Illinois Policymakers Should Support Small Businesses
The pandemic and COVID-19 mitigations began inflicting immense damage to small businesses in March 2020. Thousands of small businesses initially applied for Illinois Business Interruption Grants. While these grants helped some small businesses, approximately 80% of applicants were not awarded a grant.
Illinois then received over $8 billion in American Rescue Plan Act funds. However, only $250 million was allocated to the new grant program for struggling small businesses. These funds will likely be exhausted before many eligible businesses receive grants. With billions of ARPA funds remaining, policymakers should allocate an additional $300 million for grants to struggling small businesses.
Illinois politicians should finish what they started. They should replenish the Back to Business grant program and promptly get funds to struggling small businesses, some of whom have waited almost two years for a grant to help offset the damage caused by the pandemic and mitigations established to curb the spread of COVID-19.
Please fill out the call to action below and ask your legislators to support struggling small businesses. Thank you for supporting the small business community!
Main Street Lending Proposal
SUMMARY The Federal Reserve established the Main Street Lending Program (the “Program“) to help aid small and medium-sized for-profit businesses and nonprofit organizations who were in sound financial condition before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and who were unable to get aid under any of the other COVID-19 related relief programs (e.g. under…
PPP Funding for Businesses and Non-Profits Webinar
WATCH: Congressman Brad Schneider from Illinois’ 10th district, Bo Steiner from the Small Business Administration, and Elliot Richardson President of the SBAC spend one hour answering questions about the second round of PPP relief. The SBAC is grateful to have had the chance to participate in this webinar on PPP Funding for Businesses and Non-Profits.…
What 2021 Could Mean for Small Businesses
January 20, 2021 By Elliot Richardson Small Business Advisory Council SBAC President Elliot Richardson’s column discusses the Business and Economic Outlook Forum hosted by the Daily Herald Business Ledger. The piece highlights the need for legislation that provides financial resources for small businesses to retrain and hire Illinoisans who have lost their jobs or businesses…
