Category Archives: SBA

Here’s what you need to choose a business structure.

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The U.S. Small Business Administration has a very helpful resource for those struggling to decide if they should have a sole proprietorship, partnership, Limited liability company (LLC), corporation, nonprofit or cooperative.

They say that “the business structure you choose influences everything from day-to-day operations, to taxes and how much of your personal assets are at risk. You should choose a business structure that gives you the right balance of legal protections and benefits.”

Here is a link to the resource page on their website.

PPP Loan Forgiveness

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Borrowers may be eligible for Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan forgiveness

If you received the Payroll Protection Loan (PPP) make sure you are taking the necessary steps to apply for loan forgiveness. 

A borrower can apply for forgiveness once all loan proceeds for which the borrower is requesting forgiveness have been used. Borrowers can apply for forgiveness any time up to the maturity date of the loan. If borrowers do not apply for forgiveness within 10 months after the last day of the covered period, then PPP loan payments are no longer deferred, and borrowers will begin making loan payments to their PPP lender.

You can find more information on the SBA Website.

Join the SBA’s Seattle district office to learn about the Restaurant Revitalization Fund

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The American Rescue Plan Act established the Restaurant Revitalization Fund to provide funding to help restaurants and other eligible businesses keep their doors open. 

During this live webinar we will discuss: 

  • What is the Restaurant Revitalization Fund
  • Who is eligible to apply
  • How much money you can get 
  • How funds can be used
  • How and when to apply 
  • Where to get help with your application

Staff from SBA will be answering your questions live throughout the presentation with dedicated Q&A time at the end. 

Who should attend: Current small business owners who have experienced pandemic related revenue losses who own a restaurant, bar, and other similar places of business that serve food or drink.

Business & Worker Newsletter

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What you should know about

Business Grants

April 9 deadline for Working Washington Grants: Round 4

The application portal is still open! This program is administered by the state Department of Commerce and focuses on brick-and-mortar for-profit small businesses, especially those that were required to close due to public health and safety measures. Grant awards will be up to $25,000. Visit commercegrants.com for information. Materials are available in multiple languages and technical assistance teams are ready to help with questions.

The Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA) is offering grants to small agriculture-related businesses in sectors that have suffered economically due to the coronavirus pandemic, but have been left out of earlier relief programs.

The WSDA Relief and Recovery grants, funded through a partnership with the state Department of Commerce, are intended to assist small businesses in four agriculture sectors, which include:

  • Shellfish growers
  • Farmers market organizations
  • Agritourism farms
  • Small breweries, cideries, wineries, and distilleries that depend on tap and tasting room sales

The application period for the WSDA grants will be open for two weeks, beginning as soon as Friday, April 9. Visit agr.wa.gov/grants to learn more.

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Time is running out! Apply for PPP by Mar 31.

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PPP loan borrowers including schedule C filers have until March 31st to submit 1st Draw or 2nd Draw PPP applications unless funds run out or congress extends the deadline.

Contact your local business lender. Visit smallbizhelpwa for additional info. Or call the new PPP Assistance Line 833.562.1078

As a always Jaime Forsyth, MBA , Certified Business Advisor is a great source for assistance WWU Small Business Development Center(360) 447-8788

View the latest SBA webinar presentation slide deck

News Flash: New PPP Forgiveness Formula for Sole Proprietors & LLC s Deadline Approaching

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Were you a sole proprietor, LLC or independent contractor that was not able to participate in the Paycheck Protection Program because you did not have a significant profit from your business?   If so, you might have the opportunity to access up to around $20,000 in PPP grant (forgiveness) money (up to about $30,000 if you run a restaurant).  But you may only have days to apply for these funds.

The SBA has just released a new PPP forgiveness formula that uses revenue reported on your 2019 or 2020 Schedule C (line 7) rather than net profit (line 31).  In a nutshell, you can now count your revenue as the basis for forgiveness just like employee wages (to a maximum of $100,000/yr).  Engage your accountant in the details.

Please review the scenarios in the attached PDF “Revenue-Based PPP Formula”  to see how this works in practice.

The new PPP application form and SBA FAQ document is also attached for your review.  There are other program requirements of PPP that still apply such as:

  • having been in operation on February 15, 2020
  • documentation of income using tax statements
  • if you use revenue of more than $150,000 as your loan basis you will need to certify to the SBA that “Current economic uncertainty makes this loan request necessary to support the ongoing operations of the Applicant”.

Businesses that are taxed by the IRS as C-Corporations, S-Corporations and Partnerships are not eligible to use the gross income calculation method for calculation the PPP loan amount.  Only businesses that use Schedule C to report their income and expenses to the IRS are eligible.

It appears that these new rules are not retroactive – if you have already received a 2nd round PPP loan you cannot resubmit under these rules.  These rules should be available for anyone who has not gotten a PPP loan, or has only gotten a 1st round loan.

If you are interested, you should apply as soon as possible.  The special small business-only application period expires next Tuesday (March 9th) and the overall deadline for applications is March 31, 2021.  The new stimulus bill going through congress does not significantly increase PPP funding, except for a new program for restaurants.

Since this form was only published on March 3 the banks – where you apply – may not have updated their systems.  Applying could be a chaotic experience and you will want to research multiple options.  You may want to try and reach a customer service representative on the bank’s PPP program.  It is possible that some of the “FinTech” funders like Biz2Credit and Bluevine might be faster off the mark than local banks.

To move forward, download these PDF files… 

  1. PPP Application
  2. Revenue-Based PPP Foregiveness Examples
  3. SBA Changes to PPP Rules


 

SBA Prioritizes Smallest of Small Businesses in the Paycheck Protection Program

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Steps to Promote Equitable Relief for Mom-and-Pop Businesses

Building on a month of strong results, the Biden-Harris Administration and the U.S. Small Business Administration are taking steps with the Paycheck Protection Program to further promote equitable relief for America’s mom-and-pop businesses. 

The latest round of Paycheck Protection Program funding opened one month ago and already the Biden Administration has succeeded in making major improvements to the program’s implementation:

  • For businesses with fewer than ten employees, the share of funding is up nearly 60%
  • For businesses in rural communities, the share of funding is up nearly 30%
  • The share of funding distributed through Community Development Financial Institutions and Minority Depository Institutions is up more than 40%

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Washington State Department of Commerce — Business & Worker Update

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FEB. 10,  2021

The Business and Workers update is a weekly newsletter providing news and information to help businesses and workers navigate the COVID-19 pandemic. The information is compiled by the state Economic Resiliency Team (ERT), part of the Joint Information Center.

What you should know about…

COVID-19 Response

The importance of testing

Vaccine may be in the spotlight right now, and while it’s a crucial tool to eventually help us overcome the pandemic, it’s not the only tool we should be using. We are still relying on things like wearing masks and getting tested to ensure our success in overcoming this pandemic, and we’ll need to keep doing so over the next few months.

Testing is a critical and essential part of the overall COVID-19 response. Identifying and isolating people who have COVID-19, and quarantining those exposed to the virus, are necessary to understanding, responding to, and stopping the spread of infection. Assuring equitable and widespread access to testing with rapid turnaround times for results remains a priority. For us to successfully stop the spread of the virus, it is critical for people to get tested when they have symptoms or when they have been exposed to someone suspected of having COVID-19.

Testing remains a priority. Please, encourage your family and friends to get tested if they’ve been exposed, or if they have symptoms. For more information about testing in Washington state see the state Department of Health’s (DOH) testing page, their updated statewide testing strategy and their testing location resources.

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