Virginia Grant Program For Small Businesses, Nonprofits Opens
VIRGINIA — Rebuild VA, a grant program to help small businesses and nonprofits impacted by the coronavirus pandemic, opened applications on Monday. The grants, with amounts up to $10,000, will help approximately 7,000 applicants.
The state grant program has an initial $70 million through federal CARES Act funding. Some localities, like Fairfax County, Alexandria and Loudoun County in Northern Virginia, have already started their own programs and announced recipients.
Businesses and nonprofits eligible for the state grants must be in good standing, have annual gross revenues of no more than $1.5 million, have been operating before March 12, and have up to 25 employees. The types of applicants can include food and beverage establishments, non-essential retail, exercise and fitness, entertainment and public amusement, personal care and personal grooming services, and private campground and overnight summer camps. Businesses must certify that they have not received federal Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) or Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) funds or other CARES Act funding from a federal, state, regional or local agency or authority.
Half of the funds will be reserved for small businesses and nonprofits in low-income and economically disadvantaged communities.
"It’s clear that our COVID-19 economic recovery is going to be a marathon, not a sprint, and this puts great pressure on our small businesses to make costly, unexpected adjustments, from paid sick leave to purchasing PPE," said Secretary of Commerce and Trade Brian Ball in a statement. "It is our goal that Rebuild VA will help ease the burden on small businesses, which are the livelihood of many Virginia families."
Grants can be used for these eligible expenses: payroll support, including paid sick, medical, or family leave, and costs related to the continuation of group health care benefits during leave; employee salaries; mortgage payments, rent, and utilities; principal and interest payments for business loans from national or state-chartered banking, savings and loan institutions, or credit unions, incurred before or during the emergency; and eligible personal protective equipment, cleaning and disinfecting materials, or other working capital for the COVID-19 response.
ALERT: Virginia is now accepting applications for #RebuildVA, a $70 million grant fund to help small businesses and nonprofits recover from #COVID19.Funding is first come first serve, so please apply as soon as possible: https://t.co/0HahywflUO pic.twitter.com/T4UhbShubT
— Ralph Northam (@GovernorVA) August 10, 2020
For more information and application instructions, visit www.governor.virginia.gov/rebuildva.
This article originally appeared on the McLean Patch
