Quezi

Uncle Sam wants to fund your business, too! (photo in public domain)

Your rich Uncle Sam gives away billions of dollars every year in the form of government grants. Most of it is distributed to non-profit organizations, universities and state and local governments. A small chunk of grant money, though, is available to commercial businesses for everything from cutting edge research projects to supporting urban farms.  You can even get a grant to start a new business if you happen to be in the right place and in the right line of work.

And when I say a small chunk of grant money don’t forget, this is a big government we’re talking about, so even a smallish piece of the action is still many millions of dollars.

Grants.gov is the mother lode for exploring federal grant opportunities. If you head to the Advanced Search page you can search by Eligibility and display a list of all current grant opportunities that are available to businesses. The two major business categories are Small Businesses and For-Profit Organizations Other Than Small Businesses. Select one or the other — or both — to generate a list of grants for which businesses are eligible.  There may be other categories, such as grants for Individuals that are germane as well.

As I was writing this Quezi, I ran a search using the above eligibilities, and got a list of 745 grant opportunities for small and large businesses, such as the $6 million available for Rural Community Development grants.

Businesses are welcome to apply.

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