Menendez, Booker Announce $17.4M to Support NJ Small Businesses during COVID Crisis, Make Critical Infrastructure Investments

Federal economic development funding for Atlantic City, Jersey City, Camden, Burlington County and State EDA

NEWARK, N.J. – U.S. Senators Bob Menendez and Cory Booker today announced a combined $17,360,000 in federal economic development funding to boost New Jersey small businesses, including CARES Act Recovery Assistance Grants to help small businesses and entrepreneurs across the state impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic access capital and financing, and a separate grant to make much-needed infrastructure upgrades to prevent flooding and support local businesses in Atlantic City.

“We need to give struggling small business owners in New Jersey all the help they can get to weather the pandemic, stay open and keep their employees on the job, so their positioned to drive our state’s economic recovery once we defeat COVID-19,” said Sen. Menendez.  “By supporting our small businesses and making smart investments in our aging infrastructure, we will help grow our economy and create new jobs and opportunities for New Jerseyans.”

“The coronavirus pandemic has had a crippling impact on nearly every aspect of our economy, including New Jersey’s small businesses,” said Sen. Booker. “These federal investments will help us lay the groundwork for the economic recovery of our state and our small businesses so we can rebuild stronger and create more opportunities for the future.”

New Jersey has been awarded nearly $15 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 that have been adversely affected by the coronavirus pandemic.  The CARES Act provided $1.5 billion for economic development assistance programs to help communities prevent, prepare for, and respond to the coronavirus pandemic, including a wide-range of financial assistance to eligible communities and regions.  The following entities are receiving Recovery Assistance grants:

• Burlington County – $660,000

• Cooperative Business Assistance Corp. in Camden – $2,700,000 (to provide gap financing and loans to coronavirus-impacted businesses in the City of Camden, Atlantic, Cape May, Cumberland and Salem Counties)

• Jersey City Economic Development Corporation – $550,000

• N.J. Economic Development Authority (NJEDA) – $11,000,000

Atlantic City is receiving a separate $2,450,000 grant from the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) to make stormwater infrastructure improvements needed to protect downtown businesses from flooding and facilitate the location of new businesses, including major medical and energy enterprises. The EDA grant will be matched with over $7 million in local funds and is expected to create 65 jobs and generate $83 million in private investment.