As recently reported in The Dallas Morning News, North Texas arts venues that have been shuttered discovered to their frustration that the Small Business Administration portal for grant applications had itself been shuttered.

Actually, it was several glitches that have prevented people who own and run theaters, museum and concert halls from filing for the Shuttered Venue Operators Grants,

But the SBA just released this information. The portal will open tomorrow, Saturday, at 11:30 a.m. Texas time. It’s still first come, first served.

The full release:

The U.S. Small Business Administration announced TODAY that they will reopen the  Shuttered Venue Operators Grant application portal  tomorrow, April 24, 2021, at 11:30 a.m. CST for operators of live music venues, live performing arts organizations, museums and movie theaters, as well as live venue promoters, theatrical producers and talent representatives to apply for critical economic relief.

SVOG is a first come, first served grant, and all submitted applications will be processed in the order they are received. 

In preparation for the application portal reopening, the SBA recommends eligible applicants take the following actions:

• Register on the portal in advance. Applicants will need a smartphone and a multi-factor authenticator app to register and apply;
• Review the SVOG Frequently Asked Questions and Applicant User Guide; and
• Prepare required documentation, per the Application Checklist.

For SVOG application portal technical assistance such as a password reset, browser suggestions, or how to use the multi-factor authentication with an app and the QR code, applicants can call 1-800-659-2955 or, for the deaf and hard-of-hearing 1-800-877-8339 and follow the prompts to SVOG assistance. The call center is open  today  from 8  a.m. to 8  p.m. and, starting Saturday, April 24, the center will be open 24 hours a day through Monday evening at 8 p.m.

The first 14 days of SVOG awards, which are expected to begin in mid-May, will be dedicated to entities that suffered a 90% or greater revenue loss between April and December 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The second 14 days (days 15-28) will include entities that suffered a 70% or greater revenue loss between April and December 2020. Following those periods, SVOG awards will include entities that suffered a 25% or greater revenue loss between one quarter of 2019 and the corresponding quarter of 2020.

SBA’s resource partners, including SCORE business mentors, Small Business Development Centers, Women’s Business Centers and Veterans Business Outreach Centers, are available to provide entities with individual guidance on their applications. (Per federal grant program guidelines that require the same and equal information be provided to each applicant, SBA’s team members are limited on responses they can provide to individual, specific questions regarding SVOG eligibility, potential grant amount, or other detailed information.)