B.C. sweetens pot of money available to businesses affected by pandemic restrictions

The province has expanded eligibility and injected another $75 million into thegrant program aimed at helping businesses whose bottom line has been affected by pandemic restrictions.

TheCircuit Breaker Business Relief Grant now has $125 million in total to dispense, with $25 million of that newly earmarked for hotels, motels and other B.C.-owned short-term accommodation businesses.

The new funds are being made available after the province introduced emergency orders aimed atcurbing recreational and non-essential travel within B.C. last week. The orders are in place until May 25.

Grant eligibility has also been updated to include high-intensity fitness facilities affected by public health orders first introduced in November 2020.

The government says the program is open to approximately 20,000 B.C. businesses, including restaurants, bars, breweries, wineries, gyms and fitness facilities.

Eligible businesses can receive a maximumof $20,000 to offset expenses like employee wages, rent, maintenance and utilities. The grant each individualbusiness receives isbased on the number of employees.

Applications are being accepted until June 4, or until funds run out.