Frequently Asked Questions
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Your small business was impacted if you lost revenue due to mandatory or voluntary closures or experienced other financial impacts related to the pandemic (e.g., supply-chain issues, hiring and retention of employees, increased inflationary costs). These impacts must have occurred from January 2020 forward. Financial losses due to normal business cycles or an expected decline or phase-out of a business model (e.g., home meal delivery services, remodeling, etc.) do not qualify.
As an impacted business, you are required to show proof of your financial loss unless you were “disproportionately impacted.” Disproportionately impacted small business are businesses owned by a Tribe or operating on Tribal land; businesses located inside a low-income community as defined by the US Census (Qualified Census Tracts); and businesses in the Travel, Tourism, and Hospitality industries. (see the questions on disproportionately impacted small businesses for more information)
Small businesses owned by women, Latinos, people of color, and veterans were impacted more severely by COVID-19 and are strongly encouraged to apply.
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Small business grants are available in amounts between $2,500 and $10,000.
Minimum grant award: $2,500
Maximum grant award: $10,000
The exact grant amount for your business will depend on the extent of your pandemic-related losses and the amount of prior government assistance you have already received. If your business received more than $5,000 in prior COVID-19 government assistance, you may still qualify for a small business grant, but the highest amount you will receive is $7,500.
Disproportionately Impacted Businesses: Your grant amount cannot exceed your pandemic-related losses UNLESS you qualify as a “disproportionately impacted” business. See questions on disproportionately impacted businesses.
All other businesses: If you do not qualify as a disproportionately impacted business, you must show your pandemic-related financial impacts. There are several ways to do this, and you can choose the method(s) that get you the highest grant amount. See the question “How can I show my COVID-related losses?” If your loss is less than $2,500, you will not qualify for this grant.
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The small business grants are meant to help cover payroll, rent, mortgage, utilities, or other basic operational costs of your business. You may not use these grant funds to pay for federal, state, or local fines related to non-compliance with COVID-19 mitigation measures.
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Your business must be a for-profit business.
Your business must be a small business. Definition: You have 50 or fewer Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) employees (count part-time employees as .5 FTE each.)
Your business must be located inside one of the qualified zip codes: 97070, 97140, 97132, 97137, 97303, 97115
Your business must not be permanently closed and must intend to continue business operations following the COVID-19 pandemic.
Your business cannot be in receivership or bankruptcy.
The business must be in good standing with state and federal tax regulatory agencies with no outstanding tax obligations or liabilities (unless it is in an approved and verifiable payment plan and you are current on your payments).
Your business must be in full compliance with all federal, state, and local laws and regulations.
Your business must have an active registration with the Oregon Secretary of State Business Registry database.
Your business must be independently owned and operated.
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To qualify for this small business grant, you must have 50 or fewer Full Time Equivalent (FTE) employees. You can count each part-time employee as .5 FTE.
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Yes. To qualify for this grant, your primary place of business must be located within one of the following Oregon zip codes:
97070
97140
97132
97137
97303
97115
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Grants are available on January 31, 2023 on a first-come, first-served basis, until all funds are expended. You are encouraged to submit your application as soon as possible after it opens as funds may go very quickly. You can submit your application starting at 8:00am on January 31, 2023.
Note: The application website shows a closing date of May 31, 2024. This is the date all federal ARPA funds must be expended and is not the grant application deadline.
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No, these grants do not have to be paid back. They are meant to help you recover some of your financial losses and pay for operational expenses such as past-due bills or investing in employee retention efforts or other issues that your business may be currently facing due to the pandemic.
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No. You will not pay taxes on this small business grant.
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The U.S. Treasury considers the following small businesses as “disproportionately impacted” and presumed eligible for assistance. They still need to meet all basic grant qualifications but do NOT need to show proof of financial losses:
Small businesses operated by a Tribal government or operating on Tribal land
Small businesses located in a Qualified Census Tract (QCT)
Small businesses within the Travel, Tourism and Hospitality Industries
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The U.S. Treasury considers the following small businesses as “disproportionately impacted” and presumed eligible for assistance. You still need to meet all basic grant qualifications but do NOT need to show proof of financial impacts. Your business may fall into one or more of the categories below. You only need to qualify under ONE category to be considered a disproportionately impacted business. More info: Am I a Disproportionately Impacted business?
Category one: Businesses owned by Tribal governments or located on Tribal land
If your business is located on Tribal land or owned by a Tribal government, you are presumed to have been disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Category two: Qualified Census Tracts (QCTs)
If your primary place of business is located inside the boundaries of a low-income community as defined by the US Census Bureau, you are presumed to have been disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Keizer and Newberg have a Qualified Census Tracts (QCT).
Wilsonville, Sherwood, St. Paul, and Dundee do NOT have a QCT.
How to find out if your business is in a QCT:
Step 1: Go to the QCT website: https://www.huduser.gov/portal/sadda/sadda_qct.html
Step 2: Enter your business address in the upper left-hand side and press “Go.”
Step 3: Check these boxes in the Map Options: “Color QCT Qualified Tracts” and “Show Tracts Outline.” Select the year 2023.
If your business is inside the purple highlighted area, your business is located within a QCT.
Category 3: Travel, Tourism & Hospitality
If your business falls within the travel, tourism, or hospitality sectors, you are presumed to have been disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Examples of Travel, Tourism & Hospitality businesses:
Tourism and tourism-connected providers: travel agents, tour guides, tour operators, tourism organizations (such as museums, historical site operators, etc.)
Transportation businesses: water transport, coach services, car rental agencies. (Uber and Lyft contractors do not qualify as they are not independently owned businesses.)
Hospitality:
Accommodation: Hotels, motels, hostels, camping services, bed and breakfast (Airbnb operators and chain hotels do not qualify as they are not independently owned.)
Food and Beverage: Restaurants, catering services, cafés, pubs, food carts (chain businesses do not qualify as they are not independently owned.)
Look up your 6-digit NAICS code to find out if you are in the travel, tourism, or hospitality industry. You can find your number on your tax documents:
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Before reading this section:
Check to see if your business was disproportionately impacted by the pandemic. If you qualify as disproportionately impacted, you will NOT have to fill out the tab on the grant application showing your pandemic-related losses. See the FAQ questions above on Disproportionately Impacted Businesses.
If your business was not disproportionately impacted:
You must upload documents showing how COVID-19 negatively impacted your business. There are several ways to do this, although you only need to choose ONE category:
Decline in revenues
Employee retention issues: Increased payroll costs
Employee retention issues: FTE loss
Increased Costs of Goods Sold (COGS)
You are only required to choose one method, although you may submit information for all of them if you choose. BRC staff will look at the documents that show the greatest impact so you can receive the largest grant. The documents you share must support the claim that you suffered an economic loss due to the COVID-19 pandemic and not as a result of normal or cyclical changes.
Use whole-year reporting. If your losses are less than $2,500 you will not qualify for this grant.
Method 1: Decline in revenue
Documents to upload: Tax returns
To show a decline in revenue, you will compare your 2019 tax return to either 2020, 2021, or 2022 to show how much your revenue declined.
Method 2: Employee retention issues: Increased payroll costs
Documents to upload: Payroll reports or accounting documents
Increased payroll costs will be demonstrated by comparing reports from 2019 to either 2020 or 2021, or, by comparing 2020 and 2021 data, or 2021 and 2022 data.
Losses should be clear and significant, at around 10% or more of a labor costs increase.
Method 3: Employee retention issues: FTE Loss
Documents to upload: Payroll reports or accounting documents
Employee retention issues may be documented by FTE comparisons from 2019 to either 2020 or 2021, or comparing 2020 figures to 2021 or 2021 to 2022 data.
Losses should be clear and significant, defined as 20% or more FTE loss.
Method 4: Increased Cost of Goods Sold (COGS)
Documents to upload: Cost-of-Goods Sold reports
To show negative economic impact, any consecutive year-over-year COGS reports derived from your accounting system (2019, 2020, 2021 or 2022 figures) will suffice. Negative economic impact for increased cost of goods sold must be clear and significant, around 10% or more.
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There are several ways to submit your application:
1. Online application:
Go to the following website on Jan. 31 and follow directions to the online application: https://www.oregonbrc.org/business-grants
Instructions for Mail, Email, and In-person submissions:
The following three options require you to first download a PDF of the application at this address: https://www.oregonbrc.org/business-grants
2. Email:
After you fill out the application, scan the application and your attachments and email them to BRC@wilsonvillechamber.com
3. In-person:
After you fill out the application, put it in a large envelope along with your attachments and hand-deliver to this address:
Oregon Business Recovery Center
c/o Wilsonville Chamber of Commerce
8565 SW Salish Lane, Suite 150
Wilsonville, OR 97070
4. Mail:
After you fill out the application, put it in a large envelope along with your attachments and mail to the address below. We will use the postmark on the envelope as your date of submission.
Oregon Business Recovery Center
c/o Wilsonville Chamber of Commerce
8565 SW Salish Lane, Suite 150
Wilsonville, OR 97070
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The online application is in English. A downloadable paper application will be available from our website in English and Spanish.
Free translation services: The Oregon BRC is committed to helping all small business owners who want to apply for this grant. Free translation services are available in all languages. Contact our staff at 503-682-0411 or email BRC@wilsonvillechamber.com and we will arrange for a translator.
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Contact the BRC staff for help determining if you qualify for this grant. You can email us at BRC@wilsonvillechamber.com or call 503-682-0411.
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No. Non-profit organizations do not qualify for these small business grants.
If your nonprofit needs help recovering from the pandemic, you may qualify for other types of assistance. Go to https://www.oregonbrc.org/home/recovery-assistance to learn more.
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You must have a current registration with the Oregon Secretary of State to qualify for this grant. You will be asked to enter your registration number on the application.
Check your registration: https://sos.oregon.gov/business/pages/find.aspx
Register your business or renew your registration: https://sos.oregon.gov/business/Pages/register.aspx
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Yes, but you may receive a smaller grant amount.
If your business received more than $5,000 in prior COVID-19 related government assistance, the highest amount you will receive is $7,500.
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Federal Paycheck Protection Program (PPP loans)
Administered by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA)
Link: https://www.federalpay.org/paycheck-protection-program
Federal CARES: Coronavirus Relief Fund for Cultural Support (CRFCS)
Administered by Business Oregon / Oregon Cultural Trust
Link: https://culturaltrust.org/wp-content/uploads/CRFCS_Awards_County.pdf
Statewide Business and Customer Support Program
Administered by Department of Administrative Services (DAS)
Link: https://go.usa.gov/xzGaV
Federal Shuttered Venue Operators Grant (SVOG)
Program is administered by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA)
Link: https://data.sba.gov/dataset/svog
Operational Cost Assistance (OCA)
Funds administered by Business Oregon
Link: https://go.usa.gov/xzGCv
Restaurant Revitalization Fund (RRF)
Administered by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA)
Link: https://data.sba.gov/dataset/rrf-foia
ARPA Coronavirus State Fiscal Recovery Program for Small and Independent Community Movie Theatres
Link: https://www.oregon.gov/biz/Publications/ARPA_Movie_Theater_Program_Awards_20220701.pdf
ARPA Coronavirus State Fiscal Recovery Program for Live Events Venue Operators and Producers / Presenters Program
Link: https://www.oregon.gov/biz/programs/ARPA_live_event_venues/Pages/default.aspx
Yamhill County
2020 Grants
https://www.co.yamhill.or.us/grants/pastgrantawards-2020-award1
https://www.co.yamhill.or.us/grants/pastgrantawards-2020-award2
https://www.co.yamhill.or.us/grants/pastgrantawards-2020-award3
2021 Grants
https://www.co.yamhill.or.us/content/water-sewer-infrastructure-competitive-grants
https://www.co.yamhill.or.us/grants/nonprofit-competitive-grants-2022-investments
https://www.co.yamhill.or.us/grants/pastgrantawards-2021-rlf
City of Keizer
Link: https://www.keizer.org/Covid19SmallBusinessAssistance
City of Wilsonville
Link: Wilsonville Small Business COVID‐19 Relief Grants Program_2020
Link: City of Wilsonville - Restaurant Relief Grant Report
City of Newberg
Link: https://www.newbergoregon.gov/finance/page/american-rescue-plan-act-arpa-funds-city-newberg
City of Sherwood
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Some businesses or organizations are NOT eligible for these grants:
Non-Profit organizations
School districts and their related agencies or organizations
Chain and franchise businesses (unless independently owned)
Branch banks and financial institutions
Day labor employment agencies
Currency exchanges, pay day, and title secured loan stores
Pawn shops
Gambling establishments
Fortune telling services
Liquor stores, vape, smoke and marijuana shops
Tobacco dealers, including sales of tobacco, nicotine, or similar products and accessories
Adult entertainment establishments
Gas stations
Firearms dealers
Places of worship/religious institutions and their related agencies or organizations
Residential storage warehouses
Trailer-storage yards, junk yards, and similar uses
This list is not exhaustive, and the Chamber reserves the right to amend it as needed.
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Required paperwork:
Copy of your current driver’s license or other government-issued identification (front & back).
Your 2019 tax return:
• LLC's and Sole Proprietors, attach Form 1040: Schedule C
• Registered Corporations, attach Form 1120
• Registered Partnerships, attach Form 1065
3. If you are NOT a “Disproportionately Impacted” business, you will need to upload documents showing how COVID-19 financially impacted your business. [see the question “How can I show my COVID-related losses?”]