Bernalillo County issued the following announcement on June 18.
Bernalillo County is providing emergency financial support through the Bernalillo County CARES small business grant for qualified small businesses to assist with costs associated with business interruption caused by required closures due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
Through this program, the county will offer one-time grants up to $10,000 to qualifying small businesses and nonprofits to cover costs such as employee wages, vendor bills, and rent. Five million is allotted for this fund, which is available as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act federal stimulus package.
“The Economic Development team has conducted thorough outreach to small businesses throughout the county, and with their research we have learned that we still have a plethora of small business owners who were not able to access any federal funding and still need financial assistance,” says County Commission Chair, Lonnie Talbert. “This small business grant program is a necessary effort to close that gap.”
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. Reimbursement is not required for grant recipients.
“We at Bernalillo County Economic Development understand the hardships business owners are facing during this unprecedented time. As Economic Development professionals, we continually explore new ways we can expand our efforts, and the small business grant is a result of these efforts,” says Bernalillo County Economic Development Director, Mayling Armijo. “We are very much looking forward to helping our small business community get back on its feet.”
The application process will open on June 22, and close on June 29.
Regardless of whether a business is eligible for this program, it may still qualify for other existing assistance programs.
The grant appropriation was approved by the commission on a 5 to 0 vote.
Original source can be found here.
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