Apply Now: Forgivable Loans for Maine Nonprofits

While many pandemic-related funding opportunities are waning, there is a big opportunity in Maine happening right now - and nonprofits should apply!

The Thrive Maine: Pandemic Recovery Forgivable Business Loan Program awarded $29 million in forgivable loans to Maine businesses and nonprofits last year. The second round of applications are open now (and close on June 23rd).

The Thrive Maine: Pandemic Recovery Forgivable Business Loan Program is administered by FAME, and their team has put together a nonprofit-specific FAQ to help nonprofits apply.

See below for this FAQ, and visit the FAME website for more information about the program, including additional requirements, how to apply, and additional FAQs.

Thrive Maine 2nd Round: Key Facts

• Applicants must submit an impact statement that describes the business's [or nonprofit's] forward looking plan to improve the business and economic viability.
• Loans will NOT be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis. This will be a competitive process. The application portal will be open for one month. Applications will be scored. Applicants with the highest scores will be awarded a forgivable loan.
• Priority will be made for businesses and projects in the construction, manufacturing, and science and technology industries, but all industries may apply. [There isn’t any industry prioritization for nonprofits.]
• $29 million in forgivable loans are available with loan requests from $10,000 – $500,000.
• Applicants must explain the negative COVID-19 related economic impact the business [or nonprofit] experienced, which must be at least $10,000. Loan amount requests may be more than what was lost, but the amount requested must be justified in an impact statement.
• Business [or nonprofit] must have been established by August 31, 2022.
• Businesses [or nonprofits] who received a Thrive Maine forgivable loan in the first application cycle are NOT eligible to apply.

FAQs for Nonprofits

How does a nonprofit demonstrate pandemic impact?

A nonprofit can demonstrate pandemic impact in a lot of different ways. Examples include but aren’t limited to:

• A reduction in donations compared to prior to the pandemic (comparison to actuals only are considered, no projections)
• An increase in the cost of supplies, labor, or capital project costs
• Loss of an earned revenue stream due to the pandemic
• Inability to host events, therefore creating a loss of donations or philanthropic fundraising
• Reduction in program size and revenue
• Need for new equipment or technology due to pandemic concerns
• Purchases made specifically to keep people (staff, members, clients, customers) safe from COVID-19

Remember to be specific - quantify and explain the loss and directly connect each variable to the pandemic.

To qualify, your pandemic negative financial impact must be at least $10k more than the government pandemic relief funds you received (like PPP, etc). For example, if you lost $100k in donations compared to 2019 (and that is your only quantified pandemic impact), but received $100k in PPP and other pandemic grants, you are considered made whole by the government funds and don’t qualify for this round of Thrive.

Our 990 IRS filing isn't due until later this year. What do we do?

No problem! If your IRS filing isn't yet due, upload a document saying that and stating the deadline that they’re due. We’ll check prior taxe filings to confirm the timing.

If you’ve applied for an extension on 2022 990, you’re ok, too. Upload documentation of your extension where you’re asked for 2022 taxes.

What if we don’t use calendar dates for our fiscal years? How do we list our financials?

We want to understand financial trends and we are less concerned with specific dates. There is no need to rework financials to fit into a specific date range. The pandemic impact is about comparing the financial impact of the pandemic vs prior to the pandemic. If your fiscal year 2020 is June 2019- May 2020, you can adjust your financials to show only the period prior to the pandemic (up through February 2020) or you can use your fiscal 2020 as the pre-pandemic comparison if that makes sense for your organization. When asked for 2019 revenue, put in your definition of 2019 revenue.

What are you looking for in our future-looking plans?

We’re looking for specific, achievable, and impactful plans to strengthen and/or grow organizations. Specifically, we’re looking for plans to:

• Improve efficiency
• Develop additional capacity
• Enhance service
• Diversify or enhance revenue streams
• Add quality Maine jobs

Plans do not need to achieve all these objectives, but good plans will achieve at least one and be very specific about the details and the impact.

Think about what your organization needs strategically and how you could achieve it. What exactly will it take? What exactly will it cost? What exactly will it accomplish in your organization? Why are you confident it will achieve?

Visit the FAME website for more information about the program, including additional requirements, how to apply, and additional FAQs. The deadline for this second round is June 23rd!