Applications For SVOG Program To Open April 8

The SVOG program was created after the passage of the Economic Aid to Hard Hit Small Businesses, Nonprofits and Venues Act by Congress in December that incorporated the Save Our Stages Act, appropriating $15 billion for the program. 

Regulations regarding the ability of SVOG applicants to also apply for Paycheck Protection Program loans were modified in the American Rescue Plan Act, signed into law by President Joe Biden earlier this month. The ARP Act also appropriated an additional $1.25 billion to the program. 

A national webinar will be conducted on March 30 to answer additional questions.

“Help is here for venue operators hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic. The SBA has worked diligently to build the Shuttered Venue Operators Grant program from the ground up to assist and address the diverse eligibility requirements of each type of applicant and we will open for applications on April 8,” SBA Administrator Isabella Casillas Guzman said in a statement. “The SBA knows these venues are critical to America’s economy and understands how hard they’ve been impacted, as they were among the first to shutter. This vital economic aid will provide a much-needed lifeline for live venues, museums, movie theatres and many more.”

Guzman was confirmed as SBA administrator earlier this week.

The National Independent Venue Association sent Pollstar the following statement after the announcement of the application date: “We realize this is an enormous undertaking for the SBA and we appreciate everything the agency is doing to ensure this program is administered as Congress intended as expeditiously as possible. The opening can’t come soon enough. The fate of our industry’s survival is dependent on it. To say we have been anxiously awaiting the day when we can apply for this emergency relief is an understatement.”

Despite being a notable victory for the live industry, the several months between the program’s creation and the announcement of a date for applications for much needed financial relief created a difficult situation for many venues.

“I think every company is worried about survival,” Scott Scovill, founder of MooTV told Pollstar in December. “The whole industry really is on the verge of collapsing. Most of the income from the concert industry comes from touring – venues are [an important] piece of that equation – but most of what makes this industry function is smaller companies that don’t have deep pockets. From the employees to the companies employing them, we are all a sinking ship right now.”