$50 Million Earmarked for Small Business Aid

PALM DESERT – The Riverside County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday approved a plan for distributing $431 million from the federal government, allocating $50 million for a countywide small business assistance program.

Riverside County Board Chair V. Manuel Perez envisions the program as providing grants of up to $10,000 to local businesses that would not need to be repaid. The county’s Business & Community Services department plans to present a program for approval at the next Board of Supervisors meeting on June 2 laying out the guidelines for those that want to apply.

“It is very important that we make support available to businesses that have been struggling and are in great need of assistance,” Supervisor Perez said in a prepared statement. “This funding is an economic response to Covid-19 that will benefit workers, families and the economy and communities of Riverside County. We see this program as a start that will help small businesses keep the dreams they have worked so hard to build.”

Recently, Riverside County received $431 million from the federal government as part of the CARES Act to support the county’s response to this pandemic. On Tuesday, the Board approved a plan for authorizing and allocating funding for expenses in direct response to the coronavirus.

One of the eligible areas is economic support for work interruptions due to Covid-19 related impacts. Riverside County’s Business and Community Services department, formerly known as the Economic Development Agency, will develop and administer the program to assist entrepreneurs in cities and unincorporated communities of Riverside County.

A program like this will help businesses impacted by interruptions due to the pandemic. Cities can benefit from sales tax revenues resulting from Riverside County’s assistance program, which will aim to keep small merchants solvent.

The program will require businesses to submit a plan for how they will protect the health of employees and customers.

Recently, the county established the COVID-19 Business Assistance Loan program allocating $1 million to assist businesses impacted by the pandemic. Funding for microloans is still available for up to $15,000 for small businesses with five employees or less. More information is available by clicking here.