South Lake Tahoe businesses can apply for COVID-19 relief grant program

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - There is a very short window for small businesses to apply for the latest round in COVID-19 relief grants. From December 30 2020 - January 8, 2021, businesses can apply for some of the $475 million that will be made available in two rounds.

Round One of the California Small Business COVID-19 Relief Grant will distribute $237 million and the application process will close on January 8 at 11:59 p.m. Round Two dates will be determined after round one closes but those who were qualified and applied for Round One do not need to reapply as applications will be rolled over.

The start of approval notifications for Round One is January 13, 2021.

Grants must be applied through a partner agency (https://careliefgrant.com/partner/el-dorado/). One of those, America's Small Business Development Center has a local partner, the Sierra Business Council of Truckee.

The Sierra Business Council’s Small Business Development Center (SBCD) is working to provide information and technical assistance to applicants. Upcoming SBDC webinars will provide updates to the program, including eligibility requirements, the application process, required documents, and who to contact for assistance will be conducted. SBCD can be contacted by calling 530-582-4800 or by email at info@sierrasbdc.com. Web Site: http://www.sierrasbdc.com.

Registration information for these webinars is available at https://asksbdc.com/. They have drop-in Q&A session on Wednesdays at 10:30 a.m.

Program Outline

- Grant amounts range from $5,000 to $25,000 based on annual revenue.
- annual revenue $1,000
- Maximum revenue $2.5 million
- entities include small businesses and nonprofits (501c3 and c6) with yearly gross revenue of $2.5 million or less
- Must have been in operation since at least June 1, 2019
- Businesses must be currently operating or have a plan to reopen in the State of California
- Must have a physical location in the State of California
- Businesses must have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic
- Businesses must be able to provide their most recent tax return (2018 or 2019), evidence of business formation/organization such as articles of incorporation, fictitious business name registration or business license.
- Applicants with multiple businesses are only eligible for one grant.
- Awards are NOT first come first serve
- Awards will be selected based on a weighted lottery with priority given to the most impacted communities, industry sectors, and disadvantaged businesses.