The Washington State Department of Commerce, in partnership with community assistance program FORWARD and local community organizations, is accepting applications from businesses that sustained physical damage or economic loss due to flooding in Northwest Washington between October 2021 and April 2022.
Eligible businesses in Northwest Washington that have sustained physical damage or economic loss due to the flooding between October 2021 and April 2022 are eligible to apply for the program. The Northwest Washington Disaster Grant applications opened on Jan. 4.
About $10 million in grant money is being made available to awardees due to an allocation made by the state legislature.
The Northwest Disaster Grants Program is distributing grants to businesses throughout the Lummi Nation, Nooksack Indian Tribe, Quileute Tribe, Clallam County, Skagit County, and Whatcom County. The program distributes state funding to help business owners cover the costs of financial impacts brought forth by the flooding.
The grants can be used to cover the costs of inventory loss, facility damage, fixed expense needs, loss of revenue due to closure, and out-of-pocket costs.
“Many businesses in Whatcom County are still being impacted by the severe flood damage sustained in the Nooksack River Flood of 2021,” Port of Bellingham Economic Development Director Don Goldberg said. “We are excited to finally be able to support the distribution of these grant funds, which will help provide business owners with the resources to continue their efforts to recover and rebuild.”
The Washington State Department of Commerce approved FORWARD as the program administrator contractor in November 2022 to assist with community outreach, application support, and screening for eligibility in a way that uses taxpayer dollars efficiently.
Applicants and qualifying households can expect the following:
- To apply through FORWARD’s online application portal.
- Access to application support available in multiple languages via phone, text and email.
- To meet geographic area requirements.
- To submit proof of active UBI, EIN, or ITIN; or proof of UEI or application in process.
- To present demonstrated reduction in business income or activity as a result of a natural disaster such as flood, earthquake, or wildfire, or comparable disaster such as major utility disruptions resulting in property damage or prolonged outages.
To learn more and to apply, visit https://bit.ly/WADisasterGrant.