Jay P. Fleming / www.facebook.com/jay.p.fleming
Grants of up to $50,000 will help small businesses retain employees, recover from damages sustained in storm, flooding
Annapolis, Maryland – Anne Arundel County Executive Steuart Pittman today announced the VOLT Disaster Recovery Relief Program, an initiative to help businesses recover from the damage and pause in operations sustained as a result of the storm and coastal flooding that impacted Anne Arundel County on Oct. 29-30. The program will be managed by the Anne Arundel Economic Development Corporation (AAEDC), which will begin taking applications for grants of up to $50,000, on a rolling basis, on Nov. 1, 2021.
“As a small business owner, I know how hard it can be to recover from property damage and business interruptions caused by events like this storm,” Anne Arundel County Executive Steuart Pittman said. “I want to thank the AAEDC for moving quickly to make this program available, and I want to encourage all impacted business owners to make use of these funds if your business is eligible.”
With priority given to businesses most affected by the storm, the program will allow eligible businesses to use the grants for any legitimate business expense including physical property repairs, replacement of equipment, loss of income from being closed, replacement of damaged inventory and working capital needed to get business operations up and running.
“Our team’s goal is to get these businesses the critical funds that they need to both retain their employees and get back to business as quickly as possible,” said AAEDC CEO Ben Birge.
Qualifying applicants include businesses that align with the U.S. Small Business Administration’s (SBA) categories of small business, as defined by company size; are in good standing with the State of Maryland; and have a brick-and-mortar location in the state.
Each applicant will be required to submit:
- a VOLT application
- a copy of 2019 business tax returns or schedule C
- a statement listing all damages, including details of the loss of income
- a budget detailing the use of grant proceeds
- a completed W-9 form
Applicants will also be required to be available for a site visit to review damages to the property/business.
The VOLT Disaster Recovery Relief Program is supported by $1,000,000 in funding from Maryland’s video lottery terminal (VLT) loan program. AAEDC manages the VOLT Fund on behalf of the Maryland Department of Commerce. The department oversees the state’s Small, Minority and Women-Owned Business loan fund, which is supported by 1.5 percent of video lottery terminal revenue from Maryland casinos.
To access the application, visit the VOLT Disaster Recovery Relief Program page on the AAEDC website: https://www.aaedc.org/business/financing-and-tax-credits/volt-disaster-recovery-program/. For additional information, inquiries can be sent to Stephen Primosch at sprimosch@aaedc.org.
