Jen Roberts, co-owner of Onion River Outdoors, shares her gratitude for her increased BEGAP award as Commissioner Joan Goldstein and Governor Phil Scott look on.
Big Changes to BEGAP
Agency of Commerce and Community Development Effective September 21, 2023, there is a new Business Emergency Gap Assistance Program (BEGAP) Award Calculation formula to help get more funds to organizations working to reopen their doors. These changes are retroactive.
The award amount is still based on total net uncovered physical damages, the amount remaining after subtracting insurance proceeds, other grants, and/or donations. But for organizations that suffered less than $1,000,000 in net uncovered damages, the formula now eliminates the $20,000 award cap. For organizations that suffered $1,000,000 or more in net uncovered damages, the formula no longer takes into account the number of Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) Vermont-based employees.
Visit the BEGAP page and read the FAQs for more details.
SBA Loan Eligibility Expansion
The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) is expanding the incident period for flood relief assistance for two groups.
- Business owners, homeowners, renters, and some private nonprofits in Caledonia, Chittenden, Lamoille, Orange, Orleans, Rutland, Washington, Windham, and Windsor counties can now apply for federal disaster loans for physical damage that occurred from July 7 through July 21. That’s four days longer than the original incident period of July 7 through July 17. The application deadline for SBA Disaster Loans for Physical Damage for the above organizations is October 12, 2023.
- The incident period is also being expanded four days for private nonprofit organizations (PNP) that provide non-critical services of a governmental nature – like food kitchens, homeless shelters, museums, libraries, community centers, schools, and colleges. PNPs in Addison, Bennington, Caledonia, Chittenden, Essex, Lamoille, Orange, Orleans, Rutland, Washington, Windham, and Windsor Counties that applied for a Physical Disaster Loan by the September 12, 2023 deadline, which suffered damages between July 18 and 21, can seek to modify their open application or approved loan to obtain additional funds for damages incurred July 18 to July 21.
Learn more online, by calling the SBA’s Customer Service Center at 800-659-2955, or visiting an SBA Center in Ludlow or Middlebury.
Support Fellow Vermonters
Show your Vermont pride and help your neighbors recover from summer flooding by buying a Vermont Strong ’23 license plate.
They’re $35 each, or you can spend $70 and get a pair of Darn Tough Vermont Strong socks, too. Businesses and retailers can order in bulk.
Half of all proceeds go to the Business Emergency Gap Assistance Program (BEGAP). The other half goes to the Vermont Community Fund’s VT Flood Response and Recovery Fund 2023.
*If this is the first time you are receiving this newsletter from ACCD, you have been added as part of reporting your business damages to Vermont 211. If you would prefer not to receive updates from ACCD on business resources related to this flooding event, you can unsubscribe below.
Agency of Commerce and Community Development
1 National Life Dr
Montpelier, VT 05620-5001
