Only a fraction of Whatcom businesses to receive state grants due to high demand

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In Whatcom County, 752 businesses applied for Working Washington Small Business Emergency Grants before the Washington State Department of Commerce stopped accepting applications due to an “overwhelming volume.”

“The overall response was overwhelming,” said Penny Thomas, spokesperson for the Department of Commerce, in an email.

Statewide, more than 25,000 applied for the grants. The application window closed early in Whatcom and more than a dozen other counties. 

Thomas said the local offices charged with processing the applications decided when they had reached capacity. In Whatcom County, that work is done by Choose Whatcom, a business development initiative funded by Whatcom County, the city of Bellingham and the Port of Bellingham.

The emergency grant program is funded by up to $5 million from the governor’s Strategic Reserve Fund and is administered by the state Department of Commerce. It will provide a limited number of businesses with up to $10,000. Thomas said it can provide 68 Whatcom County businesses with $10,000, and more grants will be awarded if some businesses apply for and receive less than $10,000.

The Department of Commerce will review applications this week and businesses should receive funds soon; the entire process from application to award is four to six weeks, Thomas said. Washington governor Jay Inslee announced the grants on April 7.

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