WSBA’s
Small Business Relief Fund
Overview of the WSBA Small Business Relief Fund Program
Eligible businesses will be able to receive grant funds from the Small Business Relief Fund program in order to assist those businesses with the financial impact of COVID-19.
Generally, the amount of the grant per business will be a minimum of $500 and a maximum of $10,000 for solo-preneurs and micro-enterprises with fewer than 5 employees.
The WSBA Small Business Relief Fund Program is designed to support women solo and micro-entrepreneurs who have been left out of the grant funding process, need to pivot their business or upgrade their business to meet state safety and physical distancing requirements, and/or cover back bills and purchase inventory. Focus for the grant selection will focus on assisting women-owned businesses that were impacted by COVID-19 in order to help them survive the re-opening process of their small business.
The grant application process will be available again in 2022. The WSBA Small Business Relief Fund program committee will review the submission and notify grant recipients. All grants will be processed within one week of notification. Given limited funds for distribution and our expectation of significant demand for those funds, the WSBA will do its best to fund as many requests as possible.
All grants made under the WSBA Small Business Relief Fund Program are being made with the intention to keep as many small women-owned businesses in Central Ohio as operating, ongoing concerns as possible, and to retain as many jobs in Central Ohio as possible in light of the severe economic hardships brought by the COVID-19 pandemic or other circumstances.
Eligibility Criteria
Grants are available to Central Ohio women-owned businesses that meet the following requirements:
Grant criteria:
Business must be 51% or more female owned. Corporate documents showing female ownership is required with the grant submission.
Business located within Ohio preferred.
Business must have 5 or less employees, including owner/s.
Business owners are not required to be on payroll.
Businesses adversely affected by the Pandemic must commit to reopening and/or recovering.
Business must identify how they will use the grant to reopen and/or recover their business.
All businesses will be required to provide the businesses’ federal employer identification number, or, if the business does not have a federal employer identification number, the social security number under which the business operates.
The business must not be in receivership or bankruptcy.
Business must not have received a grant from WSBA small business relief fund in the last 12 months.
Application and Award Process
Businesses that wish to apply for a grant from the Program shall submit to the WSBA the following documents in electronic format:
A completed Small Business Relief Fund application on the form prescribed by the WSBA. The application will include basic information regarding the business, as well as an indication of business expenses that the business will pay with grant funds awarded from the Program.
Documents proving a minimum of 51% female business ownership. Documentation could include Corporate Documents, Operating Agreement, Bank Signature Card, Payroll Records, List of Business owners and % of ownership.
Provide a reopening or growth plan for their small business.
Applications will be received electronically via the online survey application tool to be considered for a WSBA Small Business Relief Fund grant.
Upon receipt of each application, the WSBA will examine the same for completeness and ensure that all items required are included. Complete submission of accurate information is the responsibility of the applicant. Given the volume of applications expected, the WSBA is unable to contact individual recipients related to incomplete information. Incomplete applications will result in elimination of the company’s application for the grant. Information submitted will be deemed as certified to be accurate and truthful by the applicant and will be relied on for determining eligibility and applicant scoring. False information provided by applicants could result in the requirement to repay grant funds as a result of submitting a false or misleading application.
All applications that are complete and contain all information required, as stated above, will receive a sequential grant application number indicating the order that the complete application was received. This number will factor into the review as a way of prioritizing distribution of funds in the event scoring of the application results in equal scores to other applications.
All complete applications that receive a grant application number will be considered for funding by the Grant Underwriting Team. Grant awards will be made based on competitive application scoring and the availability of funds.
The WSBA Grant Underwriting Team, the membership of which is attached hereto as Exhibit A, will be responsible for oversight of the scoring methodology, advising grant program staff on the review process and providing general advice and support for the approach to applicant evaluation and the awards process. The Grant Underwriting Team shall review and approve the final set of awards based on review of the scoring process and the final summary of applicant and awardee information.
Upon approval by the WSBA Grant Underwriting Team, businesses with no more than 5 employees will be awarded a grant of up to $10,000. Grants will be funded only to the extent that grant funds are available. Grant awards will be announced. Following the award of each grant, the WSBA will email to each business a grant agreement. The business must complete and sign the grant agreement and return the same to the WSBA to receive grant funds. Grant funds will be distributed immediately following the receipt of a signed grant agreement.
If, after review of all applications and award of grant funds for all applications received, there are still funds remaining to be granted and/or subsequent funds are received by the WSBA for the purpose of making grants hereunder, subsequent rounds of funding, that will function in a similar manner, may be announced and conducted. Any business that was not funded in a prior round due to an incomplete application will be contacted to re-submit or update their information to be considered in a subsequent funding round. Additionally, any application that is complete and meets all eligibility, but was not funded in a certain round will be reconsidered for funding in a subsequent funding round.
The WSBA may require any business owner to complete any necessary documentation to determine if the grant to that business may be funded.
Prior to receiving any grant funds, the business shall sign a grant agreement between itself and the WSBA. At a minimum, the grant agreement will (i) require the business to use all grant funds for the purposes set forth in these Guidelines and its application, (ii) require the business to follow and comply with all other provisions of these Guidelines, (iii) be conditioned on the business providing all information on the application, accompanying documents and verification of expenses in a true and accurate manner, (iv) require the business to be subject to audit and reimbursement of funds in the event it fails to comply with items (i) to (iii), and (v) require the business to indemnify and hold harmless the WSBA and all contributors of grant funds.
The WSBA and the Grant Underwriting Team may use its discretion to award a grant amount to each approved recipient based on need, how the dollars will be utilized and the availability of funds.
In general, the WSBA will manage the Program and administer the distribution of grants in accordance with these Guidelines.
Nothing contained herein is intended to obligate or bind, nor shall it be construed to obligate or bind, the WSBA or any grantor of funds to the Program, to make, award, or fund any grant to any entity whatsoever, and no entity shall have any claim, action, or cause of action against the WSBA or any grantor of funds for failure to make, award, or fund any grant. All determinations will be made with the best efforts of the Grant Underwriting Team and in the spirit of meeting the objectives of this program. The decisions of the Grant Underwriting Team are final, not subject to appeal, and fully within the discretion of the Grant Underwriting Team subject to whatever process modifications they find necessary in the dispatch of their work to meet the guidelines of the program. A statement to this effect shall be included in the application.
List of Grant Underwriting Team
Mary McCarthy, President & CEO, Women’s Small Business Accelerator
Jessica Kenimer, Program Manager, Women’s Small Business Accelerator
Cindi Englefield, WSBA Board, Owner, Englefield Business Advisors
You can HELP with a DONATION: The WSBA is continually raising money for the Small Business Relief Fund. As funds accumulate, subsequent application rounds will open up until the program concludes. You can CONTRIBUTE HERE and join the list of supporters of women-owned businesses! Thank you so much!
Would you like to be notified when the next Grant Period is Announced?