Ciresi-backed $225 Million Small Business Grant Program Announced
Rep. Joseph Ciresi June 9, 2020 | 10:05 AM
HARRISBURG, June 9 –State Rep. Joe Ciresi, D-Montgomery, today thanked Gov. Tom Wolf for opening a $225 million grant program for Small Businesses that have suffered from losses due to COVID-19. Funding was allocated in the recently passed state budget, voted for by Ciresi.
“Small businesses are the backbone of our communities and this program ensures they remain the backbone of our communities even after suffering during this global pandemic,” Ciresi said. “I wrote the governor personally that loans were not enough, and worked with other members in the House to draft legislation that would have created our own Ultra-Small Business Grant Program and a grant program to help businesses adjust operations to safely reopen during the COVID-19 pandemic. I am glad that we started the conversation and that these ideas were incorporated into this announcement and will provide significant relief for many small business owners.”
Ciresi and state Rep. Pam Snyder, D-Greene, had previously introduced H.B. 2452 to create a grant program for small businesses, and are working on legislation to create a grant program to help small businesses implement COVID-19 mitigation measures for safe reopening.
The $225 million federally-funded statewide grant program announced by Wolf this week includes $100 million for the Main Street Business Revitalization Program, $100 million for the Historically Disadvantaged Business Revitalization Program, and $25 million for the Loan Payment Deferment and Loss Reserve Program. Eligibility for the Main Street and Historically Disadvantaged Business Revitalization Programs would be open to businesses that experienced losses as a result of the closure of non-life-sustaining businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic, or have or will incur costs to adapt to new business operations related to the pandemic.
For more information, contact Ciresi’s office at 484-200-8265.
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