributions from each of the two entities. As of April 16, the program was no longer accepting new applications.
In early March, Harris County awarded $10 million in forgivable loans to 418 small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Loans of up to $25,000 were available to businesses with a tangible net worth of not more than $15 million and average net income of $5 million or less. The program received 7,135 applications, totaling more than $150 million, and its funding was quickly depleted.
On July 13, Harris County launched a $30 million Small Business Recovery Fund, making grants of up to $25,000 to help small businesses cover payroll, rent, accounts payable, and other operating expenses. The program is open to businesses with no more than 30 employees, with priority given to those with fewer than five. The application deadline is July 24.
Houston launched its Small Business Economic Relief Program to provide immediate and short term assistance to small businesses and chambers of commerce that have been impacted by the pandemic. The program provided $15 million in total, with each business eligible to receive up to $50,000. Businesses must: be a business primarily located in Houston; been in business for at least one (1) year as of March 1, 2020; provide evidence of how business revenue has significantly decreased because of COVID-19; generated less than $2 million gross annual revenue pre-COVID-19; must be in good standing regarding City requirements; and commit to completing the Recovery and Resiliency component of this program. The application window opened August 19 and closed September 4, with more than 8,500 applications submitted. On September 9, the City added another $5 million to the program to provide grants to businesses whose applications have been received; there is no application deadline extension.
The City of Irving began accepting applications on August 24th for its $2.5 million Emergency Business Assistance Program. The program offers forgivable loans of up to $50,000 to eligible small businesses. To qualify, businesses must be located within city limits; have experienced a loss of at least 25 percent of its income since March 1; must have no more than 100 employees; must have revenues of less than $10 million; and must not have received more than $50,000 from the federal Paycheck Protection Program. Loans have a one-year term, at one percent interest, with no interest accruing or payments due until Month 5. Loans may be forgiven if a business continues to operate for four months, with at least 60 percent of its March 1st employee count and payroll. Certain types of businesses, including franchises, age-restricted businesses, and nonprofits, are not eligible. The application deadline is September 6.
The City of Irving is offering micro-grants of up to $5,000 to eligible early childhood centers that have been financially affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Child Care Provider Catalyst Fund is capitalized with $500,000 from Dallas County’s CARES Act allocation, along with funds from the Dallas Foundation. The program is being administered by Workforce Solutions Greater Dallas (WFSDallas). To be eligible, childcare providers must be located within the city limits; registered or licensed through Texas Health and Human Services; in operation as of January 1, 2020; current on city taxes; providing childcare services to the children of covered essential workers; and demonstrate an income loss of at least 25 percent since March 1 due to the pandemic. The application window will close on November 30, 2020 or whenever funds are exhausted, whichever comes first.
The Lamar County Chamber of Commerce has set aside $25,000 from Chamber dues for its COVID-19 Support Program, offering grants of up to $1,000 to its members to help cover rent and utility costs.
On April 8, the City of Leander launched the COVID-19 Emergency Business Grant program, offering working capital grants of $2,500-$5,000 to businesses negatively affected by the pandemic and economic shutdown. To be eligible, businesses must be located within the city limits and be current on taxes. The size of the grants awarded was based on number of employees, with businesses with up to three full-time-equivalent employees eligible to receive $2,500 and those with more than threeemployees eligible for $5,000.The program was funded with $208,000 from the Old Town Incentive Program. On April 22, the City made grants totaling $60,000 to 16 local business, and on May 7 it awarded grants to 23 additional businesses, totaling $80,000. On May 21, it made an additional $10,000 in grants.
The City of McAllen launched a $300,000 small business relief grant program on June 1, offering $5,000 grants to businesses with less than $350,000 in annual revenues and $10,000 grants to those with revenues above that amount. Grants may be used to launch an online presence, purchase PPE and sanitation supplies and equipment, conduct short-term marketing campaigns, rent/mortgage payments, utility payments, and inventory. The application process and grant administration are being managed by the McAllen Chamber of Commerce. The program received 200 applications on its first day. In total, the program received almost 300 applications, of which 87 met the program’s guidelines, but the program was only able to make 49 grants before being depleted. The program is continuing to accept applications in the event it receives additional funding. In addition to the Small Business Grant program, the City and Chamber are offering a $700,000 Zero Interest Loan program, managed by LiftFund.
The Midland Development Corporation has diverted $1 million from its promotion fund to provide small businesses with forgivable loans of up to $25,000, to be spent for payroll by September 30. To qualify, businesses must have 15 or fewer employees, maintained at least two full-time employees throughout 2019, and be either headquartered in Midland or be a locally owned franchise. A local bank is processing loan applications. The program began accepting applications on July 6. It received 12 applications in its first week, but 11 of them were ineligible, either because they had not been in business before January 1, 2019; had already received SBA assistance; or were not within the city limits.
The City of Odessa has committed $500,000 of its federal CARES Act Allocation to the City’s Business Assistance Program, making grants of $2,500-$10,000 to eligible businesses with 20 or fewer employees. To qualify, businesses must be located within city limits, have been in operation for at least one year before March 18, have annual gross revenues of less than $750,000, and be current on taxes and licenses. Sexually oriented businesses and gambling businesses are not eligible. Grants may be used for COVID-19 safety-related fixed assets, working capital, payroll expenses, rent/lease payments, and marketing. As of September 7, the City had awarded $265,000 in grants and had $235,000 left for additional grants.
The Pflugerville Chamber of Commerce has launched the Pflugerville Pfund, making grants of up to $5,000 for local businesses that have been significantly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Businesses must have 50 employees or less. Businesses may reapply for a second grant after 45 days. The fund was capitalized by donations from the Pflugerville Community Development Corporation, Pflugerville Economic Development Foundation, Recurrent Energy, Montoya & Monzingo CPAs, and the Pflugerville Chamber of Commerce and is being managed by the Greater Round Rock Community Foundation.
On August 10, the City of Pflugerville announced a new small business relief program, Pflugerville CARES. The $920,000 program, capitalized with some of the City’s CARES Act allocation, offered grants of up to $75,000, depending on number of employees. To be eligible for the grant, businesses must be physically located and operating in the city limits of Pflugerville, in business on or before March 1 and verify a 15 percent revenue loss due to COVID-19. Applicants who received funds from other COVID relief programs are ineligible. The program is administered by Business & Community Lenders (BCL) of Texas. Funds will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis.
The City of Richardson is using $1 million of its CARES Act allocation to offer forgivable loans of up to $50,000 to small businesses. The terms of the loan will mirror those of Dallas County’s Emergency Business Assistance Program. Forgivable loans may be used for three months of payroll, lease payments, utilities, payments for business-related loans, plus $3,000 for start-up capital. The loan term is one year, at one percent, with payments deferred for four months. If a business has remained open for those four months with at least 90 percent of its March 1st full-time employee count, the loan will be forgiven. As of July 24, program details were not yet available.
The City of Rosenberg has extended its Business Resiliency Grant Program in order to make it available to more local businesses, opening the Program to sole proprietorships. To be eligible, businesses must have no more than 25 employees, have applied for relief from other programs, and have lost 25 percent or more of its revenue due to the pandemic. The Program provides grants of up to $6,000 to pay for three months’ rent. The application window opened on June 17 and closed on July 15.
The City of Round Rock partnered with several private-sector entities to create Round Rock Cares, a small business relief program. The City, the Greater Round Rock Community Foundation, the Round Rock Chamber, and Dell Technologies contributed $25,000 each to open the fund, and community members boosted the fund to over $400,000. The first round of funding closed on April 3, providing financial assistance to 160 small businesses; the program is now closed.
The City of Rowlett created the $100,000 Rowlett Business Stimulus (ROBUST) grant program to provide short-term, immediate relief to small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic Businesses must have 20 or fewer employees, have a physical and publicly accessible location within the city, and have been in continuous operation for at least six months. Applications were accepted between April 17-30. Ninety-nine businesses applied, and the program was depleted after making its first 19 grants. The City then launched a second round, offering grants of up to $10,000, and totaling $392,078. On September 8, the City launched the application period for a third round, with applications due on September 21, offering a total of $519,820. Eligible applicants will be randomly selected to receive grants of up to $25,000.
The City of San Antonio accepted applications from July 13-27 for its $24.7 million COVID-19 Recovery Grant Program, which offered grants of up to $75,000 depending on number of employees. Sole proprietors could apply for up to $10,000; businesses with 1-5 employees for up to $25,000; those with 6-10 employees up to $50,000; and those with 11-20 up to $75,000. To qualify, businesses must have less than $2 million in annual revenues, be located within the city limits and willing to remain within the city for at least one year, have been in operation before August 1, 2019, and have lost at least 15 percent of revenue due to the pandemic. The program was funded with a portion of the City’s federal CARES Act allocation.
The City of Seabrook created a $250,000 Emergency Business Retention Incentive program on April 20, offering grants of up to $10,000, depending on business size, type, and operating and ownership status. More than 35 businesses received grants, totaling $184,000. The City reopened the Fund on May 11 in order to award the remaining $66,000. Businesses must be located within a Seabrook Empowerment Zone and have been in operation on January 1, 2020 in order to apply. The application deadline for the second round was May 22.
On May 5, the City of Seguin created the Seguin Strong Stimulus Program, a partnership between the Seguin Main Street Program and the Seguin Economic Development Corporation, to offer grants, loans, and services to small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Using $250,000 from the city’s utility fund, the program offers awards of up to $5,000 for rent, mortgages, payroll, and other eligible expenses. Businesses must have 75 employees or less, be a Seguin utility customer, be able to demonstrate income loss due to the pandemic, and be in good standing with local and state government. National and regional chains are ineligible, as are home-based businesses, RV parks, and several other types of businesses. The application period was May 6-13.
The City of Sulphur Springs used $70,000 of its $890,945 CARES Act allocation to launch its COVID-19 Small Business Assistance Program, offering $2,500 grants to qualified small businesses. The City received 37 applications and was able to approve 28 of them. Checks were distributed on Tuesday, October 27, 2020.
On June 22, Tarrant County began accepting applications for its Small Business Assistance Grant program, offering grants of up to $10,000 to businesses with 25 or fewer employees. The $30 million pool is being funded from the County’s CARES Act allocation. $6 million of the $30 million pool is being earmarked for women-, minority-, and veteran-owned businesses. The application window closed on July 1.
The Texas Woman’s University is administering the $1 million Texas AssistHER Emergency Relief Grant program, offering women-owned businesses in Texas grants of $10,000. Grants can be used for technology upgrades or other items needed to adapt a business’s business model.
The Texas Black Expo is providing emergency micro-grants of $1,000 each to at least 100 qualifying businesses. Four corporations – H-E-B, Enterprise Holdings, Chevron, and UPS – are partnering with Texas Black Expo to capitalize the micro-grant program. Grants were distributed on April 30.
On March 23, the Texas Restaurant Association created the TX Restaurant Relief Fund to keep independent restaurants open, with a goal of raising at least $10 million, providing $5,000 grants to 2,000 Texas restaurants. By May 28, it had distributed grants totaling $2.23 million to more than 400 restaurants. On June 1, the Association announced that it was also opening the Fund to restaurants damaged as a result of vandalism and looting in the week following the death of George Lloyd in Minneapolis.
Travis County’s $10 million Travis County Thrive small business grant program began accepting pre-applications on June 15. The program offers grants of up to $40,000, serving as reimbursements for eligible expenses, to no more than 250 businesses. To be eligible, businesses must be within Travis County but not within Austin; must have no more than 25 employees; must have annual revenue of $500,000 or less; and must not have received another loan or grant for the expenses for which it is seeking reimbursement. Business owners must also commit to keeping their businesses open for a minimum of 12 months from the date of the grant award. Businesses may file pre-applications until July 3. Business and Community Lenders of Texas is offering assistance to help businesses complete their grant applications. Awards will be announced beginning on July 25, and grant recipients must submit reimbursement requests by December 10. The fund is capitalized by the County’s CARES Act allocation. The program received $2.5 million in requests in its first three days.
On April 28, the City of Waco and McLennan County approved an $830,000 Small Business Emergency Recovery Fund. The Fund provided grants of up to $5,000 to small businesses. The program ultimately awarded 175 grants totaling $830,000 to small businesses employing fewer than 10 people. Of the businesses awarded, 133 were women-owned, minority-owned, or both, and the majority of the money reportedly went to paying for rent/leases. The Fund will be capitalized with $415,000 from the Waco/McLennan County Economic Development Corporation and $415,415 in Community Development Block Grant included in the CARES Act.
Williamson County is using $25 million of its $93 million CARES Act Coronavirus Relief Fund allocation to capitalize Wilco Forward, offering grants of up to $30,000 to businesses with less than 100 employees. The amount of the grant a business can receive is based on the percentage of closure it experienced during the Stay Home Stay Safe order; those that were completely closed can apply for 100 percent of the eligible grant amount, those that partially closed can apply for 75 percent, and those that stayed open can apply for 50 percent. Certain types of businesses are not eligible, including real estate developers, casinos, pawn shops, and businesses whose owners are incarcerated.The application deadline for Phase 1 is June 30. Grant applications are processed and funded in the order in which they are received.
The City of Wylie approved a resolution April 28 establishing a $301,000 Small Business Assistance Program, offering grants to businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Sole proprietor businesses may apply for grants of up to $1,500; those with employees may apply for grants of up to $5,000, with most of the Program’s funding – $200,000 of the $301,000 total – reserved for businesses with 25 or fewer employees. To be eligible, businesses must be local and independently owned; must have been in operation for at least six months before the application date; must be in good standing with the City; and must be able to demonstrate a decline in revenue from COVID-19. Businesses that have received a Paycheck Protection Program or Economic Injury Disaster Loan are not eligible. Applications were available on May 6, and grants were allocated on a first-come, first-served basis.On June 9, City Council renewed the program with an additional $750,000.
Utah
Utah’s Office of Economic Development is offering $11 million in bridge loans to businesses with 50 or fewer employees. Loans range from $5,000-$20,000, with repayment deferred for one year and no interest payments for up to five years. Loans cannot exceed three months of operating expenses. At least one-quarter of the program’s funds are reserved for businesses in rural areas. Businesses must have been established before January 1, 2020, and they must have employees for whom payroll taxes have been withheld. More than 2,700 businesses submitted applications for Round 1, and the state awarded a total of $6,105,500 to 1,031 businesses. The second round will be open to nonprofits as well as small businesses.
On April 30, the State of Utah launched a $40 million COVID-19 Commercial Rental Assistance Program (ComRent) offering rent relief to small businesses that have lost revenue due to the pandemic. To qualify, businesses had to have fewer than 100 employees (including both full- and part-time workers), and grants of up to $10,000 were available. In its first few months, the program awarded $14 million in grants to 1,630 businesses, with the average grant being $8,783. in late July, the legislature amended the program to make it available to more businesses, extending the maximum grant to $15,000 (businesses with multiple locations may receive grants of up to $30,000) and opening the program to businesses with fewer than 250 full-time employees. The program now also covers both mortgage and rent payments. Applications are accepted on a first-come, first-served basis, and the application window will remain open until the program’s funding is depleted.
The City of Ogden’s Ogden CARES Business Grant Program provides grants to support businesses that have an unmet financial need due to COVID-19. The program is funded by the city’s CARES Act allocation. The first round of the program ran from July 1 – August 16, and the city was able to provide grants to all 90 businesses and nonprofits that applied, totaling $4 million. The city plans to reopen the program for a second round.
The Salt Lake City Chamber of Commerce offered a Mainstreet Preservation Grant, funded by the Chamber’s Utah Job Opportunities Foundation, to make grants to rural and minority small businesses that need immediate assistance related to the COVID-19 pandemic and before federal stimulus funding is available. To qualify, businesses had to have fewer than 50 employees and be nominated by their local Utah chamber or economic development department. Grants of up to $5,000 were distributed the week of April 20. The program was capitalized with a $500,000 donation from WCF Insurance.
Salt Lake City has launched a $1 million Emergency Loan Program, providing zero-interest, five-year working capital loans of up to $20,000 to businesses within the city limits. Repayment will be deferred roughly 90 days after the local COVID-19 emergency expires.
Salt Lake County is offering a Small Business Impact Grant, offering grants of $500-$35,000 to small businesses and nonprofit organizations. The $40 million program is funded by part of the County’s federal CARES Act allocation. To qualify, businesses must be located in the County, employ fewer than 100 workers, be in an industry negatively affected by COVID-19, have been in operation before January 1, and received less than $35,000 in CARES Act funds. The program awarded its first round of grants to 142 businesses on July 28, totaling $2.4 million. $2.1 million in grants were still under review. There is no deadline for the second round; applications will be accepted and reviewed until funds are exhausted.
The Six County Association of Governments is offering an Emergency Business Assistance Grant Program, making grants of up to $60,000 for businesses in Juab, Millard, Piute, Sanpete, Sevier, and Wayne Counties that have been negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and economic shutdown. The program is capitalized with CDBG-CV funds allocated by the CARES Act. Grants can be used for working capital, payroll, rent, utilities, and other expenses. The application window opened on June 5, and applications will be accepted on a rolling basis until funds are exhausted.
Utah County is using $15 million of its CARES Act allocation to fund the Utah County CARES Small Business Grant Program, offering grants of up to $20,000 to small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-1 pandemic. Grants are based on the number of employees a business has: $10,000 for businesses with up to 10 employees (including sole proprietors); $15,000 for those with 11-25 employees; and $20,000 for those with 26-100 employees. To qualify, businesses must have been licensed in Utah County before January 1, 2019; must provide documentation of revenue loss; must not have received other public-sector COVID-19 financial support; and must be open, or planning to reopen. The application window is August 3-10.
Washington County’s Greater Together Small Business Resilience Fund offered emergency loans to help small businesses stay in operation until state or federal assistance became available. Small businesses could apply for a five-year, interest-free loan of up to $20,000 to use for payroll, rent, utilities, inventory, or to upgrade digital tools to pivot business models. Loan repayment will begin 90 days after the emergency declaration expires. The $1 million Fund was capitalized by Washington County, and the Cities of Santa Clara, St. George, and Washington, plus several companies. The program received a high volume of applications and closed within one week.
Vermont
On May 20, Vermont Gov. Phil Scott announced creation of a $400 million economic relief and recovery package, using funds from the state’s $1.25 billion Coronavirus Relief Fund allocation, part of the CARES Act. The package will be rolled out in two phases. The first phase includes a $70 million program for immediate relief (Emergency Economic Recovery Grants), of which $50 million will be administered by the Agency of Commerce and Community Development and $20 million program will be administered by the Department of Taxes, depending on business type. In all instances, businesses must be based in Vermont, have at least one non-owner employee in Vermont, have been open before February 15, 2020, and have experienced a 75 percent or greater income loss in any one-month period between March 1-August 31, compared with 2019. Applications are being reviewed on a rolling basis, with awards made on a first-come, first-served basis. The Governor announced further program details on June 19, and the application process for the Emergency Economic Recovery Grants opened at the beginning of July. The second phase of the economic relief package will be rolled out later. On August 18, the grant award maximum was increased from $50,000 to $150,000. Businesses that received a $50,000 grant from the Vermont Department of Taxes may request additional grant funding by submitting a short supplemental application on myVTax.
The Vermont Arts Council’s Rapid Response Artist Relief program provided grants of up to $500 to artists who had lost income due to the loss of a job or cancellation of a specific, scheduled gig or opportunity (e.g., commissions, performances, contracts, workshops, classes, etc.) because of COVID-19. The Arts Council awarded more than $170,000 in relief grants to 425 artists. Funding for this program was made possible in part by the New England Foundation for the Arts, the Vermont Community Foundation, and the generosity of individual donors.
On September 21, Burlington’s City Council voted to approve the distribution of $50,000 in grant money to local businesses owned by Black, Indigenous and people of color (BIPOC) entrepreneurs. The allocation of support grants will be overseen by the city’s department of Racial Equity, Inclusion and Belonging and follows an eight-point plan created by the city to ensure a racially just recovery from COVID-19.
On June 9, the Vermont Community Foundation announced the creation of a Main Street Business Relief Fund for Arlington, Dorset, and Manchester, making at least $1 million available in grants to small businesses in these three communities. The Fund’s development was led by an anonymous donor, with additional contributions from area philanthropists and private foundations. The Fund is encouraging additional contributions from the public and is hoping to boost the total pool available to $1.5 million. Grants of $4,000-$25,000 will be available, based on the relative size of a business, its level of financial distress, and its importance to the town’s vibrancy. The Fund will give priority to businesses in sectors most important to a town’s vitality and character, particularly food, lodging, retail, personal care, outdoor recreation, pet care, landscaping, arts, and local publications. The application deadline is June 22.
The City of Rutland has created a small business relief program with money from the city’s business incentive program. The program made $60,000 in loans of between $5,000-$10,000 to eleven businesses on April 20 and is planning to loan an additional $70,000 through a second round, for which applications were due on April 24.
Virginia
On July 2, the Commonwealth of Virginia announced creation of the $70 million Rebuild! VA Small Business Grant Program, offering grants of up to $10,000 to small businesses and nonprofits whose normal operations were disrupted by COVID-19 and the economic shutdown, including restaurants, brick-and-mortar retail, exercise and fitness facilities, personal care and personal grooming services, entertainment and public amusement establishments, and campgrounds. Grants are available for up to three times a business’s average monthly eligible expenses, up to a maximum of $10,000. Businesses must have 25 or fewer employees, have gross revenues of less than $1.5 million in the previous fiscal year, and been in operation before March 12, 2020. Applications will be available on August 10, 2020. On October 28, Governor Northam announced that that he is adding an additional $30 million to the program, increasing the maximum grant from $10,000 to $100,000, and making grants available to businesses with fewer than 250 employees and annual revenues of $10 million or less.
The Virginia 30 Day Fund, launched by a tech entrepreneur, provides 30-day loans to small businesses waiting for federal funds. Businesses must employ between 3-30 people, be based in Virginia and operating for at least one year, and owned and operated by a Virginia resident. Businesses do not need to repay the loans, although they are encouraged to “pay it forward” to another Virginia small business by repaying the Fund. The application is designed to be completed in 10 minutes or less, and approval takes place within three days, with funds transferred immediately.
Albemarle County will use $1.25 million of its federal Coronavirus Relief Fund to create a grant program – the Albemarle County Lift Grant – for small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The program will give preference to businesses in the hospitality, entertainment, retail, and tourism sectors, as will businesses owned by women, minorities, or veterans. The program will offer grants of up to $10,000 for businesses with 2-10 employees, $20,000 for those with 11-20 employees, and $50,000 for those with more than 20 employees (but less than 110 employees). Businesses must be physically located within the County and must have been in business for at least two years. Certain types of businesses are not eligible, including banks/financial institutions, sole proprietors, home-based businesses, franchises, and vape, tobacco, gambling, weapons, and sex-related businesses. As of July 24, applications were not yet available.
The Alexandria Economic Development Partnership launched ALX B2B, a grant program to help Alexandria businesses reopen, the week of June 1. The $4 million program is being capitalized by $2 million from the City of Alexandria’s CARES Act allocation and half from reallocated funding from the Alexandria Investment Fund. To be eligible, businesses must demonstrate their intention to remain in operation, that they have been in business for more than one year, and that they are locally owned. Businesses with 2-24 employees may apply for a grant of up to $10,000; those with 25-49 employees may apply for a grant of up to $15,000; and those with 50-100 employees may apply for up to $20,000. Grants may be used for reopening costs, such as personal protective equipment, equipment and supplies to promote health and safety, technology to facilitate e-commerce and/or virtual business operations, professional services related to the design and construction/alteration of the business’s physical space, initial cleaning/disinfection, and rent or mortgage costs required in order to reopen. Applications were available on June 4 and were due by June 8.
Amherst County’s Economic Development Authority has reprogrammed $25,000 from a fund it uses to help startup businesses with water/sewer hookup fees to create a grant program for small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The program will offer grants of up to $1,000 and is open to businesses with 20 or fewer employees. The application process opened on May 11.
On July 14, Amherst County’s Economic Development Authority announced development of a $300,000 small business grant program, funded with some of the County’s $2.5 million CARES Act allocation. The program will offer grants of up to $25,000 for locally owned businesses with 21 or more employees; up to $10,000 for locally owned businesses with up to 20 employees; and up to $5,000 for businesses in Amherst County but not locally owned. To qualify, businesses must have been in operation since March 1, 2019, have a physical location in Amherst County, and be current on taxes and licenses. Grants may be used for rent/mortgage payments, utilities, expenses to restart business, marketing, and payroll. Grants will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis. The program will end on December 15 or when funds are depleted.
Arlington County has created the Arlington Small Business Emergency GRANT (Giving Resiliency Assets Near Term) Program to help small businesses and nonprofits with fewer than 50 employees and demonstrated revenue loss of 35 percent or more. The County is redirecting $674,000 in existing funds to capitalize the Program. Several other organizations are contributing to the Program to help small businesses in specific neighborhoods. For example, the Crystal City Business Improvement District, in Arlington, has contributed $100,000 for grants to businesses in the Pentagon City, Crystal City, and Potomac Yard neighborhoods.
Augusta County is using $200,000 of its $6.5 million CARES Act allocation to create a Disaster Recovery Grant Fund, offering grants of up to $10,000 to businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. To qualify, businesses must be locally owned, have no more than 25 employees, and have not received any federal relief loans. The application deadline was July 10, with grantees notified by July 17 and checks mailed on July 24.
The Town of Bedford and its Economic Development Authority announced a $150,00 grant program for small businesses on April 27, offering grants of up to $5,000 to small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The program is funded by existing EDA funds, meal tax revenue, the Town’s unrestricted fund balance, and electricity and utility revenues. The program is open to retail businesses and restaurants with a brick-and-mortar location in Bedford, a valid business license, and a demonstrated revenue loss of 25 percent or more. The program’s deadline was May 15.
On August 17, the Bedford County Office of Economic Development began accepting applications for its $1 million Back to Business Grant Program, funded by the County’s CARES Act allocation. To qualify, businesses must have been in business for a minimum of one year prior to March 1; have 100 or fewer employees, have 2019 gross revenues of at least $50,000 but not more than $3 million; and not have received a grant from the Town of Bedford earlier in the year.
The City of Cape Charles has launched an $845,000 small business relief grant program, using Community Development Block Grant funds from the Commonwealth. The program will offer grants of up to $15,000, hoping to help up to 50 businesses. As of September 4, program details and application materials were not yet available. Applications will be posted on the Cape Charles Main Street program’s Facebook page.
The City of Charlottesville’s Building Resilience Among Charlottesville Entrepreneurs (BRACE) Grant program offered grants of up to $2,000 for local businesses. The program received 150 applications in its first three days and was able to award grants averaging $1,200 to 69 businesses.
Charlottesville’s Community Investment Collaborative has created the Business Recovery Fund microloan program, making low-interest loans of up to $10,000 to small businesses negatively affected by the pandemic and economic shutdown. The Fund is capitalized by $200,000 from the Albemarle Economic Development Authority and $100,000 more from the Charlottesville Economic Development Authority. The program began accepting applications on April 24; its first funding round closed on May 8, and its second closed on May 29. The interest rate is one percent, with a three-year repayment term and repayment deferred for six months. To be eligible, businesses must be physically located in Charlottesville or Albemarle County, must have at least one non-owner employee, and must have been in business in 2019.
The United Way of Greater Charlottesville has launched a COVID-19 recovery grant for minority-owned businesses. The program will make grants of up to $10,000 to five small businesses and will give them a five-year membership in the Chamber of Commerce’s Minority Business Alliance. To qualify, businesses must be over 50 percent minority-owned, located within Albemarle County, have been in business for at least a year, and have annual net revenue of less than $250,000 (or less than $500,000 if employing at least three full-time workers). The application deadline is September 15.
Chesapeake Economic Development’s Small Business COVID-19 Recovery Grant program focuses on for-profit small businesses based in the city with fewer than 50 employees. Businesses can apply for up to $10,000 for reimbursable expenditures related to COVID-19 including rent, payroll, and operating expenses. Business eligibility requirements include: 50 or fewer employees; start date of March 1, 2019; remained open and maintained staff throughout pandemic; and current on city taxes and business registration.
Chesterfield County began accepting applications for its Back in Business small business grant program on June 15. The $5 million program offers $10,000 grants to 500 small businesses that have been in business for at least two years, generate between $200,000-$2 million in annual gross revenues, and have lost at least 25 percent of anticipated revenue because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Franchises are eligible, but only if headquartered in Chesterfield County, and only one grant is available per franchise, regardless of the number of locations within the County. In late August, the County added an additional $3.4 million to the program from its federal CARES Act allocation.
The Town of Chincoteague will use $225,000 in federal CARES Act funds from Accomack County to provide grants to small businesses and working watermen. $30,000 will be set aside for working watermen, who must certify that at least 50 percent of their income comes from working on the water. The remainder will be available as $4,000 grants to small businesses affected by the pandemic and economic shutdown, with preference given to businesses that have not yet received federal financial assistance. The application window will open on August 3, with funding awarded on a first-come, first-served basis.
On May 29, Culpeper Renaissance, Inc. awarded $34,750 in grants from its Downtown Business Relief Fund to 22 downtown businesses. The Fund was capitalized with a $20,000 Small Business Support Relief and Recovery Initiative grant from the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development (VDHCD), a $10,000 grant from the Northern Piedmont Community Foundation (NPCF) Emergency Response Fund, and $4,750 from contributions to Give Local Piedmont.
Danville’s Industrial Development Authority voted unanimously to create three emergency grant and loan programs to help local small businesses: a $300,000 emergency loan program, a $75,000 marketing and e-commerce matching grant, and $50,000-75,000 in small business rent relief. The emergency loan program, which will charge no interest for the first year, is designed as a stopgap until businesses received a replacement loan from the SBA’s Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program. The loan program is capitalized by the IDA’s city-funded loan account and from the City’s economic development office’s incentive account. The $75,000 matching grant is funded by the economic development office’s incentive account and the River District Association. The small business rent relief program will offer grants of up to $3,000 to provide rent reimbursement for one month. Like the matching grant, it is funded by the economic development office’s incentive account and the River District Association.
On April 15, Fairfax County launched a $2.5 million microloan program for small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Interest-free loans of up to $20,000, with terms up to six years, were available to businesses with 50 or fewer employees and that had been in business for at least two years. Loan repayment is deferred for six months. The application period opened on April 28 and closed on April 30. The County received 1,714 applications, with loan requests totaling over $30 million. Given how over-subscribed the program was, the County randomly assigned a computer-generated number to each request, then put the requests in numerical order. When the amounts requested reached the available funds, the County invited those applicants to apply for funding. Approximately 127 business owners were invited, with a waiting list of 10-12 additional businesses.
On May 12, Fairfax County created a $25 million Fairfax Relief Initiative to Support Employers (Fairfax RISE), providing $10,000 grants to businesses with ten or fewer employees, $15,000 to businesses with 11-25 employees, and $20,000 to those with than 26-49 employees. One-third of the grants are reserved for businesses that have trouble receiving funding, including minority- and women-owned businesses. For-profit businesses, nonprofit organizations, and independent contractors/sole proprietors are eligible.The program is funded with supplemental Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) authorized by the CARES Act. The application period opened in early June.
On July 14, Franklin County announced the establishment of a $500,000 grant fund to support small business recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. The program offered grants of up to $10,000, depending on number of employees, to reimburse costs of business interruption. The application window was July 14-20. The program was funded with a portion of the County’s federal CARES Act allocation.
Frederick County has committed $1 million of its CARES Act allocation to create the Frederick County COVID-19 Business Grant Program, offering grants of $5,000, $7,500, or $10,000 to small businesses, depending on businesses’ gross annual revenues. The application window is September 8-15, with award selections made on September 29 and applicants notified on October 6.
The City of Fredericksburg and the Fredericksburg Economic Development Authority announced on May 18 that they will launch a second round of small business relief. The first round provided grants totaling $250,000 to 107 small businesses. The Economic Development Authority is establishing an exploratory committee to decide how to structure the second round. The Authority’s contribution to the second round will come primarily from fees paid by private developers; the City’s share will come from the $2.5 million on CDBG-CV that it is receiving via the CARES Act.
Gloucester County allocated $512,000 of its CARES Act funding to launch “Back to Business Middle Peninsula”, a small business grant program designed to help with the costs of implementing COVID-19 safety protocols. The program is being administered by the Middle Peninsula Planning District Commission. On September 15, the County’s Board of Supervisors increased the program’s funding by $500,000, also from its CARES Act allocation.
Greene County used $300,000 of its $1.7 million CARES Act allocation to create a grant program for small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Grants of $5,000, $10,000, and $25,000 are available, based on a business’s gross sales and on the loss it has incurred. Businesses that have lost 50 percent or more of their anticipated revenues, based on their 2019 revenues, are eligible for a $25,000 grant; those with gross receipts of $100,000-$500,000 and a 33 percent loss are eligible for a $10,000 grant; and those with gross receipts of $100,000 or less and a 25 percent loss are eligible for a $5,000 grant. Businesses must have fewer than 50 employees and have been in operation in Greene County before March 20. The application window was July 29-August 10, 2020.
The City of Hampton offered a COVID-19 Small Business Assistance Program, awarding forgivable loans of up to $10,000 to businesses with annual gross receipts of $1 million or less and a minimum six month operating history. To have the loan forgiven, a business’s payment of tax and fees to the City must remain current for six months from the date of its loan application.
In mid-August, the City of Harrisonburg launched a small business grant program, using $750,000 of its federal CARES Act allocation. Grants of $4,000-$10,000 are available, depending on the number of workers a business employs. Applications were due on August 27.
Isle of Wight County, including the towns of Windsor and Smithfield, will accept applications until Octobber 30 for the second round of its “Reopen & Rebound” COVID-19 small business grant program. The program offers grants of up to $4,000 to eligible small businesses. Businesses that received up to $2,000 in the program’s first round may apply to receive an additional $2,000. The program is capitalized by the County’s federal CARES Act allocation.
In the fall of 2020, the Town of Leesburg awarded $6 million to 344 local businesses and 27 nonprofit organizations in two rounds of grants, funded by the federal CARES Act.
Loudoun County created a $1.4 million grant program, the COVID-19 Business Interruption program, using $1.15 million transferred from a fund reserved to attract new employers and $250,000 from the Loudoun Economic Development Authority. The program was open to businesses with between 3-100 businesses, annual receipts of less than $2.5 million, and able to demonstrate a 25 percent or greater drop in revenue due to the pandemic. Businesses with 3-50 employees, or home-based businesses with fewer than 100, could request grants of up to $7,500. Those with between 51-100 employees could request grants of up to $10,000. The program opened on April 29 and closed on May 2, ultimately awarding $1.4 million to 201 businesses. It received more than 1,200 applications. All eligible businesses with 51-100 employees received funding, as did all agricultural businesses with 0-2 employees. Other businesses were chosen at random to receive $7,500 each from the remaining funds.
Montgomery County is using a portion of its federal CARES Act to offer grants of up to $27,500 to small businesses in the County and its two towns, Blacksburg and Christianburg. The program will be administered by the Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce; Downtown Blacksburg, Inc.; Downtown Christiansburg, Inc.; and the Blacksburg Partnership. Applications are due by September 20, 2020.
Nelson County, in partnership with the Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission, is allocating $350,000 of COVID-19 relief to small business relief grants for qualified businesses that can prove revenue loss due to COVID-19. Grants range between $5,000 – $30,000 depending on the number of employees.
The City of Norfolk is offering grants of up to $2,000 to help businesses restructure and resume operations. Grants may be used for costs related to reopening, such as replenishing inventory, safety equipment, new signage related to social distancing and new business practices, and creating an online presence. To be eligible, businesses must show evidence of a pivoted and/or progressive business model as a response to the pandemic, must have 50 or fewer employees, must have been in operation since January 2019, and must demonstrate that they have applied for federal, state, or local disaster relief assistance. The grant program is part of OpenNorfolk, a broader initiative to help businesses reopen, offering businesses things like free signs, social distancing decals, and hands-on assistance with activities like building parklets or moving dining furniture outdoors.
On July 16, the City of Norfolk announced creation of a $2 million Coronavirus Relief Grant Fund offering grants of $5,000-$25,000 to small businesses, depending on number of employees. Nonprofit organizations are eligible for grants of up to $15,000. Grants will be offered in four rounds, from August-November. The program is being administered by the Norfolk Economic Development Authority and is funded by a portion of the City’s federal CARES Act allocation.
The City of Norton, in partnership with Lee, Scott, and Wise Counties are using $1.6 million of their combined federal CARES Act allocations to create the LENOWISCO Regional Small Business Recovery Assistance program, offering grants of up to $15,000 to eligible small businesses. Grants may be used to help small businesses prepare to open and operate safely and to provide rent/mortgage relief for 3-6 months. They may not be used for payroll, costs of daily business operations, and several other types of expenses. To qualify, businesses must be locally or regionally owned, have no more than 20 employees, must be current on taxes, and must demonstrate a direct negative impact from the COVID-19 pandemic and economic shutdown. The application window is September 1-20.
The Orange Downtown Alliance offered $1,000 emergency relief grants to small downtown businesses through a $10,000 award from the Virginia Main Street Program’s Small Business Support Relief and Recovery Initiative. The application period closed on May 8, and grants were awarded on May 15.
Powhatan County used $517,404 of its federal CARES Act allocation for a grant program for small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Businesses with nine or fewer employees were eligible for $10,000 grants; those with 10-25 employees were eligible for $25,000 grants. The application deadline was September 7.
On August 3, Pulaski County began accepting applications for its $300,000 Small Business Recovery Grant Program, offering $5,000 grants to businesses with 25 or fewer employees and that had a Pulaski County business license prior to July 15. Businesses that have not received assistance from the federal Paycheck Protection Program can submit applications first, with all other businesses able to submit applications on August 10. The program will close on December 1 or when its funding has been depleted, whichever comes first.
The City of Radford is using $200,000 of its CARES Act allocation to create the POWER Grant Initiative – Pressing Onward With Economic Resiliency. The program offers grantts of $1,000-$5,000 on a first-come, first-served basis to small businesses with 50 or fewer employees. Businesses must have been in operation prior to March 15 and open for business at the time they submit applications.
In Richmond, Chamber RVA created the RVA Small Business Relief Fund, offering grants to help with rent, payroll, and other operating expenses as a stop-gap until other relief became available. The Fund was capitalized by a $250,000 contribution from Facebook. The application period was May 13-19.
The Richmond Economic Development Authority announced on April 2 that it was launching a $1 million loan fund, offering interest-free loans of up to $20,000 to help businesses pay employees for the next six months. The repayment term is 48 months, with payments deferred for six months. The fund is open to businesses that have been in operation for at least two years and that have fewer than 25 employees. Business owners are required to provide a personal guarantee that the loan will be repaid. The application window opened on April 6. By April 30, the fund had received 63 applications and approved loans to 21 businesses, totaling $410,000. As of early June, the fund was still accepting applications.
In early May, the City of Roanoke collaborated with the Economic Development Authority, Total Action for Progress, and Business Seed Capital to create a $75,000 interest-free loan program for small businesses. The program offered loans of up to $3,000 for utilities, rent, and other needs. Loans have a 12-month maturity, with repayment deferred 90 days. To qualify, businesses needed to have fewer than 25 employees and to have been in business for at least two years. Then, in July, the City’s Star City Strong Recovery Fund Task Force recommended that the City allocate at least $2.5 million for economic recovery, including job training for displaced workers; funds for marketing reopening; funding for restaurants, performing arts, and farmers; and funds to assist small businesses, particularly to help them improve safety, bring back furloughed workers, and improve back-office processes. As a result, the City created a $1 million Small Business Economic Recovery Grant program in late August, offering grants of $1,250-$12,000, depending on number of employees. The program began accepting applications on August 14 and will continue until funding is exhausted.
On July 6, Roanoke County launched a $1 million Small Business Recovery Grant program, offering grants of $2,500-$10,000 to qualified businesses, based on number of employees. Grants can be used for operations, pivoting to respond to new market conditions, equipment, inventory, rent/mortgage payments, PPE, protective barriers, and other operating expenses. To be eligible, businesses must have been in operation on for at least one year as of March 1, 2020, must be current on taxes and permits, must have at least one employee (not including the owner), must be able to demonstrate negative impacts from the pandemic, and must have a sustainability plan for remaining in business. Grants will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis.
On June 24, the Rockingham County Board of Supervisors announced that it would use $500,000 of its federal CARES Act allocation to offer grants of $5,000 or $10,000 (depending on number of employees) to local businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The application window was July 13-24. In late July, the County announced that it would offer a second round of grants, with applications due on August 23, then it announced a third round in late August, with applications accepted between September 14-27.
The Town of Rocky Mount is using $275,000 from its CARES Act allocation for Reset Rocky Mount, offering grants of up to $5,000 to small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. To qualify, businesses must have been in operation on January 1, 2020; must show a reduction in sales due to the pandemic; must have, or be pursuing, a social media presence; must have a brick-and-mortar location within the town, and must have 20 or fewer employees. Applications are due on July 28.
The City of Salem is using $500,000 of its $2,207,415 CARES Act allocation to create a small business grant program for businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The program offers qualified business owners grants of up to $5,000 to reimburse costs such as developing delivery or take-out options; buying equipment and inventory; making rent or mortgage payments; buying personal protective equipment; and conducting deep cleaning. The application window opened on July 13.
The Town of South Boston has created a $250,000 small business zero-interest loan fund to support small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The program is funded with money from the Virginia Main Street Program, housed within the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development. The program is open to businesses with no more than 30 employees. Loans of up to $5,000 are available, with repayment deferred for six months and the loan then paid off over a 30-month term. Chain stores are not eligible.
The Stafford County Economic Development Authority (EDA) launched three new small business assistance grants in August: Stay, Sleep, and Safe in Stafford Business Grant(s). These grant programs were funded using $2.357M in federal CARES Act funds provided by the County of Stafford and administered by the Stafford County EDA. Stay in Stafford was open to Stafford-based small businesses and provided a grant of up to $10,000. Grant awards were calculated and based on the business’s lease or mortgage payments for up to three (3) months. Small businesses in the Food and Beverage, Entertainment, and Retail Trade industries were given preference. Safe in Stafford was open to all Stafford-based small businesses and non-profit organizations, providing a reimbursable grant of up to $5,000, for the direct costs of PPE or other COVID-19 related equipment. Priority was given to those applicants that have invested in technology to facilitate e-commerce and/or virtual business operations, professional services, as well as the actual costs for alterations of technology changes or improvements that the business made (purchased) to respond to COVID-19. Sleep in Stafford was open to all Stafford-based lodging establishments (Airbnb and/or similar type individual rentals are not eligible), offering a grant of up to $30,000. Grant award amounts were based on the establishment’s documented number of guest rooms.
The City of Staunton and the Staunton Creative Community Fund have partnered to create a $100,000 Emergency-Disaster Relief Loan Fund for small businesses. Loans from $1,000-5,000 are available, with 2-3 percent interest and repayment deferred for up to six months.
The City of Suffolk began accepting applications on June 11 for its $200,000 Small Business Assistance Grant Program, offering grants of up to $5,000 to qualifying small businesses. To qualify, businesses must have no more than 50 full-time employees, must have been in operation before January 1, and must have been impacted by the Governor’s Executive Order 53. In September, the City announced a second $200,000 round. The program was funded by the Obici Healthcare Foundation. From September 10-30, the City offered a second round of grants, also for $200,000. In early October, the City offered a third round, totaling $500,000 and funded by a portion of the City’s CARES Act allocation.The application window for the thirdd round will close on October 31.
The Virginia Humanities Council has awarded $599,500 in grants to 110 museums, historical societies, and other cultural nonprofit organizations across the state that have lost revenue due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Grants ranged from $1,000-$10,000. The program was funded by the federal CARES Act.
The City of Virginia Beach is using some of its federal CARES Act allocation for a small business grant program, offering grants of up to $25,000 to reimburse businesses for expenses related to COVID-19 safety protocols, including PPE, workplace modification, indoor and outdoor fixtures and furniture, training, and staffing. The application window is August 21-September 11, at which point grants will be awarded through a lottery system.
On April 30, the City of Williamsburg created a $1 million COVID-19 Business Relief Grant, offering grants to local businesses for half of the amount they paid in Business, Professional, and Occupation taxes in 2019. Applications were available the week of May 4 and due by June 1. Only non-essential businesses were eligible. The program was capitalized with money redirected from the City’s Tourism Development Grant Fund.
In early July, the City of Winchester launched a CARES Act Emergency Grant program, offering grants of up to $5,000 for small businesses (up to 49 employees and less than $2.5 million in annual gross receipts) and up to $10,000 for larger businesses (more than 49 employees). The deadline was July 31, and the program awarded grants to 33 small businesses. On September 1, the City announced that it will offer a second round of grants. The deadline for the second round is September 30.
Washington
The State of Washington launched the $10 million Working Washington Small Business Emergency Grant program on April 8, offering grants of up to $10,000 for businesses with ten or fewer employees. The program was capitalized by $5 million from the Governor’s Strategic Reserve Fund, typically used to help recruit new companies or to support business retention and expansion, plus $5 million from the state’s $200 million emergency response fund. The program received more than 26,000 applications, far outpacing the amount of funding available, and expected to be able to provide grants to roughly 1,100 small businesses. In late August, the State funded a second round of $10 million in grants to support small businesses with 20 or fewer employees. As in Round 1, grants of up to $10,000 are available. The deadline was September 10. On September 23, Gov. Inslee announced that the state was adding another $30 million to the program. Then, on December 8, he announced a third round of grants, with an additional $50 million, with grants of up to $20,000 available and with priority given to businesses with annual revenues of less than $5 million. In early February, 2021, the state passed a bill that will allocate $240 million to the program for a fourth round, using CARES Act funding.
On May 12, the Chelan-Douglas Regional Port Authority launched a grant program to help small businesses pay rent and buy personal protective equipment. The $200,000 program, capitalized by the Port Authority, offers two types of grants: one for rent payments, and one for supplies needed for reopening a business, such as hand-washing stations, Plexiglas, masks, and gloves. Grants for rent are matching grants, with the landlord, tenant, and Port Authority each contributing one-third of a rent payment, up to a maximum of $1,000. To qualify, businesses must have fewer than ten employees, be located in Chelan or Douglas County, and not have received other federal or state pandemic funding. Port authorities have been prohibited from using their own funds to issue grants in the past, but the state Attorney General has waived this restriction during the COVID-19 pandemic.
On June 3, Clallam County launched a $500,000 Business Resilience Loan program, offering flexible-capital loans of $15,000-$50,000 to small businesses. The program is a partnership between the County; the Chambers of Commerce in Port Angeles, Sequim, and Forks; and Craft3, a regional loan fund. To be eligible, businesses must have been open for at least two years, had a profit in 2019, and experienced workforce reductions or business disruptions after March 1, 2020. Business owners must have a personal credit score of 640 or higher. The interest rate is five percent, with a loan term of 48 months. Repayment is fully deferred for the first three months, then borrowers will make interest-only payments for months 4-6.
The Cowlitz Economic Development Council and Pathways 2020 opened a rent relief program on May 15 to offer grants to women- and minority-owned businesses. The program is open to businesses with no more than 10 employees and will be paid directly to business’s landlord or property manager to cover rent or mortgage payments. The program is funded by a $50,000 grant from the Community Foundation of Southwest Washington.
The Cowlitz Economic Development Council is administering a $1 million small business grant program for Cowlitz County, capitalized by the County’s CARES Act allocation. Grants of up to $35,000 are available to businesses with up to 25 full-time-equivalent employees and that have been in operation for at least one year. Grants can be used for rent, utilities, marketing, training, and other operating expenses. The program’s deadline is June 26.
On June 5, the City of Ellensburg opened the application process for a $250,000 small business grant program, offering grants of up to $10,000 to small businesses to help them avoid permanently closing. Businesses that applied for the statewide Working Washington Small Business Emergency Grant program will automatically be included in the city’s program. The application window will close on June 19. The program is being funded with the city’s CARES Act allocation.
The City of Everett offered $10,000 grants to 50 small businesses and 11 nonprofit organizations through its Everett CARES Grant Program. Applications were accepted through May 11. To be eligible, businesses must have 20 employees or less, must demonstrate that they have lost revenue because of the pandemic, must provide needed jobs, and must be “beloved businesses with a loyal customer base”. The program was capitalized with a supplemental Community Development Block Grant allocation from the CARES Act.
In late May, the City of Gig Harbor launched a $308,000 Small Business Stabilization Grant program, using money from its federal CARES Act allocation. A total of 130 businesses applied, of which 111 met the program’s qualifications. Each business received the same amount: $2,774.77. To qualify, businesses needed to be located within city limits, have ten or fewer employees, not owned or partially owned by city employees or officials, and have suffered a financial loss due to the pandemic.
The City of Lacey is offering working capital grants of up to $10,000 to small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Businesses must have 25 or fewer employees, and preference is given to businesses with 10 or fewer. The total pool available is $500,000.
The Longview Downtowners are using a $75,000 grant from the Southwest Washington Community Foundation to make one-time business rent relief payments for small businesses. The rent relief grants of up to $2,400 or two months’ rent, whichever is lower, for downtown businesses. The Economic Development Council in nearby Cowlitz will review applications so that members of the Longview Downtowners may apply without conflicts of interest. Rent relief payments will be made directly to businesses’ landlords.
The City of Moses Lake is using $50,000 of its federal CARES Act allocation for its Rapid Response Business Assistance Grants program, offering grants of up to $5,000 to small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. To be eligible, businesses must have ten or fewer employees, have lost 25 percent or more of its anticipated revenue during the pandemic, be current on all taxes and licenses, and have been in operation on and at least one year prior to March 1, among other requirements. The application deadline is September 30.
The City of Mountlake Terrace created a $100,000 Small Business Relief Grant Program for businesses negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, offering grants of up to $5,000 to help businesses retain and create jobs, to acquire products needed to reopen, and to cover operating expenses. To be eligible, businesses must have 20 or fewer full-time employees, have a physical storefront, have been in operation for at least six months prior to March 23, and be able to demonstrate a loss of at least 25 percent of revenue in April or May as a result of the pandemic. Applications were due on July 13. The program was capitalized by funding from the state, via the federal CARES Act.
Okanogan County launched a Small Business Stabilization Grant program, using $250,000 of its federal CARES Act allocation. Grants of up to $10,000 were available. In September, the County reopened the program for a second round, adding another $200,000 in CARES Act funding to the program. The program was administered by the Economic Alliance.
The City of Omak is partnering with the Economic Alliance to administer a Small Business Stabilization Grant program through allocating $75,0000 of federal CARES funding for small business assistance. Grants of up to $2,000 will be awarded to businesses that are within the city limits. The intent of this grant is to assist businesses with eligible expenses incurred beginning March 1, 2020 through the date of their application.
In late August, Pend Oreille County and the Tri County Economic Development District (TEDD) partnered to create a Small Business Stabilization Grant, capitalized with $300,000 of the County’s CARES Act allocation. The program will make grants of up to $10,000 to small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Applications will be accepted through September 30th or until the available funds are depleted.
The City of Puyallup is offering grants of up to $2,000 through its COVID-19 Small Business Relief Grant. To be eligible, businesses must have had an active City of Puyallup business license before March 1, 2020; must have a physical location within city limits; most have temporarily closed or dramatically limited operations due to the pandemic; and demonstrate income loss. Grants will be made on a lottery basis to qualifying businesses. Applications are due by July 30, 2020.
The San Juan County Economic Development Council, in partnership with Valmark (Kings Market and Friday Harbor Market Place), offered grants of up to $10,000 to businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and economic shutdown. To qualify for the $300,000 program, businesses must have 30 or fewer employees, must have been profitable on San Juan Island for at least two years, and must be the primary source of income for the owner. Grants may be used for rent, utilities, inventory, web development, social media consulting, PPE and exposure control systems, and training for safety and socially-distanced sales. Grants do not need to be repaid, but the County is requiring recipients to give back to the community with 20 hours of community volunteer work within two years. Applications were available on June 5 and due by June 19, with announcements made on June 26.
San Juan County launched a $149,150 Small Business Relief Grant Program on September 1, offering grants of up to $5,000 to help eligible County businesses remain open, retain jobs, and comply with COVID-19 safety protocols. To qualify, businesses must have no more than 10 employees and have been in business within the County for at least one year. The application deadline is September 20, with awards announced on September 30. The program is funded from the County’s CARES Act allocation.
The City of SeaTac has launched a $350,000 Business Emergency Relief Grant, using funds from its federal CARES Act allocation. The program offers $2,500 grants to qualified businesses. To be eligible, businesses must have had no more than 15 full-time employees on January 1; have been in business at least three years as of June 30; have gross revenues of $1.5 million or less; experienced revenue loss due to the pandemic; and be current on licenses and taxes. The application window is July 24-August 7, and businesses will be notified about grant decisions by the end of August.
The City of Seattle launched a $4.69 million Business Stabilization Fund, making grants of up to $10,000 available to businesses whose owner is low- or median-income, with five or fewer employees (including the owner), and that has experienced a loss of income because of COVID-19. Franchises, chains, and businesses whose patrons must be older than 18 are not eligible. The City received nearly 9,000 applications by the March 25, 2020 deadline, of which 5,500 met program qualifications. It awarded $10,000 grants to 250 businesses and is hoping to find funds for a second round.
The City of Seattle also created a $400,000 Rent Relief program for arts and cultural nonprofits, artist studios, and small arts-related busiesses that rent city-owned property, plus a $1.1 million Arts Recovery Package, providing immediate relief for artists and creative workers impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The City of Sequim accepted applications for its $250,000 COVID-19 Small Business Rapid Relief Program from June 15-30, offering grants of up to $15,000 to qualified small businesses. To qualify, businesses needed to have fewer than 50 employees, a physical location within city limits, and to have been in business for at least one full calendar year. The program was funded by the City, the Sequim-Dungeness Valley Chamber of Commerce, and private contributions from members of the community.
Skagit County has awarded grants to 105 independently owned businesses through two rounds of its Small Business Grant Program. The first round awarded a total of $163,884 to 30 businesses with ten or fewer employees and that did not receive one of the state’s Working Washington Small Business Emergency Grants. The second round awarded a total of $809,000 to 75 businesses with 25 or fewer employees. The program was capitalized by $1 million from the County’s CARES Act allocation; grants of up to $25,000 were available. The application deadline was July 26, 2020.
The South Lake Union Chamber of Commerce, in Seattle’s South Lake Union neighborhood, is planning to offer grants to small businesses and nonprofits within the neighborhood. The SLU Chamber Small Business & Nonprofit Relief Fund will make grants of $1,500-$7,500, with priority given to businesses that have not yet received other financial relief, can demonstrate evidence of decreased revenues, and are active in or supportive of SLU community activities, initiatives, and neighborhood improvements. The SLU Chamber is raising money from the community for the Fund, with a goal of $250,000.
In mid-July, Spokane County created a $10 million grant program for small businesses that have been negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The program, which is open to both for-profit businesses and nonprofit organizations, offers grants of up to $2,500 for sole proprietors and grants of up to $10,000 for others. The program will be administered by Greater Spokane Inc. As of July 14, application materials and program details were not yet available.
On August 17, the City of Spokane gave a $300,000 grant to the Spokane Arts Council, to re-grant to locally owned cultural venues affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The City is also inviting applications from agencies and organizations to administer additional components of its plan to distribute COVID-19 economic support, including a component that will make grants to small, locally-owned neighborhood businesses.
In mid-July, Spokane County created a $10 million grant program for small businesses that have been negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The program, which is open to both for-profit businesses and nonprofit organizations, offers grants of up to $2,500 for sole proprietors and grants of up to $10,000 for others. The program will be administered by Greater Spokane Inc. As of July 14, application materials and program details were not yet available.
Spokane Arts created the Spokane Artists & Creatives Fund to support individual artists living in Spokane. the fund was capitalized with $25,000 from Spokane Arts and $14,000 from private contributions and offered $500 grants. The Fund received more requests than it could support and has now closed.
Thurston County’s Thurston Strong program offered six grant programs to help small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic: the Restaurant and Retail Rescue Fund, the Childcare Stabilization Grant program, the Nonprofit Grant program, the Agricultural Business Grant program, the Micro-Business Standup Grant program, and the Childcare Provider Grant program. In all, the grant programs total $12 million.
The City of Vancouver will be launching a small business assistance program in late June, using the $931,834 CDBG-CV allocation the City is receiving via the CARES Act. The program will offer grants, loans, and technical assistance to eligible businesses. On May 19, the City issued a Request for Information to find an organization to administer the program on its behalf.
Whatcom County accepted applications for its Whatcom ReStart small business grant relief program from July 16-July 31, 2020. The program, which made grants of up to $15,000 to eligible small businesses, received 628 applications and was able to make 264 (148 of them to businesses in Belligham, the County’s largest city), totaling $2.5 million. Applications were scored according to three criteria: adaptability/business strength, impact/need, and community contribution. To be eligible, businesses had to have no more than 25 FTEs as of January 1, 2020, have experienced a reduction in revenue because of COVID-19 greater than 25 percent, and be current on taxes. In October, the County is expecting to launch a second round of grants, this time with a focus on restaurants and entertainment businesses.
On July 1, Yakima County launched a $2.8 million small business relief program, offering grants of up to $10,000 to help cover rent/mortgage payments, utilities, and business insurance expenses incurred on or after March 27, 2020. To qualify, businesses must have a physical location within the County, have had to close or reduce capacity due to the Governor’s emergency order, have 20 or fewer employees, and have lost revenue due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The application deadline was July 13, 2020. The program was funded by the County’s CARES Act allocation.
In July, the City of Yakima used $480,000 of its Community Development Block Grant funds to create a small business relief grant program for businesses with five or fewer employees. Then, in September, the City launched a $1 million small business grant program, using a portion of its federal CARES Act allocation. To be eligible, businesses must have a physical location within city limits; have been in operation for at least one year as of September 1, 2020; must have 25 or fewer employees; and have had to close or reduce capacity due to the pandemic. grants of up to $10,000 are available. The program is being administered by the Yakima County Development Association (YCDA).
ArtsFund is offering grants of varying amounts to nonprofit arts and cultural organizations in King County through its COVID-19 Arts Emergency Relief Fund. The ArtsFund Foundation seeded the Fund with $1 million and has received more than $1.5 million in additional gifts and pledges.
West Virginia
On July 15, West Virginia Governor Jim Justice announced the creation of the Governor’s West Virginia CARES Act Small Business Grant Program, capitalized with $150 million of the state’s federal CARES Act allocation. The program offers grants of up to $5,000 to West Virginia-based small businesses in existence on February 29, 2020 with 1-35 employees.
In late September, the City of Parkersburg announced a $300,000 Small Business Relief Fund, offering grants of up to $17,500 for working capital to small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. To be eligible, businesses must be located within city limits, have been in business for at least one year as of March 1, have 25 or fewer employees, and must meet the Community Development Block Grant program’s national objective of being owned by a low- or moderate-income individual or employing at least 51 percent low- and moderate-income workers. The application deadline was October 16.
Wisconsin
The Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation has created a Small Business 20/20 grant program, offering grants of up to $20,000 to companies with fewer than 20 employees.
The State of Wisconsin has launched an Ethnic Minority Emergency Grants program, giving $2,000 grants to each of 1,000 micro-businesses (businesses with five or fewer employees) that have suffered losses due to the COVID-19 pandemic. To be eligible, at least 51 percent of a business must be minority-owned; the business must have been in operation prior to January 1; the business must be a retail, service, or hospitality business; and it must not have received assistance through the federal Paycheck Protection Program or the state’s Small Business 20/20 program. Applications were available beginning on May 18 at one of the state’s ethnic chambers of commerce or regional economic development organizations. The program is funded by the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation.
On May 18, the State of Wisconsin announced creation of We’re All In, a $75 million assistance program that will provide $2,500 cash grants to 30,000 small businesses. To be eligible, businesses must have 20 or fewer employees and not have already received financial assistance from the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation.The program also includes a series of guide for businesses looking to implement best practices to keep employees, customers, and communities safe through the COVID-19 pandemic. The program accepted applications between June 15-23.
In December 2020, the State of Wisconsin launched the We’re All In For Restaurants, a $45 million program providing $20,000 grants for eligible businesses. Unlike previous grants in the State’s We’re All In program, restaurants did not need to apply; instead, they will be identified by the Department of Revenue, based on tax records. The program is administered by the Department of Revenue, in collaboration with the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation.
Brew City Match, in Milwaukee, is offering a small business emergency loan fund and a small business grant program. Interest-free loans of between $5,000-$10,000 are available for working capital, as are grants of up to $1,200 for commercial rent or payroll assistance. Applications are being accepted on a rolling basis. Brew City Match is a collaboration between the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC), the City of Milwaukee’s Department of City Development, Hmong Wisconsin Chamber of Commerce, Columbia Savings & Loan, the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, Wisconsin Women’s Business Initiative Corporation (WWBIC), and the Greater Milwaukee Committee’s MKE United Initiative.
In the spring of 2020, Dane County and Dane Buy Local offered grants of $1,000-$50,000 to small businesses through their $250,000 Small Business Pandemic Support Program. The program initially accepted applications through June 15. It was later expanded to $14 million. On May 6, 2021, Dane County announced that it would be using $15 million of its new American Rescue Plan allocation to reopen the program.
On April 27, Definitely De Pere, a nonprofit Main Street Program and Business Improvement District, launched a campaign to raise $50,000 for a small business relief fund that will offer grants of up to $2,500. The City of De Pere will match that amount.
The City of Janesville is planning to create a small business microloan program to help businesses not eligible for federal or county assistance. The program will offer loans of up to $5,000 to businesses with fewer than 20 employees, that have been open for at least 12 months, and that can demonstrate that they have lost revenue because of the pandemic. The program will be capitalized with $100,000 from one of the city’s tax increment finance districts. The program is expected to launch in mid-June.
Downtown Kenosha, Inc. created a $100,000 Small Business Recovery Fund to provide stop-gap loans of $1,000-$5,000 to businesses within the downtown business improvement district boundaries, with fewer than 25 employees, and current on taxes. Loans are forgivable after 12 months, based on submitting quarterly reports and payroll verification. Funds may be used for basic operating capital, payroll, insurance, utilities, and certain other expenses. The Fund awarded its first grants to 23 businesses on April 20 and is now raising money for a second round of grants. The Fund is capitalized by several financial institutions and business assistance organizations, plus crowdfunding.
Four organizations in La Crosse have partnered to create the Launch La Crosse Small Business Recovery Fund, providing grants of up to $5,000 for small, locally owned businesses. The organizations – Couleecap, Downtown Mainstreet, the La Crosse Area Development Corporation (LADCO), and North La Crosse Business Association, are raising money from the public to capitalize the program. To be eligible, businesses must be locally owned retail, restaurant, or personal services storefront businesses with 20 or fewer employees and located in a central business district in La Crosse County. The Fund began accepting applications on May 14 and will make awards weekly as long as funds are available.
The City of Madison has committed $100,000 to matching Kiva small business loan funding. Kiva is an international, nonprofit, crowdfunding platform for small businesses. Community members can lend money to local businesses at 0% interest with no fees. Through the program, businesses can recieve loans ranging from $1,000-$15,000 with the city of Madison matching at no additional cost to the business.
In May, the City of Milwaukee allocated $20 million of its $103 million CARES Act allocation to offer grants of up to $15,000 to small businesses negatively affected by the pandemic and economic shutdown. To qualify, a business must have been in operation by the end of 2019, generate annual revenue of less than $2 million, and employ 20 or fewer workers. The application window was May 28-June 12.
In mid-September, Milwaukee County launched a $7 million Small Business Initiative Grant program, offering grants of $7,500 to $20,000 to small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The application deadline was October 1. To be eligible, businesses must have no more than 20 employees and less than $2 million in revenue last year. The program was funded by a portion of the County’s federal CARES Act allocation.
Outagamie County, in partnership with the Fox Cities Regional Partnership, has created a Business Assistance Program by repurposing an existing revolving loan fund. The Program will offer two-percent loans of $5,000-$20,000 to small businesses. Loan terms will be 3-5 years, and principal and interest payments will be deferred for at least six months.
The City of Ripon has allocated $300,000 towards its Small Business Assistance Grant program to assist businesses with 40 or fewer employees and that were considered “non-essential”during this pandemic. In total, 71 businesses received grants of $3,000 to help with their rent or lease, payroll, and/or utility bills. The program opened on June 3rd and applications closed 3 weeks later.
On April 9, Rock County launched a $1 million emergency loan program to help small businesses experiencing financial difficulties because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Eligible businesses may borrow up to $20,000, at two percent interest and up to five years, for working capital. To be eligible, businesses must have 20 or fewer employees, must have annual revenues less than $1 million, must have been in operation for at least 12 consecutive months, and must demonstrate that they have had at least a 25 percent decrease in revenue. Loan repayment is deferred for six months.
Royal Oak’s Downtown Development Authority has launched “Downtown Dollars” to provide community members with free $20 giftcards to shop and eat at local restaurants and businesses. The DDA has already allocated $400,000 to help businesses during this pandemic and are offering another $100,000 worth of cards. This is in addition to the $1.3 million that the city has already distributed to 92 businesses through small business relief.
Shorewood’s Community Development Authority and the Shorewood Business Improvement District asked the Village Board of Trustees to fund an Emergency Business Assistance Program, offering grants to businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Village Board approved $300,000 for the Program, using money originally allocated for general activities and for a facade improvement program. Applications were due May 4.
The City of Sun Prairie created a Small Business Emergency Loan Fund, capitalized by funds from the City, the Sun Prairie Chamber of commerce, the Sun Prairie Business Improvement District, and the Bank of Sun Prairie. The program offers loans of up to $5,000, at prime interest, with a 90-180 day repayment deferral period. To be eligible, businesses must have 25 or fewer employees, have not received adequate funds from other sources, and demonstrate that the business was viable before the pandemic and that the loan will help keep the business solvent. Loans can be used for rent, utilities, insurance, PPE, cleaning supplies, lost inventory, and certain other operating costs; they cannot be used for payroll, marketing, property taxes, and certain other expenses. The deadline for applications was originally May 29, but the program had received only two applications by then, so the deadline has been extended through the end of 2020.
The Village of Union Grove has launched several relief and assistance program for small businesses. Its Small Business Relief Loan program offers interest-free loans of up to $5,000, with payments deferred by three months, to help businesses reopen and stabilize. Its Matching Grant program offers grants of up to $2,500 to help small businesses complete interior improvements and create pop-up stores. The program is administered by the Racine County Economic Development Corporation’s financial team, Business Lending Partners.
Vernon County’s Economic Development Committee is offering zero-interest loans of up to $5,000 available to small businesses. To be eligible for the $150,000 Business Relief Loan program, a business must have been in operation within the County “long enough to demonstrate financial viability.” Loans terms are five years, with repayment deferred for six months. Applications were due May 26.
The City of Verona has launched a $200,000 Small Business COVID-19 Support Program, offering grants of $1,000-$5,000 to local, for-profit businesses with a brick-and-mortar location in Verona, fewer than 25 employees, less than $1 million in revenue in 2019, and able to demonstrate at least a 25 percent reduction in revenues because of the pandemic. Applications were due May 5.
On April 30, the City of Wisconsin Rapids created a grant program for small businesses, offering grants of up to $1,500 to help with lease or mortgage payments. Businesses must be locally owned, with no more than ten employees, a brick-and-mortar location, and must have been in business as of March 17. Franchises and home-based businesses are not eligible. The application window was May 4-6.
Wyoming
On June 8, the State of Wyoming opened the application process for the first of three grant programs for small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and economic shutdown. The $50 million Wyoming Business Interruption Stipend focuses on independently owned businesses with 50 or fewer employees and that are headquartered in Wyoming or operate principally out of Wyoming. It will make grants of up to $50,000. The other two programs – The Wyoming Coronavirus Business Relief Stipend, for businesses employing fewer than 100 people, and the Wyoming Coronavirus Mitigation Fund, to help businesses buy personal protective equipment, buy cleaning products, and develop and implement safety protocols – will open in early July.
OTHER NATIONAL AND REGIONAL PROGRAMS
There are a number of private-sector COVID-19 small business relief programs that are national or regional in scope. These include:
The Adolph & Esther Gottlieb Foundation is making emergency grants of up to $15,000 to painters, printmakers, and sculptors.
The American Farmland Trust has created a Farmer Relief Fund, providing cash grants of up to $1,000 for small- and mid-size direct-market food producers with annual gross revenue of between $10,000 and $1 million from sales at farmers markets and/or direct sales to restaurants, caterers, schools, stores, or makers who use farm products as materials. The initial application round closed on April 23.
The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation has made a $10 million grant to six Regional Arts Organizations (RAOs) to help launch a new United States Regional Arts Resilience Fund to support small and midsized arts organizations across the country. The Fund will focus particular attention on organizations in all artistic disciplines that are regarded by their peers has having statewide, regional, or national impact and on organizations that are most at risk during the pandemic. The fund is also supported by $4.5 million from the National Endowment for the Arts’ CARES Act allocation.
The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts is offering 16 $100,000 grants to artists affected by the COVID-19 pandemic to help cover everyday expenses like food, rent, medical costs, and childcare.
Anonymous Was a Woman launched a $250,000 COVID-19 emergency relief grant for women artists over 40. The program offers grants of up to $2,500 for women-identifying visual artists. Applications were accepted between April 6-April 8, 2020.
Beauty Changes Lives is offering $1,000 grants to beauty professionals and beauty students who are out of work because of the pandemic. The Beauty Industry Relief Grants are funded by the Horst Rechelbacher Foundation. Applications have been available since April 1. To qualify, an applicant must be a licensed beauty professional for 12 months on or before March 16 (or be a beauty student as of that date), live in a state or county that has mandated that non-essential businesses must close, and not currently be earning an income.
Bob’s Red Mill, an Oregon-based milled products producer and employee-owned company, will give $5,000 to each of five restaurants nominated by the public. Nominations were open until May 8.
The Book Industry Charitable (Binc) Fondation and the American Booksellers Association have launched a campaign – #SaveIndieBookstores – to raise money to support independent booksellers affected by the pandemic. The campaign has attracted some major donors, including a $500,000 gift from author James Patterson, and continued raising money through April 30, at which point it distributed the money to eligible independent bookstores.
Dating app Bumble offered grants of up to $5,000 to small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The grant program closed to US applicants after reaching $1 million in awards.
The California Arts Council and Center for Cultural Innovation launched the $1 million California Relief Fund for Artists and Cultural Practitioners on August 1, offering unrestricted $1,000 grants for California artists and cultural practitioners. To be eligible, artists must be full-time California resients and not receiving California state unemployment insurance. Applications are due on August 13.
Change Labs has partnered with Nusenda Federal Credit Union’s Co-Op Capital program to launch Kinship Lending, offering interest-free microloans to Native American small businesses on the Colorado Plateau.
Cooperative Federal Credit Union is offering $2,000-$5,000 Recovery Grants for small businesses and nonprofits that have experienced a 25 percent or more decrease in revenue because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Applicants must be current Cooperative Federal members in good standing and must be located in New York, New Jersey, Puerto Rico, or the US Virgin Islands, or indigenous lands within those areas. The program gives preference to businesses that have not received other COVID-19 relief assistance. Grant may be used for personnel, safety equipment, working capital, and payments on existing or new debt so that the business or organization may support its employees and continued operation. Grants are available on a first-come, first-served basis.
The Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) has repurposed its CDFA/Vogue Fashion fund to provide grants of up to $100,,000 to fashion-industry businesses with no more than 30 full time employees and no more than $10 million in annual revenue. Applicants can include fashion designers, apparel retailers, apparel factories, or other fashion, jewelry, or apparel companies. The fund, now renamed, A Common Thread, closed its first round of grants on April 19. A second round ran from April 20 – May 2.
The Dramatist Guild Foundation is making emergency grants to musicians/composers, lyricists, screenwriters, journalists, directors, novelists and nonfiction writers.
Equal Sound has created a Corona Relief Fund, offering grants to musicians who have lost income due to a cancelled gig as a result of COVID-19.
The $500,000 Fit Pro Relief Fund will make grants averaging $1,000 to 500 eligible fitness professionals. To be eligible, fitness professionals must have worked for at least five years as a personal trainer or group-exercise instructor, must be currently certified, must not have received other government or employer-based assistance, and must demonstrate a significant income loss as a result of COVID-19. The Fund as created by Inspire360.
The Foundation for Contemporary Arts has created the FCA Emergency Grants COVID-19 Fund to provide grants of $500-$2,500 to freelance artists. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis. The Fund has received an average of 95 applications per month but is only able to award 12-15 grants.
The Freelancers Union is offering grants of up to $1,000 to freelance writers and artists to cover lost income and essential expenses. As of April 20, the Freelancers Relief Fund had temporarily closed due to overwhelming demand, but the Freelancers Union expects to be able to reopen it.
GoFundMe has created a Small Business Relief Fund, offering $500 matching grants to small businesses raising at least $500 to cover COVID-19-related expenses and losses. GoFundMe, Yelp, and Intuit QuickBooks have each donated $500,000 to the Small Business Relief Fund. GoFundMe has automatically generated a crowdfunding page, with a goal of $2,500, for every small business listed on Yelp.
On June 22, international distiller Hennessy launched Unfinished Business, a grant program for Black, Asian, and Latinx small business owners whose businesses have been negatively affected by COVID-19. To be eligible, businesses must have no more than 50 employees, annual sales below $3 million, have a physical address, have been in business for at least two years as of March 2020, and not have an alcohol beverage license. The program is partnering with One Hundred Black Men, Asian American Business Development Center, and Hispanic Federation. The application window was June 22-July 1.
The Institute for Minority Economic Development has partnered with several other organizations (the Women’s Business Center of North Carolina, the Women’s Business Center of Charlotte, and the South Atlantic Small Business Transportation Center) to create a Small Diverse Business Emergency Relief Fund, offering grants of up to $1,000 for immediate needs like rent and utilities.
The International Bluegrass Music Association is making emergency grants to professionals in the business of bluegrass through its Bluegrass Trust Fund.
The James Beard Foundation is raising money to provide relief to food and beverage businesses. The Food and Beverage Industry Relief Fund is not yet accepting applications, but business owners can sign up for news on the Foundation’s website.
Kiva is offering crowdfunded zero-interest microloans of up to $15,000, with a six-month grace period.
The Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) has launched the LISC Rapid Relief and Resiliency Fund to provide grants of up to $10,000 for small businesses to support ongoing expenses during the pandemic. Verizon has contributed $2.5 million to the fund, and LISC is seeking additional contributions.
MainVest, an investment crowdfunding marketplace, has created the MainVest Main Street Initiative loan program. Brick-and-mortar businesses that launch a capital raise campaign on Main Vest may be eligible for an immediate $2,000 zero-interest loan.
Musicares has created a COVID-19 Relief Fund offering grants of up to $1,000 to music industry professionals to compensate for scheduled work that was cancelled because of COVID-19.
The National Main Street Center opened the application process for the $1 million HartBeat of Main Street Grant Program on July 28, offering grants of $5,000-$15,000 to brick-and-mortar businesses in older downtown or neighborhood commercial districts. To qualify, businesses must have 20 or fewer employees, have been in business on January 1, 2019, and be in good standing with the state in which it operates. The program is funded with support from The Hartford.
Natural Capital Investment Fund was making grants in Maryland, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio (Brown, Butler, Clermont, Hamilton, and Warren Counties), Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, and Washington, DC, but the Fund was tapped out by the end of its first day of operation (160+ applications in 4.5 hours).
The Opportunity Finance Network has partnered with Google to create the $125 million Grow with Google Small Business Fund. The Fund will provide loans of between $500,000-$10 million to the Network’s Community Development Financial Institution members who will, in turn, lend it to the small businesses in the communities they serve.
The Otto Bremer Trust has created a $50 million emergency fund, through its Community Benefit Financial Company, to support nonprofit organizations affected by the COVID-19 pandemic in Minnesota, Montana, North Dakota, and Wisconsin.
SheaMoisture has created a $1 million relief fund to support women entrepreneurs and small business owners of color, awarding ten $10,000 grants in April, with additional, unspecified support to black-owned businesses throughout the month.
Spanx and The Spanx by Sara Blakeley Foundation has partnered with Global Giving and donated $5 million to support female entrepreneurs affected by the pandemic by creating The Red Backpack Fund. The Fund will make 1,000 grants of $5,000 each. All grant recipients will also receive an All-Access Pass to MasterClass.
The Sweet Relief Musicians Fund has created a donor-directed relief fund for musicians and music industry workers affected by COVID-19. Sweet Relief provides a fundraising link that affected musicians can share on their social media channels to raise money for vital living expenses, such as rent, utilities, medical bills, and groceries. Twenty percent of all funds raised through the peer-to-peer campaigns are being earmarked for all other musicians applying for COVID-19 aid, and musicians who are unable to meet their fundraising goals are eligible for an emergency grant from these funds.
Truist Financial Corporation has partnered with two Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs), LiftFund and Natural Capital Investment Fund, to make grants of $5,000-$25,000 to small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. LiftFund is making grants in Alabama, Arkansas (Crittenden County), Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Missouri (Desoto County),Tennessee, and Texas.
The US Chamber of Commerce Foundation created the Save Small Business Fund, a grantmaking initiative offering $5,000 grants to small businesses in economically vulnerable communities. The program officially launched on April 20 and received more than 15,000 applications within minutes; it closed the following day. It was funded through private donations from Vistaprint, Travelers, Merck, and S&P Global Foundation.
The Will Rogers Motion Picture Pioneers Foundation is making emergency grants to individuals who work in film exhibition.
