City leaders on Tuesday night approved an offshoot of the CARES program by setting aside $150,000 of its $327,000 it received to help prop up local businesses impacted by COVOID-19. City staff has been working on the implementation of a Small Business Assistance program and will assist business owners shut down by the Pandemic. The money is meant to reimburse losses suffered because of the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Awards will be up to $5,000 for each applicant. Applicants must operate a business located in the City of Lemoore and meet the following conditions:

• Must maintain a current and valid business license (if applicable);
• Must be a business that has been in operation before March 15, 2020, in the city of Lemoore
• Must have 25 or fewer full-time employees
• a full-time employee is someone who is working 40 hours a week.
• To maintain consistency across applications, two part-time employees are presumed to equal one full-time position.
• Must have suffered a demonstrable reduction in revenue attributed to COVID-109 and,
• Must have wholly or partially shut down to comply with the various shutdown orders issued by the governor's office.

Non-profits only:

Must have an interest in real property to be eligible for this grant. An interest in real property can be the following:

• Leased building or property; or,
• Own a building or property used to produce income.
• To be considered for an award in this program, submission of a completed application with all attachments is required.

The remaining CARES Act funding will go to support first responders and personal protective equipment (PPE).

Click here for a CARES Act Funding application