WASHINGTON—United States Senator Bill Hagerty (R-TN) today spoke with the U.S. Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Isabella Guzman about the Biden Administration’s frustrating implementation of the bipartisan Shuttered Venue Operators Grant (SVOG) emergency program. Hagerty has continuously pushed the SBA to implement the SVOG program and provide the critical relief funds that Congress passed on a bipartisan basis in December.
“I was encouraged to hear during a constructive discussion today with Administrator Guzman that SVOG has her full attention, the team implementing the program has been revamped, the agency will work with applicants that simply had technical mistakes, and that SBA will aim to process most applications by early July. As the former Commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development, I have a deep appreciation for how vital the live performing arts industry is to our state’s economy and cultural identity, and I share the frustrations with the Biden Administration’s implementation of the SVOG that I have heard from so many across the state. The actions and commitments I heard from the Administrator today will hopefully provide struggling venues in Tennessee with more certainty about the funds needed to save their operations.”
Hagerty continues to encourage Tennesseans who are seeking an SVOG and needing assistance to contact his offices in the state and Washington.