The Soil Fund: Groundswell Grants FAQ
Eligibility
Applicants may apply for one business or nonprofit organization only and must be 18 years of age to apply. For business owners with multiple businesses, please complete this application based on your largest business owned. Each grant is limited to one business/organization.
Awards will be made to qualified businesses and nonprofits, and eligibility is based on accurate and complete submission. For this particular grant, priority will be given to Black entrepreneurs and Black-led businesses in the following industries: Food Access, Housing, Transportation, Cultural and/or Historic Assets.
All awardees will have to certify that they are promoting the best interests of the community.
Privacy
Information provided through the application process is the responsibility of each applicant. Applications submitted to the portal remain confidential to the general public and any fellow applicants. Applicants will not hold LISC, its affiliates, members, partners, and staff liable for any losses, damages, costs, or expenses, of any kind relating to the use or the adequacy, accuracy, or completeness of any information loaded in the form. See LISC's Privacy Policy for more details.
Conflict of Interest
Current directors, officers, employees and contractors of LISC and such individuals' family members (spouse, parents, children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and spouses of children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren) are not eligible to apply or seek an award. In addition to verifying there is no such conflict with LISC, applicants will need to similarly establish that s/he does not have a conflict with the funder of this grant, General Motors.
Publicity
If awarded, please be advised that the applicant’s application information, name, statements, and other information provided during the award process may be used for promotional purposes in all forms and media and the applicant may be contacted by LISC and/or the program sponsors for such purposes. Applicant grants to LISC and the program sponsors a perpetual license to use such information without additional compensation (except where prohibited by law), and without any right to review and/or approve such content. Until notified, applicants must agree not to share any status as a finalist publicly, including but not limited to all social media platforms, news media, or local publications.
Can I change my application after it’s been submitted?
LISC cannot accept changes to the application once it has been submitted, so please review it carefully.
Do grant applicants receive a confirmation that they submitted their application?
Every applicant receives a confirmation screen that follows if all fields are filled out correctly and after hitting "done".
If I applied for a LISC grant previously, can I apply for this grant?
If your business or organization applied for funding in the past, you may still apply for a Soil Fund Groundswell Grant. You must submit a new application for each grant in order to be considered for funding, as each LISC-administered grant has unique aspects and distinct funder requirements.
How will I be contacted or know if I will receive a grant?
LISC will primarily utilize email to communicate with all applicants. Be sure to check email regularly, including spam folders. Email updates to all applicants will come from a staff member at LISC.
Finalists will be notified by email and must respond promptly. The return of any grantee notification message or document as undeliverable may result in disqualification of the applicable grantee, the forfeiture of his or her interest in the grant and the selection of a substitute from among all remaining eligible finalists.
What does it mean to be a “finalist” and will there be additional documentation required?
If your business or organization is selected as a finalist, you will be notified via email. Being selected as a finalist does not guarantee a grant will be awarded. As a finalist, additional documentation will be required, including SSN, TIN/ITIN and/or EIN for the organization and/or the business in order for us to perform the due diligence required by the program’s funding source. This due diligence inquiry may include a background search that we will conduct at our expense. If the due diligence step is successfully completed, we will ask for W-9 and appropriate banking information so that we may transfer funds by ACH to your designated account.
Please be aware that valid grant applications are only accepted through the links posted on http://www.lisc.org/wny and that LISC will never request copies of personal documentation such as driver’s licenses, passports and/or green cards. The Soil Fund Groundswell Grant applications are intended to collect basic information about your business or organization and it is LISC's recommendation that applicants should not pay a fee for assistance in completing this form. Paid professional services will not increase any applicant’s chances of selection.
Does anything need to be repaid?
No, these grants do not need to be repaid. However, all taxes associated with the acceptance and/or uses of cash awarded are the sole responsibility of the individual grantee. Cash awarded will be reported by LISC to the IRS as LISC deems necessary according to applicable law. It is further the policy of LISC that all LISC grantees be advised to consult with their own tax professionals and/or legal counsel to ascertain the tax impact of the cash awards. LISC will issue a Form 1099 for any grant of $600 or more.
Will receiving a grant impact other federal assistance or unemployment insurance eligibility?
A grant may affect your unemployment insurance claim if the grant is used to pay payroll expenses during the period you receive unemployment benefits. The amount of unemployment assistance is usually determined by recent earnings, and most likely, you will have to certify on a weekly basis to any income received the previous week as wages. Please consult your state’s unemployment office for more information about unemployment insurance claims.
The awarding of a grant by LISC will not affect the ability of a business to apply for and receive an SBA PPP loan or other federal assistance available under the CARES Act. However, grantees are advised that the same business expenses cannot be funded by a LISC grant and federal funds. Recipients of PPP loans or other funding under the CARES Act must be prepared to demonstrate, upon request by the SBA or other government agency or as a component of an application for forgiveness of a PPP loan, that no other funding source was used to pay for the same costs as those paid for by the PPP loan or CARES Act funding.
Have additional questions?
We are monitoring inquiries sent to wnyinfo@lisc.org and will be posting answers and updates on this landing page in an effort to support transparency and equal access to information for all applicants.