Supplemental Shuttered Venue Operator Grant Program Awards Available
The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) recently announced it will begin sending invitations for supplemental Shuttered Venue Operator Grant (SVOG) program awards. The supplemental awards will be provided to entities that received an initial SVOG and reported at least a 70 percent reduction in revenue for the first quarter of 2021 compared to the first quarter of 2019.
Since opening in April, the SVOG program has awarded approximately $9 billion in grants to more than 11,500 organizations that suffered revenue loss due to COVID-19. The initial grants provided recipients with funding equal to 45 percent of their gross earned revenue, up to a maximum of $10 million.
Supplemental award applicants can apply for any amount up to 50 percent of their original SVOG amount. The $10 million cap will remain for initial and supplemental grants combined. The supplemental awards also allow SVOG recipients to extend the time to use the funds for expenses accrued through June 30, 2022, and lengthen their budget period to 18 months from the initial grant’s disbursement date.
The SBA expects to begin sending out the supplemental awards within two weeks. In the unlikely event that sufficient funding is not available for all applicants to receive a supplemental award, priority will be given to those that have reported the greatest revenue loss for the first quarter of 2021 compared to the first quarter in 2019.
The SVOG was created by the Economic Aid to Hard-Hit Small Businesses, Nonprofits, and Venues Act, P.L. 116-260, which was signed into law in December and appropriated $15 billion to the SVOG program. The program received another $1.25 billion after the American Rescue Plan Act, P.L. 117-2, became law March 11.