Press Release

U.S. Department of Commerce Invests $38 Million in CARES Act Funding to Capitalize Revolving Loan Funds to Help Small Businesses Across Southern California Respond to Coronavirus

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross announced that the Department’s Economic Development Administration (EDA) is awarding $38 million in CARES Act Recovery Assistance grants to capitalize and administer Revolving Loan Funds (RLFs) that will provide critical gap financing to small businesses and entrepreneurs adversely affected by the coronavirus pandemic across Southern California.

“President Trump is working diligently every day to support our nation’s economy following the impacts of COVID-19 through the CARES Act,” said Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross. “These investments will provide small businesses across Southern California with the necessary capital to rebound from the coronavirus pandemic and, in turn, create a stronger and more resilient state economy for the future.”

“These investments come at a crucial time to help Southern California’s and our nation’s economy come roaring back and provide hard-working Americans with new opportunities,” said Dana Gartzke, Performing the Delegated Duties of the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Economic Development. “Small businesses are the lifeblood of our communities, and EDA is pleased to invest these CARES Act funds so that Southern California businesses have access to capital to respond to and recover from the coronavirus pandemic.”

“Small businesses in Riverside County are still suffering due to the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Congressman Mark Takano (CA-41). “I am grateful that my district has been awarded $858,000 in Recovery Assistance Grants through the CARES Act to help keep our small businesses open and our workers employed. I voted in favor of the CARES Act because I knew that the American people and small businesses were in need of immediate relief, and they still need our support as we continue battling this crisis. It’s important for Congress to continue to provide additional support to those who are struggling. Doing so will save lives, provide financial relief to families, and keep us moving forward.”

The EDA investments announced today are:

• The Los Angeles County Development Authority, Alhambra, California, will receive an $11 million EDA CARES Act Recovery Assistance grant to capitalize and administer an RLF that will extend credit to small, diverse businesses in Los Angeles County, and augment business recovery assistance programs currently underway to avert job losses and closure.
• The County of San Joaquin, California, will receive a $5.4 million EDA CARES Act Recovery Assistance grant to capitalize and administer an RLF that will provide much needed flexible financing to businesses in San Joaquin County that have been impacted by the coronavirus pandemic.
• Pacific Coast Regional Small Business Development Corporation, Los Angeles, California, will receive a $4 million EDA CARES Act Recovery Assistance grant to capitalize and administer an RLF that will provide loans to businesses in cities in South Los Angeles County to respond to the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic. The cities include: Alhambra, Artesia, Bell, Bellflower, Bell Gardens, Carson, Commerce, Compton, Cudahy, Culver City, Downey, El Segundo, Gardena, Hawthorne, Huntington Park, Inglewood, Santa Monica, Lakewood, Lawndale, Lomita, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Lynwood, Manhattan Beach, Maywood, Montebello, Monterey Park, Norwalk, Paramount, Pico Rivera, Rosemead, San Gabriel, Santa Monica, Signal Hill, South Gate, Torrance, and Vernon.
• PACE Finance Corporation, Los Angeles, California, will receive a $3.6 million EDA CARES Act Recovery Assistance grant to capitalize and administer an RLF that will provide loans to coronavirus-impacted businesses in the cities of Baldwin Park, Bell Carson, Boyle Heights, Commerce, Compton, Culver City, Diamond Bar, Duarte, East Los Angeles, El Monte, South El Monte, Gardena, Hawthorne, Highland Park, Huntington Park, Inglewood, Lawndale, Lincoln Heights, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Lynwood, Maywood, Monrovia, Pomona, Rosemead, San Dimas, Southgate, West Covina, and Alhambra.
• Economic Development Collaborative-Ventura County, Camarillo, California, will receive a $2.7 million EDA CARES Act Recovery Assistance grant to capitalize and administer an RLF that will provide loans to coronavirus-impacted businesses in Ventura County.
• The city of Long Beach, California, will receive a $2.7 million EDA CARES Act Recovery Assistance grant to capitalize and administer an RLF to provide equitable and affordable loans for local small businesses to transition, rebuild, and reopen as a result of the coronavirus pandemic in Long Beach.
• The city of Los Angeles, California, will receive a $2.6 million EDA CARES Act Recovery Assistance grant to capitalize and administer an RLF that will provide loans to coronavirus impacted-businesses in Los Angeles.
• The city of San Diego, California, will receive a $1.8 million EDA CARES Act Recovery Assistance grant to capitalize and administer an RLF to provide loans to coronavirus-impacted businesses in San Diego and Chula Vista.
• The city of Fresno, California, will receive a $913,000 EDA CARES Act Recovery Assistance grant to capitalize and administer an RLF to provide a financing resource for businesses struggling as a result of the coronavirus pandemic in Fresno.
• County of Riverside Business and Community Services, Riverside, California, will receive an $858,000 EDA CARES Act Recovery Assistance grant to capitalize and administer an RLF to provide access to capital to coronavirus-impacted businesses in Riverside County.
• Success Capital Expansion & Development Corporation, Modesto, California, will receive an $836,000 EDA CARES Act Recovery Assistance grant to capitalize and administer an RLF to provide immediate resources to assist coronavirus-impacted businesses in recovery, growth, and workforce needs in Stanislaus County.
• The city of El Centro, California, will receive a $550,000 EDA CARES Act Recovery Assistance grant to respond to capitalize and administer an RLF that would provide loans to El Centro businesses that have been impacted by the coronavirus pandemic.
• Fresno Area Hispanic Foundation, Fresno, California, will receive a $550,000 EDA CARES Act Recovery Assistance grant to capitalize and administer an RLF to provide equitable and affordable access to capital for local small businesses impacted by the coronavirus pandemic by in the city of Coalinga.
• Southland Economic Development Corporation, Santa Ana, California, will receive a $550,000 EDA CARES Act Recovery Assistance grant to capitalize and administer an RLF that will make loans available to small businesses in San Luis Obispo and Tulare counties that have been impacted by the coronavirus pandemic.

These current EDA RLF grantees are some of the more than 850 existing, high-performing EDA RLF, Economic Development District, University Center, and Tribal grant recipients invited to apply for supplemental funding under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.

The CARES Act, signed into law by President Donald J. Trump, provides EDA with $1.5 billion for economic development assistance programs to help communities prevent, prepare for, and respond to the coronavirus pandemic.

On May 7, Secretary Ross announced that EDA is accepting applications for CARES Act Recovery Assistance funding opportunities.

EDA CARES Act Recovery Assistance, which is being administered under the authority of the bureau’s flexible Economic Adjustment Assistance (EAA) (PDF) program, provides a wide-range of financial assistance to eligible communities and regions as they respond to and recover from the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic. For complete information, please visit our recently updated EDA CARES Act Recovery Assistance page.

About the U.S. Economic Development Administration (www.eda.gov)
The mission of the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) is to lead the federal economic development agenda by promoting competitiveness and preparing the nation's regions for growth and success in the worldwide economy. An agency within the U.S. Department of Commerce, EDA makes investments in economically distressed communities in order to create jobs for U.S. workers, promote American innovation, and accelerate long-term sustainable economic growth.