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Montgomery County Board of Commissioners Approves $10M for Round 3 of MontcoStrong Small Business Grant Program

opens in a new windowMONTCOSTRONG SMALL BUSINESS GRANT PROGRAM

ABOUT THE GRANT PROGRAM

Updated July 9, 2020

Recognizing the need to provide support to strengthen our local businesses and communities, the Montgomery County Board of Commissioners is making available $10,000,000 in economic development funds to provide grants to eligible small businesses for Round 3 of the MontcoStrong Small Business Grant Program. Round 3 grant awards will once again be administered by the Redevelopment Authority of Montgomery County in partnership with the Montgomery County Board of Commissioners and the Montgomery County Commerce Department. Eligible applicants for Round 3 may apply for a grant to cover the following costs:

  • Accounts payable, including utilities, vendors, suppliers, and working capital expenses paid or to be paid between June 1st, 2020 through October 31st, 2020.
  • Rent/mortgage payments paid or to be paid between June 1st, 2020 through October 31st, 2020.
  • Debt service payments on loans, equipment leases, and credit cards (may not exceed more than 25% of total grant award) paid or to be paid between June 1st, 2020 through October 31st, 2020.
  • Grant recipients are encouraged to use grant funds to purchase personal protective equipment (PPE) and other items that will help them in addressing their needs to operate safely and responsibly due to the COVID-19 global pandemic.

FOR ROUND 3, ELIGIBILITY IS BASED ON THE FOLLOWING CRITERIA:

  • Be a for-profit business with a physical location in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania that was in operation on or before March 23rd, 2020 and has experienced disruption due to the COVID-19 global pandemic meeting the following criteria –
    • Has reported gross revenues not greater than $15,000,000 on its last signed and filed federal tax return.
    • Employed and paying no more than 50 full and part-time employees as of July 1st, 2020.

ADDITIONAL ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA AND INFORMATION:

  • Businesses that received a Round 1 or Round 2 MontcoStrong Small Business Grant may not apply in Round 3.
  • Applicants from Round 1 and/or Round 2 that did not receive funding must apply again for consideration in Round 3; applications from prior rounds do not automatically carry over.
  • Subcontractors and/or 1099 employees should not be included in the employee count.
  • Eligible applicants may not be a publicly traded company.
  • Non-profit organizations may not apply. 501(c)(3) organizations are not eligible for this program due to the scope of the federal CARES Act as it relates to providing small business assistance. Also, per the CARES Act, as other 501(c) organizations are involved in lobbying activities and/or are supported primarily by member dues, rather than by sales of products or services, they are not eligible for funding through this program because the funding is sourced from the federal government.To prepare to apply in Round 3, please review the updated program guidelines  and the Round 3 Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ).

    Applications will be accepted beginning approximately at 10am on Thursday, July 16th, 2020 and the application window will close at approximately Noon on Friday, July 17th, 2020.

    To apply when the application window is open, complete the application form. The online application is not available prior to 10am on Thursday, July 16th, 2020. The required application information and documentation details can be found in the program guidelines.

    To assist eligible businesses in completing an application, fillable W-9 forms to be scanned and uploaded are available in English and Spanish

For questions about the program, please thoroughly review the Round 3 program guidelines and Round 3 FAQ. Email questions about Round 3 applications can be sent to MontcoStrongSBGP@montcopa.orgcreate new email beginning on Wednesday, July 15th, 2020. Emails regarding status of an application cannot be answered due to the anticipated high volume of applications to be submitted.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Submission of a grant application is not a guarantee of funding. Businesses, residents, and organizations in need support and guidance of can find additional resources and information as follows:

For information on COVID-19 and Montgomery County’s response to the global pandemic, visit www.montcopa.org/COVID-19.

For information on Federal Government resources to help businesses address the COVID-19 global pandemic, visit https://www.sba.gov/page/coronavirus-covid-19-small-business-guidance-loan-resources.

For information on the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s response to the global pandemic, visit https://www.pa.gov/guides/responding-to-covid-19/.

Information on the Round 1 MontcoStrong Small Business Grant Program awards can be found here.

Information on the Round 2 MontcoStrong Small Business Grant Program awards can be found here.