Type: GRANT
Amount: Equal to pandemic-related revenue loss up to $10 million per business and no more than $5 million per physical location
Deadline: Until funds exhausted

The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) is awarding funding through the Restaurant Revitalization Program to restaurants, bars, and other similar places of business that serve food or drink. The purpose of this funding is to provide support to eligible entities that suffered revenue losses related to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Pre-register for application portal starting Friday, April 30. Submit applications through portal starting Monday, May 3, 12 PM. 

Learn more: stpetegreenhouse.com/RRF

Type: GRANT – Opened 4/26, 2021

The Shuttered Venue Operators Grant (SVOG) program was established by the Economic Aid to Hard-Hit Small Businesses, Nonprofits, and Venues Act, and amended by the American Rescue Plan Act. The program includes over $16 billion in grants to shuttered venues, to be administered by SBA’s Office of Disaster Assistance.

Eligible applicants may qualify for grants equal to 45% of their gross earned revenue, with the maximum amount available for a single grant award of $10 million. $2 billion is reserved for eligible applications with up to 50 full-time employees

Type: LOAN (may be eligible for forgiveness)
Deadline: May 31, 2020

The Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) is a loan designed to provide a direct incentive for small businesses to keep their workers on payroll. Borrowers may be eligible for PPP loan forgiveness. 

SBA is currently offering PPP loans originated only by participating community financial institutions including Certified Development Companies (CDCs), SBA Microlenders, Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs), and Minority Depository Institutions (MDIs) until May 31, 2021 or until remaining funds are exhausted. Please note that not all community financial institutions are participating in PPP.  Learn More

Type: Reimbursement
Amount: Varies on fund use

PPP loan will be fully forgiven if the funds are used for payroll costs, interest on mortgages, rent, and utilities (due to likely high subscription, at least 60% of the forgiven amount must have been used for payroll).

Frequently Asked Questions about PPP Loan Forgiveness 

Forgiveness is based on the employer maintaining or quickly rehiring employees and maintaining salary levels. Forgiveness will be reduced if full-time headcount declines, or if salaries and wages decrease. The loan forgiveness form and instructions include several measures to reduce compliance burdens and simplify the process for borrowers, including:

•    Options for borrowers to calculate payroll costs using an “alternative payroll covered period” that aligns with borrowers’ regular payroll cycles
•    Flexibility to include eligible payroll and non-payroll expenses paid or incurred during the 24-week period after receiving their PPP loan
•    Step-by-step instructions on how to perform the calculations required by the CARES Act to confirm eligibility for loan forgiveness
•    Borrower-friendly implementation of statutory exemptions from loan forgiveness reduction based on rehiring by June 30
•    Addition of a new exemption from the loan forgiveness reduction for borrowers who have made a good-faith, written offer to rehire workers that was declined

For loans GREATER than $50,000:

• Click here to download the Paycheck Protection Program EZ Loan Forgiveness Application (06-16-2020)
  • Click here to download instructions for the Paycheck Protection Program EZ Loan Forgiveness Application

Announced 10/9/2020 – SBA releases simpler application and process for businesses that received $50,000 or less in funds. Apply using the 3508S Form:

• Click here to download the Paycheck Protection Program 3508S Forgiveness Application ($50,000 and less)
  • Click here to download instructions for the Paycheck Protection Program 3508S Forgiveness Application ($50,000 and less)

Type: LOAN
Amount: Up to 6 months of working capital

The Small Business Administration (SBA) Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program is currently ACTIVE.

The SBA aunched a new round of Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) assistance – called Supplemental Targeted Advances – that will provide $5 billion in additional assistance to 1 million small businesses and nonprofit organizations that have been most severely affected by the economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. The SBA also announced that the agency will extend deferment periods for all disaster loans, including COVID-19 EIDLs, until 2022 to provide more time for businesses to build back. 

Effective April 22, the SBA modified the Targeted EIDL Advance application process to determine if businesses also qualify for the additional $5,000 Supplemental Targeted Advance. SBA will contact eligible business entities to apply and applications will be processed on a first-come, first-served basis. For details about the Targeted EIDL Advance and Supplemental Targeted Advance program, please visit SBA.gov/eidl. 

CONTACT:
Eligible entities can email questions about the SBA Targeted EIDL Advance and Supplemental Targeted Advance to TargetedAdvance@sba.gov, COVID-19 EIDL disaster loan payment questions to DisasterCustomerService@sba.gov, and contact SBA’s Customer Service Center at 1-800-659-2955 (1-800-877-8339 for the deaf and hard of hearing).

LEARN MORE

Type: GRANT 
Amount: UP TO $1,000
Deadline: APRIL 30

In 2016, the St. Petersburg Arts Alliance in partnership with the Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs established the Individual Artist Grant Program. These 15 grants are intended to provide financial assistance to the City of St. Petersburg resident artists for specific projects. The program is designed to support the public engagement of individual work/projects in the Visual Arts, Craft Arts, Dance, Music, Theater, or Literature.

Applicants must show commitment to the art form through education, training, or professional experience, and must show evidence of exhibition, public performance, or being published during the past two years.

LEARN MORE

Type: LOAN
Amount: Current and new SBA loan payments
Deadline: N/A

As part of SBA’s debt relief efforts,

• The SBA will automatically pay the principal, interest, and fees of current 7(a), 504, and microloans for a period of six months.
• The SBA will also automatically pay the principal, interest, and fees of new 7(a), 504, and microloans issued prior to September 27, 2020.

TYPE: Grant
Amount: $2,000
Deadline: Until Funds are exhausted

The #FamilyCare Microgrant program is exclusively for licensed home-based childcare providers hard hit by the COVID crisis, who live and operate their businesses within the South St. Petersburg Community Redevelopment Area (CRA). See the CRA map here.

The Program offers grants of up to $2,000 and business development support services to help home-based childcare providers to recover from COVID-related shutdowns, while becoming stronger for the long-run.

Learn More

TYPE: Grant and Support
Amount: Varies
Deadline: Until funds are exhausted

The #InThisTogether initiative by the One Community Plan team at Pinellas County Urban League will provide microgrants, free technology and one-to-one help to business owners struggling as a result of the COVID crisis. Microgrants are made possible by the funding support of the Foundation for a Healthy St. Petersburg, the City of St. Petersburg, the Grow Smarter initiative, the St. Petersburg Downtown Partnership, the Power Broker Media Group, The 2020 Fund, and dozens of grassroots community contributions.

#InThisTogether supports three microgrant programs.

• #PayItForward (currently closed) – The beauty industry is one of the largest sectors in the black community economy. Social distancing guidelines caused a near-total shutdown of hair salons, barber shops and nail shops. #PayItForward  supports them with microgrants of $1,500 (shop/salon owners) and $1,000 (non-owner stylists, barbers and techs).
• #4StPeteCreatives (OPEN)– South St. Pete’s creative community is struggling with the cancellation of events where many earn the bulk of their revenue. #4StPeteCreatives will invest in 25 creatives to provide $1,250 microgrants that include coverage of up to $750 in technology and tools to help them migrate to e-commerce. Participants will include graphic & web designers, digital artists, painters, screen printers, fashion designers, and other creatives.
• #StrongerTogether (currently closed)– This project will help diverse “hard hit” business owners with microgrants of $1,500 combined with marketing support.

The Short Time Compensation Program is a voluntary employer program designed to help employers maintain their staff by reducing the weekly working hours during temporary slowdowns instead of temporarily laying off employees. If an employer establishes a Short Time Compensation Plan and an employee meets the qualifications to file a re-employment assistance claim in the state of Florida, the employee will receive a partial re-employment check to supplement their reduced paycheck.

• Employers:
  To apply for the Short Time Compensation Program (required for employees to submit a re-employment claim), please follow this link to the Employer Login page of CONNECT.
  • As an employer, you must complete a Short-Time Compensation Plan application. A Short-Time Compensation Plan lasts for one year but can be renewed if your employees have returned to full-time work during the plan year.
  • At least 10% (not less than 2) of your employees in your total staff or in a particular department must work reduced hours.
  • Employers must name the employee participating in the program and must provide the Department of Economic Opportunity with the employee’s normal weekly hours (excluding overtime).
  • Employers must certify that they will reduce the employee’s normal number of weekly work hours by at least 10%, but no more than 40%.
    The situation must be temporary rather than a temporary layoff.
• Employees:
  • You must be a full-time employee, (not part-time or seasonal) with a standard number of hours worked each week (excluding overtime).
  • You must meet all of the normal requirements to establish a Florida reemployment claim and you must provide the Department of Economic Opportunity with any necessary information or documentation.
  • While on the Short-Time Compensation program you must work and/or receive paid leave for ALL of the hours that your employer has you scheduled to work in order to receive Short-Time Compensation Benefits for a week.
  • Every two weeks you will be required to report your hours worked, plus any hours of paid leave from your Short-Time Compensation employer and if you have a part-time job, earnings from that part-time job.