The U.S. Department of the Treasury has announced the approval of up to $83 million in State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI) funds for a consortium of 125 Alaska Tribes. This investment, funded by the Biden-Harris Administration’s American Rescue Plan (ARP), supports the largest Tribal SSBCI consortium in history and aims to drive economic growth among Alaska's Tribal communities.

The initiative is expected to generate up to $830 million in additional private sector investment across the state and in Native-owned businesses. The Alaska Small Business Development Center (Alaska SBDC) within the University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA) Business Enterprise Institute (BEI) will administer these funds on behalf of the Tribal consortium.

For the first time, ARP included dedicated SSBCI funding for Tribal governments. With this announcement, Treasury has approved SSBCI applications totaling up to $415 million to support over 220 Tribes through the SSBCI Capital Program for small businesses and Tribal enterprises.

“Today’s announcement reflects success that is only possible when federal agencies listen to Tribal Nations to understand their unique needs and incorporate their feedback in developing program policy and guidance," said U.S. Treasurer Chief Lynn Malerba. "These funds will serve some of the most rural populations in the United States, creating jobs and expanding capital access for Tribes across Alaska."

Rena Greene, Deputy Director and Acting Executive Director of Nome Eskimo Community, emphasized the potential impact: “Our Tribe is looking forward to the transformational impact this funding can have on the Tribal economy of Alaska."

Jon Bittner, State Director at Alaska SBDC, highlighted the collaborative effort: “This collaborative effort over the last two years will result in hundreds of millions of dollars in private sector loans and equity investments flowing into rural and Alaska Native-owned businesses.”

Nicole Borromeo, Executive Vice President and General Counsel for the Alaska Federation of Natives, noted their role: “When the American Rescue Plan Act was signed by President Biden, AFN set out to make sure that Alaska Tribes accessed as much of the funding as possible.”

Congresswoman Mary Sattler Peltola added: "This funding invests in what’s already working here in our state and helps us grow our economies."

Reauthorized as part of ARP, SSBCI is a nearly $10 billion program aimed at supporting small businesses across communities by providing capital and technical assistance. It is expected to catalyze at least $10 of private investment for every $1 from SSBCI Capital Program funding.

The approved programs under this initiative include a Loan Participation Program ($10.3 million), a Loan Guarantee Program ($37.9 million), a Collateral Support Program ($12 million), and an Equity/Venture Capital Funds Program ($22.9 million).

The Treasury Department has worked extensively with other parts of the Biden-Harris Administration to deploy historic support from ARP to Indian Country, including over $500 million in Tribal SSBCI funding.

Interested lenders and small businesses can contact SSBCI.State@aksbdc.org or SSBCI.Tribal@aksbdc.org for more information about these programs.