Cobb County plans to post the eligibility requirements to receive a grant from Cobb’s Small Business Grant Program on the website http://www.SelectCobb.com this Monday, June 1.

Applications will be accepted Monday, June 8th through Friday, June 26 at 5:00 p.m. 

According to the announcement of the program, “This is not a ‘first-come, first-served’ situation, all applications will be reviewed after the submission deadline.”

The applications will be reviewed for eligibility by the staff of SelectCobb, the economic development initiative of the Cobb Chamber of Commerce.

After the pool of applicants is assembled, “SelectCobb and Cobb County Government will build an independent selection committee comprised of various industries representing each district in Cobb County to review eligible applications and select grant recipients.”

The applications will be reviewed by district to ensure equity among the county’s four districts.

The program was created at this week’s meeting of the Cobb County Board of Commissioners (BOC), and according to the county’s news release, is “designed to help struggling businesses recover from the economic damage caused by the coronavirus pandemic.”

The program was approved in a 5-0 BOC vote.

The grants are funded from the $132 million allocated to the county in the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.

The amount of the grants vary with business size as follows:

• 1 to 10 employees – up to $20,000;
• 11 to 50 employees – up to $30,000;
• 51 to 100 employees – up to $40,000.

“I’m gratified that the board came together to address an important segment of our community, the small business community,” Chairman Mike Boyce said after the vote, as quoted in the news release. “It demonstrates when it is all said and done, this board has the best interest of the county at heart. We work every day to do the best we can with the money we have – whether it is county money, state money, or federal money – we all have a duty to make sure the taxpayer’s money is spent appropriately and I think this is one action that reflects that.”

“I’m excited the Board supported this grant program,” said Commissioner Bob Ott, who worked with business groups to bring the agenda item forward. “Small business creates the bulk of jobs in this county, and in the middle of this pandemic our priority should be to set the stage to get people back to work.”