City of Little Rock 311

Small Business Emergency Assistance Program

Application will be available Friday, June 5th 2020 at 12:00 p.m. Please read terms and qualifications and follow the prompts at the bottom of the page.

The application is a two-step process:
First you must fill out the application form online.
Second, you must submit copies of the following required documents to City Hall (500 West Markham):

OTHER INFORMATION REQUIRED

The following documents must be submitted all together in a sealed envelope with the name of the business on the outside to the Department Housing and Neighborhood Programs at 500 W. Markham St. Little Rock, AR 72201.

  • 2018 and 2019 Business and personal tax returns. (Federal)
  • 2019 internally prepared financials if tax returns are not completed or provide a copy of 2017 tax return.
  • Copies of utility bills, lease agreement, rental receipts, or mortgage payment receipt
  • Copy of most recent bank statements
  • Accounts Payable Register and copy of invoices.
  • Copy of front and back of driver’s license or Identification Card.
  • Copy of City of Little Rock Business License
  • Copy of Secretary of State Business License

Failure to complete both steps will result in denial of your application.

The City of Little Rock, Housing and Neighborhood Program (HNP), has developed an emergency relief program for small businesses in jeopardy as a result of COVID-19 public safety measures.

This program is funded through Community Development Block Grant Program (CDBG). Certain criteria must be met in order to be eligible for this funding source.

Available to: Small, for-profit businesses (sole proprietorships, corporations, or limited liability Corporations) that have been in business more than two (2) years and have twenty (20) or fewer employees. Or, applicants must be a for-profit micro-enterprise business with five employees or less including the owner AND owner the must earn a household annual income to or less than 80% of the area median income. Examples of small businesses are; Beauty Salons, Barber Shops, Restaurants, Coffee Shops, Small Retail Businesses, and Cleaning Services. All applicants must be listed in the dataset of active businesses registered in Little Rock [View list here] as of March 11, 2020, [E.O. 20-03] the date of the declared emergency for COVID-19 by Governor Asa Hutchinson.

Amount: Up to $5,000 for operational fixed costs (no construction projects or purchasing of equipment). Funds can be used to pay fixed debts, payroll, accounts payable, and other expenses which cannot be currently paid due to the pandemic.

Terms: A forgivable loan at 0% interest rate. No payments during the first year. If jobs retained and/or created/restored still exist after one (1) year, the loan is forgiven upon verification.

Requirements:

  • Must be a small, for-profit businesses (sole proprietorships, corporations, or limited liability Corporations) that has been in business more than two (2) years and have twenty (20) or fewer employees. Or, must be a for-profit micro-enterprise business with five employees or less including the owner AND owner the must earn a household annual income to or less than 80% of the area median income. All applicants must be listed in the dataset of active businesses registered in Little Rock [View list here] as of March 11, 2020, [E.O. 20-03] the date of the declared emergency for COVID-19 by Governor Asa Hutchinson. Applicants must be a directly affected small business or micro-enterprise business identified in Governors Proclamation E.O. 20-13, dated April 4, 2020.  Applicants must have been forced to close or reduce operations as the direct result of the response to COVID-19 public health emergency declarations.
  • Must have documentable business income loss, including business income comparisons and narrative description of impacts.
  • Loan applications will undergo underwriting. (No Credit Report required)
  • Must meet CDBG Income requirements by qualifying as either: o A micro-enterprise business meaning a business with five employees or less including the owner AND owner must earn a household annual income to or less than 80% of the area median income. o A small business where fifty-one percent (51%) of the jobs retained or created/restored must be held by a low-moderated income persons or,
  • 80% Area Median Income Limits. View Income Limits
  • Must provide an Income Certification for each employee retained or restored.
  • Will be required to enter into agreement with the City if the forgivable loan is awarded.
  • If the loan is approved, the recipient will be required to provide documentation of uses of funds within six (6) months.
  • Must be approved through the System for Award Management (SAM), this is an official website of the U.S. government.
  • Register as a City of Little Rock Vendor
  • Register your business as a Section 3 Business Enterprise-https://portalapps.hud.gov/Sec3BusReg/BRegistry/RegisterBusiness

There is no cost to use SAM. You can use this site FREE to: 

1. Register to do business with the U.S. government

2. Update or renew your entity registration

3. Check status of an entity registration

4. Search for entity registration and exclusion records

All applications may be subject to disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act (with personal information redacted). However, attachments such as bank information and tax documents are exempted from disclosure.

OTHER INFORMATION REQUIRED

The following documents must be submitted all together in a sealed envelope with the name of the business on the outside to the Department Housing and Neighborhood Programs at 500 W. Markham St. Little Rock, AR 72201.

  • 2018 and 2019 Business and personal tax returns. (Federal)
  • 2019 internally prepared financials if tax returns are not completed or provide a copy of 2017 tax return.
  • Copies of utility bills, lease agreement, rental receipts, or mortgage payment receipt
  • Copy of most recent bank statements
  • Accounts Payable Register and copy of invoices.
  • Copy of front and back of driver’s license or Identification Card.
  • Copy of City of Little Rock Business License
  • Copy of Secretary of State Business License

Applications will be reviewed by a committee. Funds are based on the availability from the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development.

If you are eligible for a loan prior to disbursement the owner and/or employees of the qualifying business will be required to complete the Owner/Employee Income Guidelines and Certification Form before any award is made.

For More Information

Doris Turner
Community Development Manager
501-371-6825