We are committed to helping improve the economy and quality of life in rural America.
The Rural Business Development Grant (RBDG) program is primarily aimed at supporting small and emerging businesses in rural areas. The program offers technical assistance and training to rural businesses meeting specific criteria, such as having fewer than 50 new workers and less than $1 million in gross revenue. Projects must benefit rural areas or towns outside urban peripheries of cities with populations over 50,000. There is no maximum grant amount, but smaller requests are prioritized, and no cost sharing is required. The RBDG program divides its funding into two types of projects: Opportunity grants and Enterprise grants. Opportunity grants are capped at 10% of total annual funding, whereas Enterprise grants focus on various areas such as training, land development, pollution abatement, capitalization of revolving loan funds, and more, all aimed at benefiting small and emerging rural businesses.