Blog ⋆ Page 5 of 17 ⋆ Choteau Chamber of Commerce

January 5, 2022January 5, 2022

Montana Department of Commerce Event Grants

December 1, 2021December 1, 2021

56STRONG – SBA Program

56Strong will connect women entrepreneurs and business leaders from all of Montana’s 56 counties through a mentorship program.

The program will be facilitated by Chris Carter and Shayna Blaser with the MT Women’s Business Center.

The goals of this mentorship program are to:

Bridge the gap between the urban and rural divide
Support female entrepreneurs looking to grow their businesses
Increase female businesses across the state of Montana
Help women gain access to capital
Support and build resiliency amongst female professionals

The program will run for six months with a virtual kick-off meeting in January and a virtual conclusion meeting in June. The expectation is that mentors and mentees will meet monthly for about one-hour between February and June. The meeting times and days will be set by the mentors and mentees.

This program is FREE to all participants. The value of the program is approximately $3,000 per mentee.

Applications to participate in 56Strong are due by Dec. 17, 2021.

MENTEE

A mentee is an individual who receives advice, assistance, and feedback from a more experienced person over a set period of time, resulting in the enhancement of the mentee’s knowledge and development.

Requirements to be a mentee:

Must be a woman located in Montana
Must be 21 years or older
Must be able to dedicate ~1-2 hours per month to the program
Must be open to feedback and learning from someone else

Here’s how to get started:

Complete the Mentee application by December 17, 2021
- You will be asked for your Meyers Briggs Type Indicator on the application to help us in the matching process. You can take the free assessment at this link:  http://www.humanmetrics.com/pe…
Participate in a 30-minute Zoom interview so we can get to know you better – your career goals and current challenges that this program can help you with

MENTOR

A mentor’s role is to serve as a guide, helping a mentee to navigate transitions, sharing insights around others’ perceptions, encouraging her mentee to expand her skills, leading mentees in personal exploration, and challenging mentees with fresh ideas. A mentor shares wisdom so that the mentee can learn from the life experiences of the mentor.

Requirements to be a mentor:

Must be a woman located in Montana with 50% business ownership or a C-Suite executive
Must have 5+ years experience as an owner or in the current business field
Must be able to dedicate ~1 hour per month to the program
Willing to share experiences, offer advice and provide direction
Has a proven track record of effective decision-making skills
A good listener who can help her mentee address problems and offer guidance

Here’s how to get started:

Complete the Mentor application by December 17, 2021
- You will be asked for your Meyers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) on the application to help us in the matching process. You can take the free assessment at this link:  http://www.humanmetrics.com/pe…
Participate in a 30-minute Zoom interview so we can get to know you better – your experience, your knowledge, and the areas in which you can help a mentee

Please note: we recruit 20% more mentors than we need for the program to match each mentee’s need. If you are not matched in this program cohort, we will keep your information on hand for future program participation.

If you have any questions, please contact us at 56strong@prosperamt.org

October 21, 2021October 21, 2021

SBA Hosts Virtual Small Business Panel in Recognition of National Disability Employment Awareness Month

SBA Celebrates National Disability Employment Awareness Month

The U.S. Small Business Administration will host a live online panel session to recognize entrepreneurs with disabilities and discuss how they have used SBA financial assistance to help pivot their businesses, overcome challenges, and build back better. Assistant Administrator for the SBA’s Office of Diversity, Inclusion and Civil Rights, Zina Sutch, Ph.D., will lead the two-part conversation, focusing on disability awareness, inclusion, and hiring employees with disabilities as an untapped source of talent.

WHEN: Thursday, October 28, 2021, 1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. (ET)

WHO: Dr. Zina Sutch, Assistant Administrator, SBA’s Office of Diversity, Inclusion, and Civil Rights

Alicia Hernandez, CEO, DAP Construction Management, Tempe, AZ
Tomas Santos-Alejandro, CEO, Advent Services, Panama City, FL

HOW: Registration is required. Click here to register or visit https://sbadisabilityemploymentawarenessmonth.eventbrite.com.

This event will be recorded.

All SBA programs and services are extended to the public on a nondiscriminatory basis. SBA’s support of or participation in this event is not an endorsement of any product, service, or entity. Reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities will be made if requested at least seven days in advance of this event; please send an email to reasonableaccommodation@sba.gov with the subject header “ACCOMMODATION REQUEST”.

About the U.S. Small Business Administration

The U.S. Small Business Administration helps power the American dream of business ownership. As the only go-to resource and voice for small businesses backed by the strength of the federal government, the SBA empowers entrepreneurs and small business owners with the resources and support they need to start, grow or expand their businesses, or recover from a declared disaster. It delivers services through an extensive network of SBA field offices and partnerships with public and private organizations. To learn more, visit www.sba.gov.

September 17, 2021September 17, 2021

Eviction Guidance and Resources

white and brown wooden house near bare trees under white sky

An Important Message from our HUD Partners

Montana Department of Commerce sent this bulletin at 09/17/2021 09:00 AM MDT

In the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision that invalidated the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) eviction moratorium, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is using every tool at our disposal to help safeguard the millions of the nation’s individuals and families now in danger of losing their homes.

Our programs and resources protect HUD-assisted households from eviction and should be sought out by all Americans who are seeking assistance in avoiding eviction, relocating to new homes in the event an eviction moves forward, and fighting unfair evictions. Through our Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity, we are ready to protect people of color, families with children, people with disabilities, LGBTQ people, and others who may disproportionately face eviction through discriminatory policies and practices.

HUD also has a responsibility to assist landlords, owners, public housing authorities, and all of our stakeholders in weathering this public health crisis.

HUD and our partners are taking a broad range of actions to help prevent evictions. They include:

Fighting unfair evictions – HUD is making over $19 million available to fair housing partners to help them respond to possible fair housing violations, many of which relate to the pandemic and evictions. The funds will enable private fair housing enforcement organizations to respond to fair housing inquiries and complaints, conduct fair housing testing, and implement education and outreach activities related to the COVID-19 pandemic. The funds will also be used to address fair housing issues affecting individuals and families experiencing housing instability, including those who may face displacement due to discriminatory evictions and foreclosures. HUD is also ramping up funding and education for HUD-approved housing counseling agencies to work with clients to understand their options if they are facing eviction.
Providing legal assistance – HUD is making $20 million available to non-profit or governmental entities to improve the availability of legal assistance at no cost to low-income tenants at risk of or subject to eviction. These funds will provide services in areas with high rates of evictions or prospective evictions, including rural areas. This grant program plays an integral role in helping individuals and families—including people of color, people with limited English proficiency, and people with disabilities—avoid eviction or minimize the disruption and damage caused by the eviction process.
Keeping people housed – HUD has instituted an eviction moratorium to protect borrowers with HUD-supported or FHA-insured mortgages. This includes people living on Tribal lands with HUD Section 184 Indian Home Loans. HUD will also act to require public housing authorities and owners participating in HUD’s project-based rental assistance program to provide tenants facing eviction for non-payment of rent with additional time and other protections to allow them the opportunity to secure emergency rental assistance that may stave off eviction entirely. For the duration of the presidentially-declared national emergency related to the COVID-19 pandemic, HUD will extend the time its programmatic regulations require before a tenant must vacate a unit once a notice of lease termination for non-payment has been issued from 14 days to 30 days, consistent with CARES Act protections and the protections already in place for FHA-insured Multifamily mortgages where the borrower is under a forbearance agreement. Additionally, in order to initiate eviction, HUD may require additional steps of covered landlords.
Connecting people with rent and utility relief – HUD is working with the Department of Treasury to help Emergency Rental Assistance Program (ERAP) grantees connect tenants behind on rent and utilities with financial assistance. Throughout this year, HUD has brought our expertise on housing programs to Treasury, providing advice and assistance on program design and implementation, and engaged HUD-approved housing counseling agencies. As part of a whole-of-government approach, we call on state and local ERAP grantees to lean into the flexibilities provided in this program and get assistance out quickly to those who need it the most.
Providing Tools to Help Public Housing Authorities, HUD-assisted Landlords/Tenants, and People Experiencing Homelessness – HUD program offices have delivered webinars, created documents answering frequently asked questions, granted waivers to ease administrative burdens created by the pandemic, and are distributing relief resources such as Emergency Housing Vouchers and additional assistance to people experiencing homelessness as quickly as possible.

Eviction prevention resources, tools, and training for HUD’s grantees will continue to be posted to HUD Exchange as they are available. A selection of resources include:

Research on Evictions, their Prevention, and Best Practices

Benefits of Eviction Diversion Programs [huduser.gov] (HUD)
Eviction Prevention and Diversion Programs Early Lessons from the Pandemic [urban.org] (Urban Institute)
Achieving Housing Stability with Eviction Diversion Programs during COVID and Beyond [rhls.org] (Regional Housing Legal Services)
The High Cost of Eviction: Struggling to Contain a Growing Social Problem [open.mitchellhamline.edu] (Mitchell Hamline Law Journal)
Emerging Best Practices for COVID-19 Emergency Rental Assistance Programs [aspeninstitute.org] (The Aspen Institute)

HUD is here to help. You can find more information https://www.hud.gov/rent_relief [hud.gov] and you can also reach out to your local field office [hud.gov].