Hustler's MicroGrant

In 2013, to foster job creation, facilitate small business development and enhance the workforce pipeline, the Rhode Island General Assembly created the Innovate Rhode Island Small Business Fund (IRISBF). Eligible Rhode Island small businesses may apply for grants to defray the cost of applying for SBIR/STTR awards, match SBIR/STTR Phase I and Phase II awards, and hire interns. Application Grant: Provides grants of up to $3,000 to assist small businesses offset the costs associated with preparing a competitive Phase I SBIR/STTR application. Matching Grant: Provides grants of up to $75,000 to encourage recipients of SBIR/STTR Phase I awards and up to $150,000 to recipients of Phase II awards.

The MDOT Small Business Grant Program provides direct grants of up to $50,000 to small businesses located along Maryland's Purple Line light rail corridor that are impacted by construction. Administered by the Maryland Department of Transportation, the program is designed to help offset the operational impact of construction-related closures and detours on businesses within one-quarter mile of the existing or future Purple Line tracks. The program runs from 2025 through 2028 with $1 million awarded each year across up to three application rounds, and is a successor to the earlier Purple Line Construction Zone Grant Program. Grant funds may be used for a wide range of business expenses, including payroll and healthcare benefits, contract labor, working capital, rent or mortgage payments, supplier payments, machinery and equipment, and utilities. In addition to direct grants, the program may also provide marketing funding and other business support for corridor businesses. Awards are competitive and prioritized based on a business's proximity to the most significant construction impacts.

PWQ provides matching training grants and support services targeted to improve the competitive position of small and mid-sized manufacturing and technology companies. Grants are used to increase the skills of existing workers for new technologies and production processes, improve employee productivity and increase employment stability. Applicants should have a minimum of ten full-time employees. At least 60% of available funds must be awarded to employers with 150 or fewer employees in the State. The Program encourages the participation of small and minority-owned businesses. Priority will be given to manufacturing and technology companies. In regions of the State where regionally important industries have been identified beyond manufacturing and technology, justification should be provided to approve PWQ funding.

The California Paid Family Leave Small Business Grant provides California small businesses with grants of up to $2,000 per employee to help offset the operational costs that arise when an employee takes leave through California's Paid Family Leave (PFL) program. Grant amounts are tiered by business size: businesses with 1 to 50 employees may receive up to $2,000 per employee utilizing PFL, and businesses with 51 to 100 employees may receive up to $1,000 per employee utilizing PFL. Funded by the State of California through the Employment Training Panel (ETP) and Labor and Workforce Development Agency (LWDA), the program is delivered through multiple community-based partner organizations that conduct outreach to California small businesses (including the CAMEO Network, which operates the current californiapfl.com application portal). Grant funds are paid directly to the employer and are intended to cover training or cross-training of existing staff to fill in for the employee on leave, hiring and training temporary or additional staff, and reasonably foreseeable recruitment, marketing, and related training costs. California's Paid Family Leave program itself allows workers to take paid leave to bond with a new child (through birth, adoption, or foster care) or to care for a seriously ill family member. To qualify, a business must have 1 to 100 employees and at least one employee who used California's Paid Family Leave program on or after the current program's qualifying start date (this date is updated with each funding round). The business must be registered to do business in California and be in active status with the California Secretary of State, and must have an active California Employer Account Number (CEAN) under which its employees are listed for payroll. Businesses that use a Professional Employer Organization (PEO) for payroll and file under the PEO's CEAN rather than their own are not eligible. As part of the application, the employer must provide the employee's EDD Customer Account Number (a 10-digit number provided directly to the employee by the EDD, distinct from a Social Security Number). Applicants may need to request this number from the employee who took leave.