The Eastern Michigan Small Business Hub Program 2024 Small Business Grant Program

The 2024 Small Business Grant Award Program will provide awards of up to $20,000 to eligible small businesses in the six county region to support their growth and development. Most grant awards will be in the $5,000 to $10,000 range. No more than $213,158 in total grants will be awarded in the 2024 round. A second round of grants will also be awarded in 2025.

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Company Eligibility Requirements

• A company must be a small for-profit business (500 or fewer employees)

• A company must be  located or the company’s owner must reside in one of the following six Michigan counties: Shiawassee, Lapeer, Tuscola, Huron, Sanilac, or St. Clair

• A company must be located or the company’s owner must reside in an eligible area on one of these two online maps:

  • US Department of Agriculture (USDA): To determine if your location is eligible, log on the USDA map HERE, click “Accept” to go to the map, enter your address in the “Find Your Address” box, and click Go. The map will then determine if the address is or is not in an eligible area.

  • Michigan Economic Development Corporation’s Small Business SmartZone Eligibility: To determine if your location is eligible, log on the MEDC map located HERE. Please open the link and enter your address in the “Find Address or Place” search box; if the address is in a highlighted area, you are eligible for this program.

• A company must fully complete both of the following documents:

1. The online EM-SBM Small Business Grant Application, located HERE  Opens 8/27/2024

2. The online EM-SBN Client Intake Form, located HERE

• A company must engage with the EM-SBN within the previous six months of receiving a grant award. An EM-SBN engagement is defined as:

1. Small business training including one-on-one coaching, consultations, workshops, seminars, cohort-based learning, networking, and mentorship delivered through the EM-SBN.

2. EM-SBN engagement can occur between grant announcement and grant award.

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• A company must not be on the federal debarment/suspension list.

  
  Eligible Uses of Grant Awards

• All expenses must be new; expenses made prior to the grant award are ineligible.

• Purchase of equipment, inventory, software, furniture, fixtures, and/or hardware, up to $4,999 per unit (in other words, the total cost of a piece of equipment, inventory, software, and/or hardware cannot exceed $4,999)

• Highly specialized consulting services which cannot be contracted directly with or provided by the EM-SBN by December 21, 2024 (i.e., software developers, AI, marketing, market research, legal, accounting, etc.)

• Payment of certification or licensing fees which must result in the receipt of corresponding certification or license by September 30, 2026

• Training that leads to a specific industry certification for employees including related travel expenses

Ineligible Uses of Grant Awards

• Payroll

• Building-based construction costs (i.e., any activity that disturbs the ground or modifies a structure)

• Any costs that will be or have been reimbursed by another Michigan Strategic Fund, Michigan Economic Development Corporation, or federal program, including funding awarded through another Michigan Small Business Support Hub

• A program or service that includes a term or condition that undermines efforts to stop the spread of COVID-19 or that imposes conditions on participation or acceptance of the service that would undermine effort to stop the spread of COVID-19 or discourage compliance with recommendations and guidelines in CDC guidance for stopping the spread of COVID-19

• Gifts and/or prize money

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Timeline for Grant Program
 

• Online grant application opens Tuesday, August, 27, 2024

• Online grant application closes Tuesday, September 24, 2024

• Grant application review including company eligibility verification Wednesday, September 25, 2024 through Wednesday, October 9, 2024

• Grant award announcement Tuesday, October 15, 2024

• EM-SBN and awardees complete a grant agreement outlining approved expenditures, filing deadline, and other criteria Wednesday, October 16, 2024 through Wednesday, October 23, 2024

• Awardees make approved expenditures and submit invoices to EM-SBN for reimbursement October 24, 2024 through December 31, 2024

• Final date to submit invoices for reimbursement December 31, 2024​​

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EASTERN MICHIGAN SMALL BUSINESS NETWORK

SMALL BUSINESS GRANT PROGRAM FAQ  

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Does the grant need to be repaid?

No. This grant program will reimburse awardees for approved eligible expenses. Once the awards are announced, awardees will complete a grant agreement that spells out what the funds can be used for based upon their application. After the grant agreement is signed, awardees will make the approved purchase, submit the invoice/receipts, and then receive the grant funds. 

 

How will the grant scoring work?

Each of the six participating counties will create their own scoring system based upon their specific priorities and needs. All applications will be forwarded to their county’s economic development organization for scoring. Applicants will only be competing against other applications from their county. 

 

Is this grant program open to for-profit and nonprofit companies?

For-profit companies are eligible for this grant program. 

 

What is the definition of a small business?

For the purpose of this grant program, we are using the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) definition of a small business, which is an independent business with 500 or fewer employees. 

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