More than seven weeks after Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan announced $175 million of grants, loans and other relief to help small businesses through the coronavirus pandemic, only a small fraction of the aid has been disbursed.
The Maryland Department of Commerce said it handed out about a fifth of the coronavirus relief grants and less than 5% of the available loan funding. The department, meanwhile, said it’s received so many applications that it stopped accepting new ones.
That’s left many small businesses, either shut down or operating on a limited basis due to the coronavirus, facing a cash crunch waiting for aid they’d hoped to receive quickly after Hogan, a Republican, announced it March 23. They need it to pay workers, suppliers, landlords and other expenses during a health crisis that has shut down schools, businesses and other activities.
Click here to read the rest of the article written by Lorraine Mirabella over at The Baltimore Sun