Small Business Relief Funds Application – Dec 3 to Dec 10

From Lane County:

We have some exciting updates regarding COVID-19 relief funds for small businesses that Lane County will be distributing! 

The application will be available starting at 5:00 p.m. tonight, December 3, and remain open through Sunday, December 13. The application will be available through Community LendingWorks at communitylendingworks.org/emergency-grants/. The application will be streamlined to take businesses approximately 5 minutes to complete online and will be managed by Community LendingWorks.

After the application period closes, there will be a two-phase lottery system to ensure an equitable and fair distribution. Grants will be distributed in the following amounts, based on number of Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) employees:

Grant Amounts

Sole proprietor     $7,500
1-5 FTE               $15,000
6-15 FTE             $20,000
16-25 FTE           $25,000

General Eligibility Requirements

• The business was adversely affected in either one of the following two ways:
  1. The business was prohibited from operating as directed by Executive Orders 20-12 or 20-65; or
  2. The business can demonstrate a one-month decline in sales of 25% or more, incurred by the COVID-19 pandemic, between March 1, 2020 and November 30, 2020, as compared against the same period of time in 2019. 
• Be located within Lane County, is headquartered in Oregon and has its principal operations in Oregon.
• If required by Oregon law to be registered with the Oregon Secretary of State to do business in Oregon, the business is so registered
• Businesses who have received federal dollars, through the Paycheck Protection Program or the Economic Injury Disaster Loan, are able to apply for and receive these grant funds
• 501(c)(3) Nonprofits are eligible
• 501(c)(6) entities are NOT eligible
• The business had 25 Full-Time Employees (FTE) or less, as of December 31, 2019

1^st Lottery for Priority-Eligible Businesses, 75% of funding ($2,744,317)
Includes businesses who meet the General Eligibility requirements above AND any of the following criteria:

• Those businesses in the tourism, hospitality, and event sectors including (defined as restaurants, bars, wineries, breweries, lodging, caterers, and event rental companies)
• Those that had to close due to either of the Governor’s ordered Freezes (gyms/fitness, indoor recreation, museums, indoor/outdoor entertainment, indoor/outdoor pools, sports courts, event venues, zoos, gardens, aquariums)  
• Businesses that identify as women-owned, service-disabled, veteran-ownership, or minority-owned of 51% or more
• Rural businesses

2^nd Lottery, 25% of funding ($914,772)
Businesses must meet the General Eligibility requirements above. Any priority-eligible businesses who are not selected in the 1^st lottery will be included in this lottery as well.

Community LendingWorks anticipates that businesses will receive funds the last week of December through mid-January.