WASHINGTON – The U.S. Small Business Administration opened the Shuttered Venue Operators Grant application portal Thursday for operators of live venues, live performing arts organizations, museums and movie theaters, as well as live venue promoters, theatrical producers and talent representatives, to apply for economic relief. Those entities were among the first to close in 2020, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Concerts, plays, dance performances, movie premieres, museum exhibits – these are the lifeblood of culture and community, and often the anchor for travel, tourism and neighborhood food and retail stores,” SBA Administrator Isabella Casillas Guzman in a news release. “We know that for the stage and venue operators across the nation that help make this culture happen, the pandemic has been devastating. Too many have been forced to lower the final curtain on their businesses. Today, with more than $16.2 billion available through the Shuttered Venue Operators Grants, help is here.”
The SVOG program received more than $16.2 billion for grants via the Economic Aid to Hard-Hit Small Businesses, Nonprof- its and Venues Act and the American Rescue Plan Act, according to the news release. Of these funds, at least $2 billion is reserved for eligible SVOG applications with up to 50 fulltime employees. Eligible applicants may qualify for grants equal to 45% of their gross earned revenue up to a maximum amount of $10 million for a single grant.
The SBA is accepting grant applications on a first-in, first-out basis and allocating applicants to respective priority periods as it receives applications. The first 14 days of awards, which are expected to begin in late April, will be dedicated to entities that suffered at least a 90% drop in revenue between April and December 2020 due to the pandemic.
The second 14 days (days 15-28) will include entities that suffered a 70% or greater revenue loss between April and December 2020. Following those periods, awards will include entities that lost at least 25% of their revenue between one quarter of 2019 and the corresponding quarter of 2020.
Applicants can find a local resource partner via SBA’s website at www.sba.gov/ local-assistance or via a zip code at www.sba.gov/ localassistance.