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ARIZONA HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVESFifty-fifth Legislature First Regular Session |
House: COM DPA 9-0-0-1 | APPROP DPA 13-0-0-0 |
HB 2282: small business assistance grants
Sponsor: Representative Lieberman, LD 28
House Engrossed
Overview
Creates the Small Business Assistance Relief Fund (Fund) to provide grants to small business negatively affected by the COVID-19 Pandemic.
History
According to JLBC, the Executive plans on allocating monies to state agency-relating programs as a response to COVID-19. Within the total allocation of monies, $11 million is from the Crisis Contingency and Safety Net Fund (CCSNF) for economic assistance to small businesses and local chamber of commerce. An additional $1 million from the CCSNF has been given to assist bars and restaurants in expanding their outdoor dining spaces (Baseline Book – ACA).
The CCSNF consists of legislative appropriations, public or private gifts, grants and donation. The fund is administered by the Governor who may only spend fund monies for the following forms of economic assistance during a state of emergency: 1) housing assistance; 2) services for homeless persons; 3) economic assistance to small businesses with less than 50 employees, non-profit organizations, and health care providers; and 4) monies for food bank operations (A.R.S. § 41-110).
According to JLBC, the legislature appropriated $50,000,000 from the state GF to the CCSNF in FY 2020. As of December 2020, the Executive has allocated a total of $43,945,000 from the fund (Baseline FY 2022).
Provisions
Small Business Assistance Grant Fund (Sec. 1)
1. 
Establishes the Fund to provide grants
to eligible small businesses negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
a) Specifies the Fund is administered by the Arizona Commerce Authority (ACA) and monies are continuously appropriated.
b) Allocates monies from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (Cares Act) to the Fund.
2. Allows the following individuals and entities to apply to the ACA for a grant:
a) A sole proprietor;
b) An independent contractor;
c) A person who is self-employed and who regularly carries on any trade or business;
d) A tribal small business; and
e) A cooperative and employee owned business.
3. Specifies small businesses with 25 or fewer employees that operated before January 1, 2020 and provides evidence of closure due to COVID-19 pandemic may apply for a grant.
a) Requires closed small business to provide plans to reopen.
4. Directs the ACA to award grants in amounts of up to $5,000 and to allocate at least 30% of Fund monies to small businesses located in counties with a population of less than 900,000.
5. Requires applications to be submitted by December 31, 2021 date and outlines the contents of the application.
6. Instructs the ACA to review the applications and specifies priority of grant awards.
7. Permits the ACA to extend the application deadline to allow additional business to apply if Fund monies remain after the date of the initial application deadline.
8. Exempts small business grants from statutory requirements relating to solicitation and award of grants.
9. Defines eligible small business.
Appropriation (Sec. 4)
10. Appropriates $5,000,000 to the Fund from monies allocated to Arizona from the CARES Act and deposited into the state General Fund in FY 2021-22.
11. Exempts monies from lapsing of appropriation.
Miscellaneous
12. Exempts the ACA from rule making for one year. (Sec. 2)
13. Contains a legislative intent clause. (Sec. 3)
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17. HB 2282
18. Initials PRB Page 0 House Engrossed
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