LEXINGTON — Tri-County business owners could benefit from a new federal grant awarded to an organization which focuses on improving quality of life across the commonwealth.
The United States Small Business Administration (SBA) awarded a Program For Investment in Microentrepreneurs (PRIME) grant Friday to Lexington-based, non-profit Community Ventures (CV) to provide training and technical assistance for more than 350 disadvantaged entrepreneurs in 85 rural Kentucky counties — including Knox, Laurel and Whitley.
CV will receive $145,000 in SBA PRIME grant funds, providing 50 percent in federal funding for this project. These federal funds will be matched by $146,650 of CV non-federal funds, totaling 50 percent of the financing for this project. The majority of projects funded will support low-income microentrepreneurs.
“Supporting the business dreams of Kentucky entrepreneurs as they launch a start-up or grow their existing business is our mission,” said Lew Whalen the Vice President of Lending at CV. “We are grateful to the SBA for funding our microentrepreneur program so that we can continue to support entrepreneurs who provide valuable services and strengthen our economy.”
Low-income, Kentucky microentrepreneurs located in rural counties are eligible to receive training, capital, and technical assistance from CV to help launch and grow businesses.
The Program for Investment in Microentrepreneurs Act of 1999 (the PRIME Act) became law on November 12, 1999, authorizing the SBA Administrator to establish a program to provide training and technical assistance to disadvantaged entrepreneurs.
This year’s grant awards provide funding and support to organizations offering training, technical assistance, access to capital, and program development for disadvantaged microentrepreneurs and microenterprise development organizations.
The SBA awarded 28 PRIME grants, totaling $7 million. Grant funds will be available on September 30, and the project period for each grant is one year.
“The SBA’s PRIME grants support mission-oriented nonprofit organizations across America that are advancing the Biden-Harris Administration’s efforts to fill capital gaps so more Americans can start and grow their businesses successfully,” said Administrator Guzman. “These 28 community organizations will help the SBA strengthen its network of local, trusted partners who can level the playing field for the smallest of small businesses, especially those in underserved communities, so they can realize their American dreams of business ownership and create jobs and produce for our economy.”
For 21 consecutive years, CV has been named Microlender of the Year by the Kentucky Small Business Administration. From October 2022 to September 2023, CV business development specialist teams assisted 151 clients, creating nearly 400 jobs.
Kentucky microentrepreneurs interested in being supported by CV can call Lew Whalen at (859)231-0054, email him at lwhalen@cvky.org.
