Huffman brings home $35 million

August 11, 2021

Rep. Jared Huffman (D-San Rafael) announced last week in a press release that 62 venues in CA02 have received a total of over $35 million in Shuttered Venue Operators Grants (SVOG). Rep. Huffman voted to establish the program, which provides support to hard-hit businesses in the music and entertainment sector that were forced to shut their doors due to pandemic restrictions.

The SVOG program was initially plagued by technical challenges, which have since greatly improved. On the day the application portal opened, it crashed and reopened almost 3 weeks later. Huffman took swift action to address the challenges businesses were experiencing and joined over 200 bipartisan Members of Congress in calling for the Small Business Administration to expedite the release of funds. This effort was successful, and the SBA has now approved 9,844 grants, including 1,393 in California.

“Local businesses in the music and entertainment industry are an important thread in the fabric of our communities – they create good jobs, bolster the economy, and contribute to the culture of our region. The American Rescue Plan created the Shuttered Venue Operators Grant program to provide a lifeline to struggling businesses, but it’s been difficult for many to access those funds,” said Rep. Huffman. “The Small Business Administration’s move to improve and expedite the approval process for critical funding is welcome news, and I will continue working to ensure local businesses have the support they need to thrive as we rebuild from the pandemic.”

“My company applied for the Shuttered Venue Operators Grant and the Economic Injury Disaster Loan extension and our applications were stuck in the system for weeks. This funding is critical to my business and the local economy. Congressman Huffman’s office was able to seek information about my loans and they’ve finally been approved. It’s great to be able to seek assistance when I need it,” said Ky Boyd, Director of Rialto Cinemas.

The Small Venue Operators Grant (SVOG) program was established through the bipartisan COVID-19 relief package passed in December 2020. Rep. Huffman helped secure additional funding for the SVOG program through the American Rescue Plan, to total over $16 billion in grants for shuttered venues in order to keep businesses afloat and workers on payroll.

The American Rescue Plan also instituted a fix to ensure shuttered venues that received Paycheck Protection Program loans after December 27, 2020 can also receive a Small Venue Operators grant, as long as the grant is reduced by the amount of PPP funds provided. Applying for both grant programs waspreviouslyprohibited.

Below are the grantees in California’s Second District and their SVOG amounts:

 $155,504 Brilliant Corners Artist Management LLC-SVOG SanRafael

$534,427 California Film Institute - SVOG SanRafael

$1,668,517 ECEvents,LLC-SVOG SanRafael

$63,086 Friends of the CFI-Sequoia Theatre,LLC-SVOG SanRafael

$484,477 Marin Civic Ballet Association - SVOG SanRafael

$322,901 Mountain Play Association - SVOG SanRafael

$494,398 Zeitgeist Artist Management, Ltd-SVOG SanRafael

$2,261,532 CountyofMarin-SVOG SanRafael

$740,750 GLITTER CINEMAS,INC - SVOG SanRafael

$116,427 Marin Symphony Association - SVOG SanRafael

$42,927 MJJ MANAGEMENT, INC - SVOG San Rafael

$762,209 WASH HOUSE MUSIC GROUP,INC-SVOG San Rafael

$885,090 Lee Neighborhood Theatres Inc-SVOG Greenbrae

$312,191 Marin Shakespeare Company -SVOG San Rafael

$1,576 Alternative Theater Ensemble -SVOG San Rafael

$177,239 Paso 190 Incorporated - SVOG Tiburon

$238,905 Peri’s Tavern Inc. (Peri’s Inc.) -SVOG Fairfax

$210,967 MONGRELMUSIC-SVOG San Anselmo $275,000 Lark Theater - SVOG Larkspur

$384,553 Marin Theatre Company - SVOG Mill Valley

$334,438 Mill Valley Live Arts dba 142 Throckmorton Theatre - SVOG Mill Valley

$72,706 The Mill Valley Fall Arts Festival -SVOG Mill Valley

$1,531,954 The Woods Music Hall LLC - SVOG Mill Valley

$1,039,649 Red Barn Productions LLC - SVOG Novato 

$269,515 CinnabarArtsCorp-SVOG Petaluma $62,945 Cotati Accordion Festival - SVOG Petaluma

$4,761,396 DavidCorkillCinemas-SVOG Petaluma $49,493 Petaluma Phoenix Center Inc - SVOG Petaluma

$14,915 MarinArtists-SVOG Petaluma

$273,391 SuperDiamond-SVOG Petaluma

$118,776 RossValleyPlayers-SVOG Ross

$2,327,429 High Road Touring LLC - SVOG Sausalito

$798,389 PartisanArts,Inc.-SVOG Sausalito

$725,500 Sausalito Art Festival Foundation -SVOG Sausalito

$7,802 ShakespeareAtStinson-SVOG StinsonBeach

$3,865,204 PalladioCinemas,LLC-SVOG Folsom

$73,101 H-Town Youth Theatre dba LeftEdgeTheatre-SVOG SantaRosa

$2,164,945 Luther Burbank Memorial Foundation-SVOG SantaRosa

 $90,452 Cloverdale Arts Alliance - SVOG Cloverdale 

$39,488 Cloverdale Performing Arts Center Inc - SVOG Cloverdale

$209,463 HechtCinemasLLC-SVOG Cloverdale

$425,286 Coast Cinemas, Inc. - SVOG Fort Bragg

$43,598 Alexander Valley Film Society -SVOG Healdsburg

$98,406 Healdsburg Performing Arts Theater, Inc dba Raven Performing Arts Theater - SVOG Healdsburg

$139,071 Black Oak Ranch, LLC - SVOG Laytonville

$266,518 Flynn Creek Circus LLC - SVOG Mendocino $91,145 Arena Theater Association - SVOG Point Arena

 $52,824 Performing Artists Coalition for Theater, Inc. - SVOG Sebastopol

$35,443 Surefire Productions, LLC - SVOG Sebastopol 

$249,747 Great Falls Entertainment Inc -SVOG Sebastopol 

$1,348,302 Pleasantown Motion Picture CompanyLLC-SVOG Sebastopol

$1,233,653 Sonoma Motion Picture Company,LLC-SVOG Sebastopol

$66,012 UkiahPlayersTheatre-SVOG Ukiah 

$235,850 Jeffrey & Lois A Hoover (dba Noyo Theatre) - SVOG Willits

$42,682 WILLITS COMMUNITY THEATREINC-SVOG Willits

$36,408 Blue Ox Historic Village & School - SVOG Eureka

$10,803 Dance Scene Studio - SVOG Eureka

$29,128 Redwood Art Association - SVOG Eureka 

$550,301 Minor Theatre Group LLC - SVOG Arcata 

$28,198 Playhouse Arts - SVOG Arcata 

$740,710 Northern Nights Music Group,LLC-SVOG Garberville

 $321,211 Mateel Community Center, Inc-SVOG Redway Congressman

Jared Huffman represents California’s 2nd Congressional District, which spans the North Coast of the state from the Golden Gate Bridge to the Oregon border, and includes Marin, Sonoma, Mendocino, Humboldt, Trinity, and Del Norte counties. He currently serves on the Committee on Natural Resources, the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and the Select Committee on the Climate Crisis. In the 117th Congress, he chairs the Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water, Oceans, and Wildlife. He is the founder of the Congressional Freethought Caucus.


Source: Novato Advance