Small Business Workforce Accelerator Grant: RFP #24-01
Washington State Department of Commerce • Community Reinvestment Project
Applications will open for this opportunity on January 27, 2025 at 12:00 PM PST and will close after 40 applications are received (the anticipated number that can be awarded with currently available funding). Information about the opportunity, requirements, how to apply and available supports are outlined in the RFP information below to support interested business owners in being prepared to submit for consideration when applications open.
The application and scorecard will be added to this page on January 2, 2025, and available for viewing to assist in your preparation for the January 27 application opening. View the full RFP timeline below.
Summary
The Small Business Workforce Accelerator Grant, funded by the Washington State Department of Commerce’s Community Reinvestment Project, aims to promote equity for businesses in Seattle-King County, with a focus on those 51% or more owned and operated by individuals from Black, urban Indian/Tribal, and Latine communities. Funds from the grants can be used for one of the following projects: Paid Internship, Employee Development/Training, or New Hire Wages. The overarching goal is to ensure that historically marginalized communities gain equitable access to resources to support them and their workforce development efforts.
Objective
The focus of this opportunity aims to repair wealth disparities in communities disproportionally harmed by the war on drugs by helping reduce economic barriers to hiring and training. Applicants can request up to $6,500 for one of the following eligible projects:
Paid Internship—Supporting businesses in talent pipeline development, while providing meaningful work experience and skills development for interns. With a duration of 3 months or less, an intern can work up to 40 hours per week and are paid minimum wage or more.
Employee Development/Training—Funding can be used to provide worker training such as short-term certifications and other employee development that reduces the cost of training employees, supports worker retention, and provides upskill or advancement opportunities for employees.
New Hire Wages—Full wage subsidy of 100% of wages for a new hire during their initial three months of employment (up to $6500). New hire can be part-time or full-time, and businesses must agree to retain the employee after the wage subsidy period.
You may apply for one project. Once that project is complete, you are welcome to apply again for another project if applications are being accepted or other WDC funding opportunities if they are available.
Please see Frequently Asked Questions below for detailed information about project supports and requirements.
Eligibility Requirements:
Small Business (fewer than 50 employees)
Funds are prioritized for self-attested Black, Latine, and urban Indian/Tribal business owners and operators and their employees as stated in the Community Reinvestment Project and Washington State Community Reinvestment Fund Program Policy.
Active business license, and licensed in King County
Be registered with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and have an account with the Washington State Employment Security Department for Unemployment Insurance and carry Worker’s Compensation Insurance
Reporting Requirements:
New Hire Wages and Paid Internship projects will require timesheets/payroll documentation
Employee Development/Training will require receipts for training/certification costs and documentation of training completion and/or copies of certification
All projects require a report of successes/impact story and creation of a WorkSource WA account by the Intern/Employee/New Hire funded by this grant opportunity
Timeline
Opportunity Announced: December 20, 2024
Application Assistance Calls: January 8, 2025 & January 20, 2025
Last Day to Submit Questions: January 22, 2025
Application Opens: January 27, 2025 at 12:00 PM PST
Applications Close: After 40 applications have been received
Anticipated Award Notification: March 3, 2025
All Applicants Notified of Status: March 7, 2025
Anticipated Disbursement of Grant Funds: End of March 2025
Awarded funds to be spent by mid-June with all final grant reporting due on or before June 30, 2025.
Documents
Link to Online Application - coming January 2, 2025
Scoring Guide - coming January 2, 2025
Frequently Asked Questions (last updated December 20, 2024)
Informational Flyer - coming January 2, 2025
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Last updated: December 20, 2024
Click through the questions below. If your question is not listed here or in the Frequently Asked Questions document, please send it to athornton-west@seakingwdc.org. We update our FAQ section regularly with all questions and answers received.
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This fund, resulting from the Community Reinvestment Project, is designed to address racial, economic, and social disparities created by the historic design and enforcement of state and federal criminal laws and penalties for drug possession (otherwise known as “The War on Drugs”).
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This opportunity is open to small businesses and non-profits, defined as an entity with 50 or fewer employees, located in King County and who carry Worker’s Compensation Insurance. Priority is given to organizations that are at least 51% owned or operated by individuals from Black, urban Indian/Tribal, and Latine communities.
By-and-For organizations who are already contracted with WDC to provide other CRP/CRF related work and awardees who received the Small Business Investment Grant are not eligible to apply. -
One of the listed eligible projects may be applied for.
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Approximately 40 grants will be awarded based on available funding if all applicants request the full amount of $6,500.
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The number of applications to accept was determined based on available funding. Alternative to stating applications will be accepted until the available funding amount has been reached or creating a more complex and competitive application process, we want to provide a high level of clarity and transparency in the amount of grants that can be awarded at this time and honor the valuable time of our community’s business owners.
If there are incomplete or ineligible applications submitted that do not pass compliance review or additional funding becomes available, the number of applications accepted may be raised. Dependent on funding, the opportunity may also reopen at a future time and accept additional applications. -
If 40 applications have already been submitted, the application link will become inactive and display a message that the current application limit has been reached. Included in the display message will be a link to a wait list application. The application is the same, and these entries will be stored and reviewed, in the order that they were received, in the event that some of the first 40 applications are ineligible, incomplete, do not pass compliance review, or do not use all of the available funding.
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Applications will request contact information, information about your business and information about the project you are applying for, such as:
Paid Internship: Position description, wage, training plan
Employee Development/Training: Training type, cost
New Hire Wages: Position description, wage
The application will be posted January 2, 2025 so that all information that will be requested can be reviewed in advance of the January 27, 2025 application opening.
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Application Assistance Calls are being offered on Wednesday, January 8 at 1-2pm and Monday, January 20 at 3-4pm. Read more about these calls in the ‘Virtual Bidders’ Conference & Application Assistance Calls’ section below.
Other supports include outside resource organizations such as the Small Business Resiliency Network (SBRN) and the Washington Small Business Development Center (SBDC), among others. If you need assistance with your application from our team or in getting connected to a resource organization who can support you, please contact athornton-west@seakingwdc.org.
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Hourly rates should be set at minimum wage or higher in relationship to industry standard, skills, experience and job quality considerations.
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You do not need to have a ready candidate to apply for this opportunity. Our business team is able to support with guidance and access to qualified candidates for you to interview.
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Have safe and healthy working conditions
Not displace any currently employed worker, or alter current employees’ promotional opportunities, and not terminate any regular employee, or otherwise reduce the workforce for the purpose of hiring an employee for wage reimbursement purposes
Provide training, supervision, oversight and support
Maintain adequate time and attendance, payroll, and pay wages by check or direct deposit
Follow all Federal and State employment laws regarding employment including those of minors, if applicable.
A detailed list of responsibilities will be outlined in the contract and supporting agreements if an application is awarded.
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Applications will be evaluated for completeness, all required documentation and verification of eligibility. If all these criteria are met, applications will then be prioritized based on majority (51% or more) ownership/leadership of the business by a CRF priority population.
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After submitting, a message will be displayed stating that your application was received, and you will receive confirmation via email as well along with a copy of your application.
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W-9
Voided Check or Bank letter for Direct Deposit
ACH Form (matching the account on the voided check or bank letter)
Proof of Worker’s Compensation Insurance
Signed contract with WDC that outlines the awarded amount, approved use of the funds, and responsibilities for the project, employer, spending and grant reporting
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A W-9 form is a document used in the United States to provide your Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) to someone who needs to report certain information to the IRS, like income paid to you. You can find the W-9 form on the IRS website here. You can fill the W-9 out online or print it and fill it out by hand.
Virtual Bidders’ Conference & Application Assistance Calls
The Virtual Bidders’ Conference gives prospective applicants an opportunity to learn about the grant qualifications and how to apply for this funding stream, and encourages partnerships as we look towards procuring funds through this open, public process. Our goal for this workshop include:
Background on funding requirements for the Washington State Department of Commerce Community Reinvestment Project
An overview of the requirements, scope, logistics of the grant application process
An understanding of how your organization can participate in the Seattle-King County workforce system and potentially apply for these specific funds
Opportunity to ask application specific questions
We recommend attending at least one of the calls to have an opportunity to find the support you need for your application. We will be hosting these calls on Wednesday, January 8, 2025 at 1 PM and Monday, January 20, 2025 at 3 PM. Please register using the buttons below.
This program is funded by the Workforce Development Council of Seattle-King County (WDC) using the Washington State Department of Commerce’s Community Reinvestment Project funds. For more information about WDC program investments, visit www.seakingwdc.org/funding-and-investment. Workforce Development Council of Seattle-King County is an equal opportunity employer/program. Auxiliary aids and services are available upon request to individuals with disabilities. Washington Relay Service: 711.