Pennsylvania Awards Small Business Grants
Harrisburg, PA—Pennsylvania Governor Edward G. Rendell awarded 48 small businesses across the state with $300,000 in Small Business Advantage Grants to incorporate innovative technologies that improve energy efficiency and reduce pollution.
“The high costs of electricity and fuel are affecting all of us,” said Governor Rendell. “From families to small businesses to large corporations, these rising costs are making it harder to stretch a budget or earn a profit, but there are steps that we can take. These innovative firms recognize that and they are making the investments necessary to use energy in a smarter fashion, which means lower expenses and higher margins.”
Helping small businesses better manage rising energy prices is critical because of the importance these firms play in Pennsylvania’s economy, said Governor Rendell. The state’s 264,000 small businesses employ nearly 2 million people and annually pay more than $19 million in salaries.
The Small Business Advantage Grants program provides a 50-percent match of up to $7,500 for equipment or processes that reduce energy consumption, promote pollution prevention, and increase profitability. Examples include high-efficiency heating and cooling systems, motion sensors that shut off lights when rooms are empty, and auxiliary power units that allow long-haul truckers to turn off engines during layovers and still have heat and electricity.
Since Governor Rendell launched the Small Business Advantage Grants program in July 2004, almost $3.5 million has been awarded through 662 grants across the state. The grants announced today will leverage more than $900,000 in private investments.
For more information, visit http://www.depweb.state.pa.us/, keyword: Small Business Advantage Grant Program. For more information on the Energy Independence Strategy, visit the same Web site and click on the “Fueling Energy Savings” icon.
