Explanation
BACKGROUND: This legislation authorizes the Director of the Department of Development to modify a beneficiary grant agreement that was entered into pursuant to Ordinance No. 1699-2023 with Columbus State Community College, through their Small Business Development Center, in an amount up to $250,000.00 of Federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds. This agreement provides continued financial support for staff, including a Spanish-speaking business advisor. These staff will continue their support of Columbus small businesses as they continue their recovery following the COVID-19 pandemic. This modification will allow for the extension of the expiration of the beneficiary grant agreement to October 31, 2025.
Ordinance 1201-2021 authorized the City of Columbus to accept and appropriate approximately $187,030,138.00 of federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds as signed into law by the President of the United States on March 11, 2021.
It is expected that the guidance from the U.S. Department of Treasury will be modified while this beneficiary grant agreement is in effect and it is requested that the Director of Development be given the authority to modify the terms and conditions of the beneficiary grant agreement without seeking additional Council approval in order to align with the most current version of the laws, regulations, and guidance.
The Ohio Small Business Development Center at Columbus State Community College is a public/private partnership supported in part by the U.S. Small Business Administration, Ohio Department of Development, Columbus State Community College, the City of Columbus and other local partners. SBDC serves an eight-county region including Delaware, Fairfield, Franklin, Licking, Logan, Madison, Pickaway, and Union counties.
SBDC is part of America’s Small Business Development Centers, a national network comprised of over 1000 Centers across the U.S. including 29 in Ohio. The Ohio SBDC Network provides one-on-one advi...
Click here for full text