COVID Compliant Business Partnership Program

About the Program

Category: Community and Economic Development (Best in Category)

Year: 2021

In an effort to respond to the needs of the business community as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the County of San Bernardino considered the deployment of an economic recovery strategy that provided financial assistance to small businesses within San Bernardino County. Following the disbursement of the PPP (Paycheck Protection Plan) and the EIDL (Economic Injury Disaster Loan), there was a funding gap left for small to mid-sized businesses with 100 employees or less. The County of San Bernardino Economic Development Department ran extensive reports indicating there was an opportunity to support an estimated 17,000 small businesses within this range. On May 4, 2020 the County Board of Supervisors approved the deployment of $30 million dollars in CARES Act funding to activate the COVID Compliant Business Partnership Program, the first of its kind in the State of California. The COVID Compliant Business Partnership Program (CCBPP) is a grant based initiative designed to provide business relief to those with less than 100 employees and encourage businesses to comply with State and County health orders. The grant program offered a certification for compliance to be placed in the window of businesses and a financial grant award of $5,000 for the first location, $2,000 per additional location(s), and $2,500 for those that moved operations outdoor.