ST. PAUL — Members of the Minnesota Legislature are pushing for a new coronavirus relief program that would set aside $5 million in grants just for small businesses in Greater Minnesota.
State lawmakers already approved $30 million in loans for small businesses affected by the pandemic and the ongoing stay-at-home order meant to mitigate it. The bill introduced last week calls for approximately $30 million more, a third of which would come from the $2 billion that Minnesota is slated to receive through the federal pandemic relief act.
In the bill, Sen. Paul Anderson, R-Plymouth, suggests that half of the $10 million would go toward the Minnesota Initiative Foundations. The foundations, each of which represents a different outstate region of Minnesota, would then be able to disburse the $5 million in grants of up to $10,000.
The remaining $5 million would be available to businesses specifically located in the Twin Cities metro area, also in the form of grants up to $10,000. The Senate Committee on Jobs and Economic Growth, Finance and Policy voted to refer the bill to the chamber finance committee on Wednesday, April 22.
The other $20 million of the new loan program funding would come from the state general fund and be doled out in a similar fashion to the initial $30 million. The state Department of Employment and Economic Development has furnished loans of between $2,500 and $35,000 through the program, which offers forgiveness of up to 50%.
