Nearly $100 million has been allocated to more than 14,000 small businesses across the state through the Michigan Small Business Restart Program.
“Families across the state depend on small businesses for their livelihood, and these grants, combined with additional COVID-19 business relief efforts offered by the MEDC, have helped to create a strong foundation for Michigan’s long-term economic recovery,” Governor Gretchen Whitmer said in a press release. “By putting federal funding to work for Michigan’s small businesses and additional COVID-19 relief efforts, we have made a real impact on our families and our communities. Of course, our work is not done. We still need the president and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to work across the aisle on a bipartisan recovery package that will provide support for our families, frontline workers, and small businesses. I will continue working with all of our partners, both at the federal and the state level, to get this done for our small business owners.”
The total amount awarded through the program is $95.6 million, up from $69 million announced at the end of September.
The program allocated $100 million of federal CARES Act funding to provide support to Michigan’s small businesses and nonprofits that are reopening and have experienced a loss of income as a result of the COVID-19 crisis. The funding was distributed across 15 local or nonprofit economic development organizations (EDOs) covering all 83 counties in the state for grants up to $20,000 to support certain small businesses and nonprofits that have realized a significant financial hardship as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Of the businesses that received grants, the state says 4,617 reported as minority-owned, 6,314 reported as woman-owned, and 743 reported as veteran-owned, with some businesses selecting multiple categories. At least 30 percent of the funds awarded under the program were required to be provided to women-owned, minority-owned or veteran-owned eligible businesses, and all EDOs have met, or exceeded, this requirement in the awards being made.
The grants under the Michigan Small Business Restart Program may be used as working capital to support payroll expenses, rent, mortgage payments, utility expenses or other similar expenses.
To see the full list of businesses that were awarded grants, visit here.
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