Delaware relief grants portal to open Jan. 19

The Delaware Division of Small Business announced that its relief grants portal will begin accepting new applications at 10 a.m., Tuesday, Jan. 19.

Small businesses and nonprofit organizations that have not applied in earlier rounds can apply for this relief program presented by the State of Delaware and New Castle County using federal CARES Act funds.

For those that have already applied for the program, the division is continuing to process applications as quickly as possible.

Rather than rejecting applications that are incomplete, or otherwise don’t meet the program rules, division staff is working with applicants to get their paperwork to the point where it can be approved.

The division is starting with applications that need the least help and will move on to applications that need the most work. This means some applications may not be processed within the usual two- to three-week timeline and the division asks for applicants’ patience.

If a business submitted an application close to the original Dec. 4 deadline and has not yet received a response, it is probably because the application needed additional follow-up. The division will issue notices to individuals who may need to submit more details or corrections after the portal reopens.

From the start of the Delaware relief grants program, one of the requirements has been that recipients needed to have experienced a revenue decline in 2020 compared to 2019. If they claimed the grant, but did not experience a revenue decline, they would have to pay back the funds with interest. 

This interest penalty will be waived if a business returns grant funds prior to Monday, Feb. 15, according to new information from the Division of Small Business. If a business did experience a revenue increase in 2020 compared with 2019, it can return the funds prior to Feb. 15 without facing an interest penalty.

After Feb. 15, if a business is seen to have experienced a revenue increase in 2020 compared to 2019, it will be required to repay the grant with interest.

If a business did experience a revenue decline in 2020 compared with 2019, it will not be required to repay the grant.

This forgiveness program applies only to DE Relief Grants, not to the State of Delaware HELP loan program.

As of Jan. 4, grants have been distributed to or approved for 3,163 grantees. This represents more than $150 million in total funding, including $95.4 million in base funding.

For more information, go to business.delaware.gov.