California Small Agricultural Business Drought and Flood Relief Grant Program is providing relief to small agricultural businesses that experienced a decline in annual gross receipts or gross profits due to drought or flood conditions.
Follow this link for Drought Relief and follow this link for the Flooding or Winter Storm Relief.
Accepting applications now for both drought and flooding!
Eligibility Requirements for Flood Relief
An applicant must meet this program’s definition of a “qualified small business” to be eligible to receive a grant award. For this program, a “qualified small business” means a business that meets all of the following criteria, as confirmed by the office or fiscal agent through review of revenue declines, other relief funds received, credit history, tax returns, payroll records, and bank account validation:
- Is a sole proprietor, independent contractor, C-corporation, S-corporation, cooperative, limited liability company, partnership, nonprofit (other than a 501(c)(4) organization), or limited partnership with 100 or fewer full-time employees in the 2022 taxable year. Seasonal employees are included in the full-¬time employee count.
- Has an owner or, in the case of a nonprofit, an authorized person, submitting the application that is at least 18 years of age.
- Experienced a decline in annual gross receipts or gross profits of 10 percent or more.
- Began operating in the state prior to January 1, 2020.
- Is currently active and operating.
- Provides organizing documents, including a federal tax return or Internal Revenue Service Form 990, and a copy of official filings with the Secretary of State or with the local municipality, as applicable, including but not limited to articles of incorporation, certificate of organization, fictitious name of registration, or government-issued business license.
- Been affected by flood within or serves a county that has a state or federal disaster declaration for flooding.
To determine your eligibility, navigate to the interactive map and enter your business address.
Grant and Funding Details
Grant funds shall be allocated to qualified small agricultural businesses affected by flooding, including but not limited to those that are identified as in the following 2022 North American Industry Classification System codes:
A. Codes beginning with 115—Support Activities for Agriculture and Forestry
B. Codes beginning with 311—Food Manufacturing
C. Codes beginning with 1121—Cattle Ranching and Farming
D. 424910—Farm Supplies Merchant Wholesalers
E. 444240—Nursery, Garden Center, and Farm Supply Retailers
F. 484220—Specialized Freight (except used goods) Trucking, Local (local agricultural products trucking.
Grant amount range from $25,000 to $100,000 to be determined by California Office of the Small Business Advocate (CalOSBA).
Required Documents:
- Applicant certifications
- Government-Issued photo identification (verified via Persona)
- Official filing (which must be active) with the California Secretary of State or local municipality, as applicable, for your business or organization, such as one of the following: Articles of Incorporation, Certificate of Organization, Fictitious Business Name filing, Professional license, government-issued business license or permit
- Proof of tax exemption (if applicable)
- 2022 federal tax returns or IRS Form 990 (completed, unaltered, and filed)
- Proof of Employee Count (via W3 tax documentation for the 2022 taxable year or payroll records)
- North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) Code (verified internally via Tax Returns).
Program and Application Guide
Please view the Program and Application Guide (in English).
For any assistance, reach out to Lendistry’s Customer Experience Center at 1-888-209-3656. A chat box with live team members is waiting to assist with any questions or support with your application.
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This article was written by Hanali Lopez-Tapia on behalf of CalOSBA’s Drought and Flood Relief Program.