La Plata County is partnering with Local First to administer funds from the Small Business Relief Program created by the Colorado General Assembly in its Special Session in late 2020.

The Small Business Relief Programs provides $35.15 million statewide in direct relief payments to eligible small businesses with restricted capacity due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

These funds will be available to such eligible businesses as restaurants, bars, caterers, movie theaters, gyms, recreation centers.

The bill provides tiered relief payment caps, based on the business’ receipts from 2019 as follows:

Up to $3,500 may be available for businesses with receipts less than $500,000.Up to $5,000 may be available for businesses with receipts of $500,000 to $1 millionUp to $7,000 may be available for businesses with receipts of $1 million to $2.5 million.Eligible businesses must have been in operation prior to Jan. 1, 2020, and must provide evidence of at least 20 percent revenue loss since March 26, 2020, stemming from COVID-19 restrictions.

Applications are now open and close at 5 p.m. Feb. 1. For more information and to apply for relief funds, visit https://local-first.org/laplatarelief/. Contact laplatarelief@local-first.org with any questions.

Local First is a Colorado nonprofit corporation and 501(c)(6) that represents the local, independent business community in La Plata County. The organization partnered with La Plata County to administer nearly $1.1 million in relief funding provided by the CARES Act in 2020.