Hillsborough County’s business recovery program enters phase two
By Brendan Ward
Tampa Bay Business Journal
Published: Jul 13, 2020

Hillsborough County has started the second phase of its Rapid Response Recovery Program, which aims to help local businesses impacted by Covid-19.

Under the program, small business owners in Hillsborough County who were forced to close because of the pandemic will be able to apply for more than $100 million in grants. Phase 2 offers businesses three different programs they can apply for depending on revenue.

The three programs include:

Kickstart Small Business, which offers up to $10,000 in working capital, for businesses with up to $1 million in annual revenue Back to Work, which offers up to $2,000 per employee in payroll incentives to hire or rehire workers, for businesses with up to $5 million in annual revenue Safe at Work, offers up to $10,000 matching reimbursement for the cost of qualifying workplace improvements directly related to mitigating the spread of Covid-19, for businesses with up to $5 million in annual revenue To be eligible, businesses that apply must have reopened in some form. Phase 2 of the program focuses on:

Businesses located anywhere in Hillsborough County Businesses deemed non-essential or forced to close by Covid-19 government orders Reopened small businesses The first phase of applications, which started on June 30, focused on businesses in economically distressed areas. The third phase will begin in about two weeks. During that phase, The Kickstart Small Business program will be available for businesses with revenue under $3 million. The Back to Work and Safe at Work money will be for businesses with annual revenue less than $20 million.