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CARES Act

Eligibility Criteria

Only businesses that meet these criteria will be eligible to receive funding:

Criteria

Detail
Previous Grant Has not received a grant from the Will County Small Business Grant Program

Located in Will County

Physical location (e.g., office, storefront) must be in Will County, IL (not a P.O. box)

Annual Revenue
  • Annual gross must not exceed $5 Million
  • If annual gross is $10,000 or below, grant amount will not exceed annual Gross revenue.

Workforce Size

Employ fewer than 50 employees

Demonstrate significant COVID-19 expenses or disruptions

Businesses ordered closed by executive order will satisfy this requirement. For other businesses, must have significant revenue loss and/or increase in expenses due to COVID-19. Examples include:

  • A loss of gross receipts or sales
  • Operated at a reduced level of production, sales, employment, or service
  • Have temporarily closed operations
  • Have increased expenses in order to prevent/mitigate the spread of COVID-19

Business Type
  • All for-profit businesses with ITIN, EIN, or SSN (if no ITIN/EIN)
  • Independent contractors must demonstrate that they make at least half of their yearly income in 1099 contract work.
Existing Businesses

Must have been in operation in Will County since at least February 15, 2020* or earlier

*based on PPP date

Has not received unemployment
  • Independent contractors must not have received unemployment since March 1, 2020 to be eligible

In good standing

Must be in good standing and not in default with the IRS, State of Illinoiss and/or Will County
Not Currently in Bankruptcy Business must not currently be in bankruptcy.

 

Preference Criteria

In the event there are more eligible businesses who have applied than funding available, the following criteria will be used to give priority to certain businesses for assistance:

Criteria

Detail

Equity

Located in an Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) Disproportionately Impacted Area (DIA)*

*DIAs are defined by Illinois DCEO. DIA zip codes in Will County include 60432, 60433, 60435, 60436, 60466, and 60471.

Business Type

In a highly impacted industry:

  • Restaurant; Bar or Tavern

  • Event, Performing Arts, Music, or Movie Theater/Venue

  •  Museum or Zoo

  • Hotel/Motel

  • Indoor Recreation

  • Health and Fitness Center

  • Retail

 

Eligible Expenses

This is not an expense reimbursement program. However, these funds are intended to be used for operating expenses such as utilities, rent, mortgage, technology, personal protective equipment (PPE) and expenses due to disruptions from complying with public health orders related to COVID-19.

Examples:

  • Payroll costs for employees
  • Rent or lease payments
  • Mortgage or loan payments
  • Utility payments
  • Supplier payments
  • Purchase personal protective equipment (PPE) and sanitation supplies
  • Physical building adaptation/barriers
  • Contract labor to implement public health measures
  • Rent, lease, or purchase payments for business equipment implement public health measures
  • Purchase Technology/Applications to minimize employee and customer contact
  • Other measures to implement social distancing
  • Replace perishable inventory that was lost due to COVID-19 pandemic

Ineligible Expenses

Funds may not be used for severance pay, workforce bonuses other than hazard pay or overtime, property taxes, other taxes/fees/payments due to your municipality or Will County legal settlements, or expenditures that will be reimbursed through another assistance program.