Thank you, Alice. And thank you for all that you have done as USHCC’s chair to support our nation’s 4.7 million Hispanic-owned small businesses during this crisis and beyond.
It’s great to be here with my USHCC familia.
In my 6 weeks as Administrator, you have quickly become such an important partner for me and my staff as we work to get relief to our nation’s small businesses.
I’d especially like to thank Ramiro and LeRoy for your leadership during these trying times. You have both worked so hard to make sure that Latino small businesses have the support and resources they need to create jobs and fuel our economy.
We know that Latino small businesses have been hit hard by this pandemic. It’s estimated that 25 percent have closed their doors, either temporarily or permanently, over the past year.
My message to all the Latino food and beverage small business owners listening out there today is that the SBA is here to help you recover and rebuild from this pandemic so you can scale and grow. We’re here to connect you with the resources you need to fuel our economy.
With the SBA’s Restaurant Revitalization Fund, help is here – La ayuda está aquí.” Thanks to the American Rescue Plan, passed by Congress and signed into law by President Biden, we’re giving out $28.6 billion dollars in targeted relief – through grants – not loans – to restaurants and other food and beverage businesses. And the grant application portal will be available starting Monday, May 3rd.
Restaurants were among the businesses that were first to close – and will likely be among the last to fully reopen. You represent the core of our neighborhoods and propel economic activity on our main streets across the nation. Your business models have changed, revenues have been impacted, and expenses have increased as you’ve adapted to COVID. So many restaurants desperately need help to survive.
It’s critical that we deliver the Restaurant Revitalization Fund to businesses quickly, efficiently and equitably.
Across all of our programs and policies, I want the SBA to be as entrepreneurial as the businesses we serve – as all you businesses out there who have adapted and pivoted all year to serve your clients.
So we’ve designed the application for the Restaurant Revitalization Fund with restaurants and food and beverage businesses, you the end-users, in mind, paying particular attention to your reality over the past year and how you’ve been running your businesses in this new marketplace.
My team will go through all the great features of the program in a moment so I’ll just highlight a few for you here.
We know businesses have adopted technology at high rates during the pandemic - I’ve directed our team to integrate technology, and ensure the application is accessible to ALL.
In addition to offering a direct application at sba.gov, we’ve partnered with point-of-sale vendors to help you apply or get connected to the SBA portal where you are already doing business… right now we’re partnering with Clover, Aloha, Square, and Toast and we’ll be adding new partners as we go.
And we’ve eliminated bureaucratic requirements that don’t make sense for your industry.
We know that our smallest and underserved businesses -- especially those owned by people of color -- have suffered the most from the pandemic and yet many have been unable to access relief.
Congress understood this when they included language in the American Rescue Plan that mandated a 21-day priority period for restaurants, food and beverage businesses owned by women, veterans, and socially or economically disadvantaged people.
As Hispanic entrepreneurs, that means that you will be given priority access to these funds from May 3 to May 24. And since this is a first-come, first-serve program, it is important that you put your application in as soon as possible.
And, they directed us to ensure a broad range of restaurants and food and beverage businesses are eligible for the Fund -- food trucks, food carts, breweries, taprooms and many more are all included.
Our focus on reaching our smallest and underserved businesses is in line with the Biden-Harris administration’s emphasis on equity – a vision that I’m committed to at the SBA. We know that ALL our small businesses must be supported and given opportunities to succeed if our nation is going to thrive and retain our global competitiveness.
And we know it’s not just the design, but also the implementation and outreach which is why today’s event is so important and why we are prioritizing accessibility.
This pandemic will end one day soon. Thanks to the American Rescue Plan, the Biden-Harris administration’s shots in arms campaign – and the dedication of healthcare workers on the frontlines -- half of all adults in the U.S. have received at least one dose of the vaccine.
We know that you want to reopen fully and safely.
At the SBA, we’re committed to making that happen. We’re here to help you get back on your feet – and ensure that our restaurants and local food and beverage establishments can survive this pandemic.
I take my role as the voice of America’s small businesses to heart. I know the impact small businesses have on our communities and on our economy, and I want you to feel like the giants you are in our economy.
So, thanks again to the USHCC and thank YOU ALL for everything that you do for your communities, your employees and our nation’s economy.
I’ll now turn it over to Ernie C’De Baca with the Albuquerque Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, who will share his thoughts and introduce SBA’s South Florida District Director Victoria Guerrero – our dynamo who will walk you through the nuts and bolts of the program to make sure you are ready to apply when the Fund’s application portal opens on Monday May 3rd.
Thank you.