Thank you for your interest in the MN Promise Act Grant Program. We want to share how the application process worked for Round One to help everyone understand it better.

How Far Does $72 Million Go?

There are about 8,688 small businesses that qualify for the PROMISE Act. To fund all of these businesses, $283 million would be needed. As there is $72 million for the program right now, around 25 percent of eligible businesses that apply will get a grant. 

Data Source: This information comes from the Data Axle Reference Solutions database of U.S. Businesses as of March 13, 2024.

Geography 

The $72 million is divided into different amounts for each of the three areas that qualify for the PROMISE Act. This money is given out over several rounds.

• South Minneapolis: $27 million 

• North Minneapolis: $32 million 

• Saint Paul: $20 million 

How Are Grants Given Out?

If there are more applications than money available in an area, grants are given out using a mix of preference and random selection. This process is free of bias, which means it is based on rules from the law and chance, not opinions. The preferences come from the law. The grant team at NDC follows those laws when reviewing. 

For more details about how preference and random numbers work, visit this page.

Want to Learn More? 

• To find out what happened in Round One, including details on why some applications were denied, visit our Round One Denials page.

• For more information on how the awards were given, check out our Round One Award Allocation page.

• If you have more questions, please visit our FAQs page for more answers.