Dublin City Council Approves Small Business Loan Program

DUBLIN, CA – The Dublin City Council has approved establishing a small business emergency microloan program that will offer up to $10,000 in zero-interest loans to help mitigate the impact of the coronavirus pandemic among local small businesses, city officials announced Friday. The program will offer financial assistance to small businesses and local restaurants which can augment state and federal assistance programs.

The loan program offers a forgiveness component for those businesses that meet the longevity and/or the sales tax generation requirements, according to a news release. For longevity, each year that the business is in operation, one-third of the loan will be forgiven. If, at the end of three years, the business is still in operation, the entire loan will be forgiven. For sales tax, if the business has cumulatively produced sales tax dollars to the city in the amount equal to the loan within three years from loan approval, the loan will be forgiven.

Eligible businesses must meet the following requirements:

• Physical location in the City of Dublin and possess an active City of Dublin business license as of March 1, and be in good standing with the City.

• Employee count must be between one and no more than 50.
• Demonstrate at least a 25% reduction in revenues due to COVID-19.
• Demonstrate that they have applied for federal or state financial assistance.

According to the release, businesses that are not eligible to request or receive financial assistance include lending and investment institutions and insurance companies, non-profit entities, hotels, professional services, home-based businesses, chain stores and corporately-owned franchises.

Funding for the micro-loan program would come from the City’s existing Small Business Assistance Grant (SBAG) Program. The SBAG was created in 2013 to assist with the attraction and retention of businesses to Dublin. Amador Valley Industries contributes $100,000 annually to the City in support of economic development efforts to support small businesses, in exchange for their exclusive construction and debris hauling agreement. The balance of $519,461 will be used toward the new microloan program.

Applicants will have the option of selecting a $5,000, $7,000, or $10,000 micro-loan based on their need. To expedite the issuance of funding, the online application process will be as streamlined as possible. Applications will only be accepted through the online portal, ZoomGrants, and reviewed on a first-come, first-served basis. Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis until 5:00 p.m. June 30 or when funding has been exhausted, whichever occurs first.

The City will begin accepting online applications at 8 a.m. May 26 through ZoomGrants. In the coming weeks, the City will also provide an online tutorial on how to apply using ZoomGrants. For more information about the Dublin Small Business Emergency Microloan Program, visit the City’s website at www.dublin.ca.gov/microloan.