Gov. Tate Reeves has announced the establishment of the Back to Business Mississippi Grant Program, which will be used to help businesses with 50 or fewer employees recover from the economic impact of COVID-19, including operating expenses and salaries.

The Mississippi Development Authority is accepting applications at www.backtobusinessms.org/

Eligibility Requirements

•Must be a for-profit corporation, limited liability company, a partnership or a sole proprietorship.

•Was domestic as of March 1, 2020.

•Is in good standing with the Mississippi Secretary of State, if applicable.

•Suffered an interruption of business.

•Has a controlling interest owned by one or more Mississippi residents, whether individual resident citizens or Mississippi domestic business entities

•Filed Mississippi taxes for tax year 2018 or 2019, or, for an eligible business formed on or after January 1, 2020, intends to file Mississippi taxes for tax year 2020, unless exempt under Section 27-7-29, Section 27-13-63 or other applicable provision of law.

•Has customers or employees coming to its physical premises, conducts business on customer premises, or has an owner who is an active participant in the day-to-day operations of the business.

•Had no more than 50 full-time equivalent (FTE) employees as of March 1, 2020.

•Is not a subsidiary of a business with more than 50 FTEs; is not part of a larger business enterprise with more than 50 FTEs and is not owned by a business with more than 50 FTEs.

•Does not exist for the purpose of advancing partisan political activities, does not directly lobby federal or state officials as provided in Sections 5-8-1 through 5-8-23, and has not employed or otherwise worked with a lobbyist as defined in Section 5-8-3 in any way at any point during 2020.

•Does not derive income from passive investments without active participation in business operations.