AUBURN, CA (MPG) - Beginning tomorrow, eligible small businesses and nonprofit organizations in Placer County can apply for grant funding to offset impacts caused by the coronavirus pandemic and the resulting state shutdown order.

The grant program, Placer Shares, could provide awards of up to $10,000 to cover eligible COVID-19 expenses. The grant portal is open for two weeks (Aug. 25 – Sept. 7 and consideration is not on a first-come, first-served basis.

“We are excited to share our grant funding with our small businesses and nonprofit organizations in Placer County that were hardest hit by the pandemic,” said Placer County Board Chair and District 1 Supervisor Bonnie Gore. “This has been a very challenging time for our small business and nonprofit communities and our Board wants to help them survive.”

Interested applicants are encouraged to visit the Placer Shares website, www.placer.ca.gov/shares, for details, including: eligibility requirements, the funding priority matrix, grant applications, application checklists, small business and nonprofit workshops, FAQs and more.

The Placer Shares hotline has been established to help answer grant application-related questions. Staff members can be reached 24/7 at 877-969-2870. Assistance will be available in Spanish on weekdays from 5 a.m - 6 p.m.

“Placer County is committed to helping our small business owners who are the backbone of our community and local economy,” said Placer County District 5 Supervisor Cindy Gustafson. “We are working hard to get money in the hands of business owners who need to pay for expenses, which keep piling up.”

The Board of Supervisors on June 23 directed the County Executive Office to set aside a share of its federal funding from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act to establish the grant program on the premise of a strong business community translates into a strong county economy. 

The county anticipates receiving approximately $40 million from the federal CARES Act. California counties with more than 500,000 in population received their funding in late April, but smaller counties like Placer are receiving their funding via monthly increments from the state. 

Placer County’s 20% appropriation to the business and nonprofit sectors is among the largest share in terms of percentage of any other county in California.