Resources and Funding Opportunities
for Small Businesses

The Nutley Board of Commissioners is providing information on a variety of resources available to support our business community during this difficult time.

Please see below for:

• Information on a telephone townhall this evening with Congresswoman Mike Sherrill focused on small business and unemployment assistance
• Federal assistance options for small businesses
• New Jersey assistance for small business

In particular, the Board of Commissioners would like to highlight the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program - nearly $350 billion in forgivable loans which can be used for payroll, rent, and utility costs. Banks are currently accepting applications for this funding.

The Board of Commissioners would also like to remind residents to please support our local businesses during this difficult time.

Rep. Sherrill Telephone Town Hall on Small Business and Unemployment Assistance
Representative Mikie Sherrill (NJ-11) will hold a second COVID-19 telephone town hall focused on small business and unemployment assistance on Tuesday, April 7th at 4:50pm. Representative Sherrill will be joined by public officials who will help answer questions from residents and she will give an update on what she has been doing to support COVID-19 response efforts in New Jersey.

Residents are invited to register for the telephone town hall at sherrill.house.gov/live.

Federal Assistance for Small Businesses
In addition to traditional Small Business Administration (SBA) funding programs, the CARES Act established several new temporary programs to address the COVID-19 outbreak. Follow the links for additional information.

• Paycheck Protection Program - This loan program provides loan forgiveness for retaining employees by temporarily expanding the traditional SBA 7(a) loan program.
• EIDL Loan Advance - This loan advance will provide up to $10,000 of economic relief to businesses that are currently experiencing temporary difficulties.

-SBA Express Bridge Loans - Enables small businesses who currently have a business relationship with an SBA Express Lender to access up to $25,000 quickly.

-SBA Debt Relief - The SBA is providing a financial reprieve to small businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic.

New Jersey Assistance for Small Businesses
The New Jersey Economic Development Authority (NJEDA) recently announced a suite of programs to help small businesses, including grants and loans. For information, visit the COVID-19 New Jersey Business Information Hub at https://cv.business.nj.gov.

The new initiatives include:

• Small Business Emergency Assistance Grant Program – A $5 million program that will provide grants up to $5,000 to small businesses in retail, arts, entertainment, recreation, accommodation, food service, and other services – such as repair, maintenance, personal, and laundry services – to stabilize their operations and reduce the need for layoffs or furloughs.
• Small Business Emergency Assistance Loan Program – A $10 million program that will provide working capital loans of up to $100,000 to businesses with less than $5 million in revenues. Loans made through the program will have ten-year terms with zero percent for the first five years, then resetting to the EDA’s prevailing floor rate (capped at 3.00%) for the remaining five years. In advance of the launch of the application for the program on Monday, April 13, 2020, a .pdf version of the application is now available at COVID-19 Business Information Hub. This will provide business owners the opportunity to prepare to apply for the loan.
• NJ Entrepreneur Support Program – A $5 million program that will encourage continued capital flows to new companies, often in the innovation economy, and temporarily support a shaky market by providing 80 percent loan guarantees for working capital loans to entrepreneurs.
• Small Business Emergency Assistance Guarantee Program – A $10 million program that will provide 50 percent guarantees on working capital loans and waive fees on loans made through institutions participating in the NJEDA’s existing Premier Lender or Premier CDFI programs.
• Emergency Technical Assistance Program – A $150,000 program that will support technical assistance to New Jersey-based companies applying for State and US Small Business Administration programs. The organizations contracted will be paid based on SBA application submissions supported by the technical assistance they provide.
• Community Development Finance Institution (CDFI) Emergency Loan Loss Reserve Fund – A $10 million capital reserve fund to take a first loss position on CDFI loans that provide low interest working capital to micro businesses. This will allow CDFIs to withstand loan defaults due to the outbreak, which will allow them to provide more loans at lower interest rates to microbusinesses affected by the outbreak. Only NJ-based CDFIs are eligible for these programs.
• CDFI Emergency Assistance Grant Program – A $1.25 million program that will provide grants of up to $250,000 to CDFIs to scale operations or reduce interest rates for the duration of the outbreak. Only NJ-based CDFIs are eligible for these programs.