July 12, 2021: SBA Shutting Down The RRF
Happy Mouth
English - July 12, 2021 07:00 - 15 minutes - 14.2 MB - ★★★★★ - 4 ratingsFood Arts News News Commentary Homepage Download Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Overcast Castro Pocket Casts RSS feed
Oh, how we hardly knew ye Restaurant Revitalization Fund.
After serving just 105,000 restaurant operators over less than a single month, the RRF is officially being shut down by the SBA. Despite having a total of $26.8 billion in funding, the RRF flew through its allotted amount of money quickly. With lawsuits alleging discrimination and the rescinding of thousands of grants, some are viewing the RRF as a complete failure.
On this episode of the Happy Mouth podcast, restaurateur Philip Camino and chef Nyesha Arrington take a look back at the RRF and its pending shutdown. Nyesha and Philip also discuss if the RRF was a failure and what should have been done differently.
Listen to Philip and Nyesha discuss the RRF ending:
The RRF opened for applications on May 3, 2021, receiving more than 186,000 applicants in the first two days
The RRF had been funded with $28.6 billion, with $5 billion earmarked for small businesses -- Which ran out in just 21 days
Women, veterans, and those who are socially and economically disadvantaged received priority
That priority treatment spurred several lawsuits against the Small Business Association (SBA), including one that was successful
The SBA has rescinded almost 3,000 awards from those prioritized individuals
A bill was introduced in the Senate to refill the fund with a proposed $60 billion, though it’s struggling to find bipartisan support
The SBA has announced they’ll disable the RRF portal on July 14, meaning they’ll no longer accept applications
The SBA awarded money to 105,000 restaurant operators before funds ran out, though 265,000 applications didn’t receive any money
Links:
Restaurant Business - SBA pulls the plug on the Restaurant Revitalization Fund
Restaurant Business - SBA stops Restaurant Revitalization Fund payments after courts rule they’re discriminatory
Independent Restaurant Coalition - Contact Congress
Deeper Dive podcast - Is there any hope for the Restaurant Revitalization Fund?
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