The Nodaway County Commissioners have directed $135,000 of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) dollars that were allocated to the county to aid in the financial plight of the county’s small businesses.

There were 55 Nodaway County small businesses that received a grant from the federal monies channeled through the county.

The final rule of ARPA noted the business had to be operating prior to the pandemic and affected by required closures to receive monies. There were seven business which applied that were not able to receive the grant due to this rule.

To be eligible, businesses had to meet the following requirements:

• Must be a for-profit, nonprofit, independently-owned business or independently-operated franchise, physically located in Nodaway County

• Must employ between 1 and 40 full-time employees; owners were included in the employee count

• Must provide proof of a business hardship created by COVID-19

• Must use funds for ongoing business operational needs such as utilities, materials, supplies and services

• Must be in compliance with local, state and federal non-discrimination policy and overall good standing with the city and county service providers

The commissioners and Collector Treasurer Marilyn Jenkins combed through all of the applications which required the business to open its financial books with the comparison of 2019 to 2021. The application asked the business owner to describe in narrative how the pandemic had negatively impacted their business. Then the application asked for documentation of two months in 2019 that when compared showed a decrease in sales.

The eligible uses of the monies were detailed within the application:

• To mitigate financial hardship through decreased revenue or gross receipts

• Support payroll and benefits with the cost to retain employees

• Mortgage, rent, utilities and other operating costs

• And other reasonable factors determined by the county

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