Application Portal Open for Microbusiness Grants
Small businesses can apply for grants starting on March 17
SANTA CLARA COUNTY, CALIF., – Under direction from the County of Santa Clara, the Enterprise Foundation will open the Microbusiness Grant portal for local eligible businesses to apply for Microbusiness grants of $2,500 each. Small businesses can start applying for the grants at 9 a.m. on Thursday, March 17. The online application will be available in English, Spanish, and Vietnamese.
In January, the County of Santa Clara Board of Supervisors accepted approximately $2.4 million from the California Microbusiness COVID-19 Relief Grant Program to aid microbusinesses adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The State program provides approximately $50 million in one-time grant funding that counties were offered the opportunity to administer.
“Small businesses, many of them mom and pop operations throughout Santa Clara County, have faced a tremendous amount of hardship over the last two years due to the pandemic,” said Board of Supervisors President Mike Wasserman. “We’re excited local small businesses can start applying for these needed funds to help mitigate the loss of revenues caused by the pandemic.”
To qualify for one of the $2,500 grants, a business must have been in business in 2019, have been negatively impacted by COVID-19, made less than $50,000 in total revenue in 2019, and have less than five employees. Applicants’ businesses must still be operating or plan to reopen in 2022.
“We thank the Enterprise Foundation for their partnership in setting up the application portal and for their outreach to eligible businesses,” said Chief Operating Officer Miguel Márquez, J.D. “The State of California awarded the County these funds to help get microbusinesses the assistance they need. We will work to make sure the application process is accessible to every eligible business.”
The County of Santa Clara and the Enterprise Foundation are engaging with eligible businesses and community partners to assist microbusinesses with grant applications. The program is expected to provide grant relief to at least 875 microbusinesses in two phases. This first phase will award 500 grants to qualified businesses on a first-come, first-served basis. The second phase, which will follow, will remain open for at least 45 days and all remaining grants will be awarded on a lottery system.
You can find the application in English, Spanish, or Vietnamese at www.AccessSBDC.org beginning at 9 a.m. on Thursday, March 17.
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The County of Santa Clara government serves a diverse, multi-cultural population of 1.9 million residents in Santa Clara County, California, making it more populous than 14 states in the U.S. The County provides essential services to its residents, including public health protection, environmental stewardship, medical services through the County of Santa Clara Health System, child and adult protection services, homelessness prevention and solutions, roads, park services, libraries, emergency response to disasters, protection of minority communities and those under threat, access to a fair criminal justice system, and many other public benefits.
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Media Contact: María Leticia Gómez/ Matthew Rudig; Office of Communications and Public Affairs, (408) 299-5119, [email protected]