Tooele County board narrows approach to small-business grants: reimbursement preferred, $10,000 typical award

The County Economic Opportunity Board discussed revisions to its small-business grant application and agreed on several procedural aims: emphasize reimbursement after documented, eligible expenses; clarify reporting requirements; keep a typical maximum award near $10,000; and adjust scoring to give more weight to applicant investment and projected sales growth while retaining job-creation metrics required by state rural grant criteria.

Britney, a board member who drafted the application text, said she reweighted scoring to favor the amount the business owner is willing to invest and to simplify the application so small operators are not discouraged. Members said some small businesses (for example, service providers) will not generate large sales-tax increases and that sales growth and owner investment can indicate momentum even when immediate job creation is small.

Discussion covered past practice and risks. Board members recalled prior reimbursements that were misused when funds were provided up-front in other programs, and they largely favored post-performance reimbursement to reduce the risk of ineligible uses. One member asked whether a partial up-front payment could be considered; the group left that option open but noted that recouping funds is difficult if grantees do not complete projects.

Members reviewed past award levels: the board previously offered awards of $5,000 (earlier year) and $10,000 in the most recent cycle. Some members proposed higher awards (for example, $15,000) to accommodate projects that could spur larger job creation, but several members expressed concern about administrability and the cash-flow burden on smaller applicants if reimbursement were the only option. The group did not set a final maximum award amount at the meeting; one speaker said $10,000 felt appropriate and that the application should include language on whether a partial award would still allow a project to proceed.

Reporting and evaluation: the board asked that eligibility guidance be made explicit on the application’s first page (eligible expenses, required receipts, and a clear statement that funds are reimbursed after eligible receipts are submitted). Members said finance directors at municipalities can supply sales-tax baseline figures for reporting; the board also noted the state requires reporting for up to 18 months for the related rural economic opportunity grant funding.

Next steps: the drafter will revise the application to incorporate the group’s suggested edits (scoring, stronger language about reimbursement and eligible expenses, and a field for other grants applied for/received), circulate the draft by email for comment, and return a final draft for a vote at the next meeting. The board also flagged the Small Business Development Center and the Chamber as potential partners to advise on scoring and outreach to applicants.