Illinois Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity: Back to Business (B2B) COVID-19 Grant Relief Program
The Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity is officially accepting applications for the Back to Business (B2B) COVID-19 grant relief program. If your small business or organization is still grappling with the impacts of the pandemic in the restaurant, hotel, and arts industries, you could be eligible to receive relief funding. Awards provided to eligible small businesses and nonprofit organizations under this program will be sized based on losses incurred due to the COVID-19 pandemic, so that all eligible applicants receive an award. Read more below to see if your business or organization is eligible and how to make sure your application is submitted correctly.
Dates
The application portal is now officially live and ready to accept your application. Click this link to submit your application today. Don’t wait until the last minute — submit your application as soon as it is ready. Make sure to submit your application by May 10. Any application submitted after the deadline will not be eligible for consideration.
Application
Submit your application here. If you come across any issues submitting your application, atechnical support help desk is currently available seven days a week from 8am to 8pm CDT. You can contact ncrccdfgrants@submittable.com to arrange for help with your application.
The technical support help desk is powered by Submittable, a public benefit corporation dedicated to streamlining the grant application, team review, and program reporting process for organizations that award grants. Their team is available to answer grant application questions and troubleshoot the grant application portal with applicants.
Eligibility
You can visit this link to read in more detail about the exact eligibility requirements for each program area as well as detailed FAQs that will answer many of your questions. In the meantime, here are eligibility highlights for each grant.
B2B Restaurants
- Grants of up to $50,000 to restaurants or taverns that have incurred losses
- Eligible applicants meet the following:
- 50 or fewer employees
- Must have experienced a loss in revenue of at least $5,000 due to economic disruptions related to the COVID-19 pandemic
- In operation by March 12, 2020, and maintains active operations in Illinois at time of application
- Must provide an active food and beverage license
- Additional eligibility requirements apply. Visit this link to view more details.
B2B Hotels
- One-time grant of up to $1,500 per room
- The per-room amount will be prorated, depending on the number of rooms across all eligible applicants, such that all eligible applicants receive a grant.
- Eligible applicants will include hotels and motels meeting the following criteria:
- In operation in Illinois by March 12, 2020, and maintain active operations in Illinois at time of application
- Not providing short-term rentals (e.g. program excludes timeshares and vacation rentals)
- Additional eligibility requirements apply. Visit this link to view more details.
B2B Arts
- Grants to arts and cultural businesses and organizations that experienced losses
- Eligible applicants will include independent live venue operators, performing or presenting arts organizations, arts education organizations, museums, or cultural heritage organizations that have:
- Experienced a loss in earned and/or contributed revenue of at least $5,000 due to economic disruptions related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Been in operation in Illinois by March 12, 2020, and maintain active operations in Illinois at time of application
Questions
While the FAQs available here are sure to answer many of your questions, we want to make sure your application is completed correctly so there are no issues when you submit.
We believe that the B2B grant program will be instrumental in helping organizations and small businesses like yours recover from the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions or need assistance with the application process. Together, we can ensure that organizations and small businesses continue to thrive in our communities!
| CDF Grants National Community Reinvestment Coalition (312) 600-6511 cdfgrants@ncrc.org 740 15th Street NW, Suite 400, Washington DC 20005 |