WASHINGTON – On Oct. 8, the U.S. Department of the Treasury announced awardees receiving funding to support small business growth through the Biden-Harris Administration’s State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI) Investing in America Small Business Opportunity Program (SBOP).
The Cherokee Nation is one of 14 SBOP recipients and will receive $2 million. CN Commerce Services will use the funds to connect underserved small businesses in the Cherokee Reservation with industry experts and foster collaboration with local financial institutions.
“By increasing access to capital and making historic investments in infrastructure, clean energy, and manufacturing, we have spurred record-breaking small business growth over the last three years,” said Vice President Kamala Harris. “Since taking office, I have been proud to work to expand access to opportunity by investing in the small businesses that are the backbone of our communities. This funding from the Small Business Opportunity Program will build on this momentum by allowing tens of thousands of entrepreneurs from historically underserved communities to access the technical assistance they need in order to hire more employees, grow their businesses, and advance innovation.”
SBOP is a $75 million competitive grant program that provides funding to connect underserved and very small businesses to the financing necessary to participate in investing in America supply chains, including electric vehicle manufacturing, semiconductor manufacturing, construction, transportation, clean energy generation and more.
As part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s economic agenda, the SBOP was designed to catalyze additional private sector investment by supporting small business in getting the legal, accounting, and financial advisory services they need and helping them to secure SSBCI-supported financing or other state and federal program support.
“More than 19 million new small business applications have been filed during the Biden-Harris Administration and we’re working to support these entrepreneurs and connect them to the customers and capital they need to grow,” Secretary of the Treasury Janet L. Yellen said. “The Biden-Harris Administration has fueled major investments in key sectors of our economy, and these resources will support technical assistance that connects small businesses around the country to important supply chains and new opportunities.”
A fact sheet summarizing all 14 SBOP awards can be found here.
In addition to the Oct. 8 announcement, the Treasury has announced the approvals of SSBCI Technical Assistance grants allocated by formula to states, the District of Columbia, territories, and Tribal governments, representing $145 million for 48 jurisdictions. Treasury anticipates additional approvals of applications to follow. See the full list of approved programs here.
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