RISE Miami-Dade Fund begins accepting applications
MIAMI-DADE – Small businesses in Miami-Dade County can now apply for loans from the RISE Miami-Dade Fund (Re-Investing in our Small Business Economy) at www.risemiamidade.com to help them weather the COVID-19 pandemic. The Dade County Federal Credit Union (DCFCU), the RISE Fund administrator, is working directly with local community developments financial institutions (CDFIs) who will originate and package the loans. The CDFIs are Accion, the Black Business Investment Fund, and the Miami Bayside Foundation.
“With small businesses continuing to struggle, there wasn’t a moment to spare; therefore, I am grateful to the DCFCU and CDFIs for standing up the fund so quickly,” said Commissioner Higgins. “With the operational knowledge of the DCFCU and the grassroots expertise of Accion, the Black Business Investment Fund, and the Miami Bayside Foundation, I am confident the Fund will help businesses weather the pandemic and continue to serve the community for years to come.”
In June, Commissioner Eileen Higgins, District 5, sponsored legislation which was unanimously adopted by the Board of County Commissioners to allocate $25 million in CARES Act dollars to create the RISE Miami-Dade Fund, a transformative revolving loan fund for small and micro businesses in Miami-Dade County. The RISE Miami-Dade Fund seeks to provide these businesses access to capital and receive the technical financial assistance they need to recover from the COVID-19 crisis. In the longer term, it will become part of Miami-Dade’s permanent small business infrastructure, helping the mostly minority-owned businesses gain access to capital and assistance they wouldn’t have otherwise.
In addition, the RISE Miami-Dade Fund will bolster the capacity of the local CDFIs to play a bigger role in the small business ecosystem in the County. Loan funds can be used for employee wages/salaries; inventories; payoff high interest debt; commercial lease, mortgage or rent payments; utilities; and other expenses incurred due to new safety provisions. Loans can be up to a maximum of $30,000. After a business is issued a loan, the CDFIs will continue to provide technical assistance to the businesses to help them survive the crisis and strengthen for the future.
To qualify for the loan, businesses and their owners must meet all of the following criteria:
Businesses
- Operate in Miami-Dade County
- Be in operation for at least two years
- Have gross sales of less than $2,000,000
- Have 25 or fewer employees/ independent contractors
Business Owners
- Live in Miami-Dade County
- Credit Score greater than 575
- No bankruptcies or foreclosures in the past three years
To learn more about the RISE Miami-Dade Fund and apply, visit www.risemiamidade.com.