The Westchester County Office of Economic Development today launched a $5 Million round of Business First Grant funding to support Minority and Women-Owned Business Enterprises (MWBEs), Certified Service-Disabled Veteran-owned Businesses (SDVOBs) and Disadvantaged Business Enterprises (DBEs) who have been impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. Applications will be accepted online starting today and the application period will remain open for about four weeks.
To be eligible, the organization”™s primary location must be in Westchester County. The organization must be currently open with plans to stay open, or temporarily closed with plans to reopen during 2022. MWBEs must be registered with the County”™s MWBE program or certified by the New York State Division of Minority and Women”™s Business, SDVOBs must be certified by New York State as a Service-Disabled Veteran-owned Businesses (SDVOB) and DBEs must be certified by a certifying partner in the New York State Unified Certification Program.
“Minority- and Women-owned Business Enterprises, Certified Service-Disabled Veteran-owned Businesses and Disadvantaged Business Enterprises are important players in our local economy,” said Westchester County Executive George Latimer. “They contribute to the diversity of our communities and, like many other businesses, have been negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. We are pleased to make relief funding available to these ventures and help them both build back up and plan for a brighter future.”
