RALEIGH, N.C. – Lt. Gov. Walter Dalton today announced the creation of the Small Business Assistance Fund, which will provide low-interest loans to help small businesses that are struggling to access capital during the economic and credit crisis. The new revolving loan fund, which was conceived by Dalton to protect small businesses and preserve jobs, received $3 million in funding in the budget passed by the Senate last week, and that state money will be further leveraged through funding from Golden LEAF.
“During this economic crisis, we’ve watched as big business received massive bailouts, but not enough attention has been paid to small businesses, which really are the foundation of our economy,” Dalton said. “As I have talked with small business owners, I have heard loud and clear that more help is needed and providing these loans is a powerful step. I look forward to working with members of the General Assembly to make sure this funding stays in the final budget plan.”
The Small Business Assistance Fund is modeled after the disaster loan programs the state implemented following natural disasters like Hurricanes Fran and Floyd, which were administered by the Small Business & Technology Development Center (SBTDC). The Fund will provide loans to small businesses, those with fewer than 100 employees or annual receipts of less than $1 million. Loans may be used to guarantee commercial loans, as emergency bridge loans and for other purposes related to small business job preservation. As a revolving loan fund, the interest and loan repayments will go back into the fund, providing capital for additional loans. Golden LEAF has set aside $5 million for creative ways, such as the Small Business Assistance Fund, to provide much-needed capital to help North Carolina businesses create and retain jobs.
“Golden LEAF is proud to join with Lt. Gov. Dalton to provide financial support for the Small Business Assistance Fund and help North Carolina’s small businesses keep their doors open and our citizens employed,” said Dan Gerlach, president of Golden LEAF. “This fund will bolster our state’s economy and protect jobs, consistent with our mission to promote the social welfare of our citizens and to provide economic impact assistance to North Carolina’s tobacco-dependent, economically distressed and rural communities.”
Lt. Gov. Dalton has been traveling the state to hear directly from small business owners and to learn how the State can help them. Small business is an integral part of North Carolina’s communities and its economy. In the last ten years, small businesses have accounted for 70 percent of the country’s new jobs, and 86 percent of businesses in North Carolina have fewer than 100 employees. With unemployment statewide at 10.7 percent, keeping small businesses working and employing North Carolinians is more important than ever.
Dalton was joined at the press conference by legislative leaders from the House and the Senate as well as partner organizations, including Golden LEAF, the Small Business Technology Development Center, the N.C. Institute of Minority Economic Development, the National Federation of Independent Business, the N.C. Rural Center and the Small Business Administration.
Sen. Linda Garrou, chair of the Appropriations Committee, worked to secure funding for the Small Business Assistance Fund. “Including this important program in the Senate’s budget is indicative of our focus on protecting jobs in our communities and creating new jobs over the long haul,” Garrou said. “This new Small Business Assistance Fund comes at the right time to help North Carolina’s small businesses in a real and tangible way.”
“I am pleased and proud that Lt. Gov. Dalton brought this idea to us and championed the cause of small businesses,” said Sen. Clark Jenkins, who spearheaded the legislation in the Senate. “This investment demonstrates the Senate’s commitment – and the state’s – to continuing to grow jobs and support our small businesses.”
Rep. Jim Crawford, who has led the effort for the Fund in the House of Representatives, pledged to work to keep the funding in that chamber’s budget. “Especially when our state is state is facing such difficult economic times, we need to invest responsibly in programs like the Small Business Assistance Fund that create and protect jobs. I look forward to working with my colleagues in the House to make sure we keep this fund in our budget,” Crawford said.
