The state has opened the application period for the California Small Ag Business Drought Relief Grant program. You can go directly to the application page by clicking on the Apply Here link on the website: https://www.agdroughtrelief.org
Based on the amount of loss in gross receipts or gross profit in 2022 compared to the last normal year of planting in 2019 of at least 30 percent, qualified businesses can receive grants of $60,000 – $100,000 to offset losses related to the drought.
- Sixty thousand dollars ($60,000) for applicants with a decline in annual gross receipts or gross profits of 30 percent or more and less than 40 percent.
- Eighty thousand dollars ($80,000) for applicants with a decline in annual gross receipts or gross profits of 40 percent or more and less than 50 percent.
- One hundred thousand dollars ($100,000) for applicants with a decline in annual gross receipts or gross profits of 50 percent or more.
Losses must be verified by federal tax returns. Ten percent of the funds are reserved for applicants who file 2022 crop year tax returns in 2024.
The grant is open to dryers, mills, ag aircraft, ag suppliers, ag service providers, ag trucking and small or socially disadvantaged farmers with 100 or fewer employees in 2019.
** Please note that the security protocols for the grant, designed to prevent fraud, are extensive and may be alarming. Unfortunately, they are mandated by the Office of Small Business Advocate not the ag trade associations that have advocated for the program.
