Business Ready Community Grant and Loan Program

Business Ready Community Grant and Loan Program Financing for publicly owned infrastructure that serves the needs of businesses and promotes economic development goals of Wyoming communities Proposed BRC Rules changes The Wyoming Business Council (WBC) is proposing major changes to the Business Ready Community (BRC) grant and loan program, which funds public infrastructure in communities to unlock economic growth. Program rule changes are intended to better align with the Council’s mission of reversing economic decline and building strong, self-reliant communities. Learn More: 2025 Proposed BRC Program Rules Changes Summary of BRC Rules Changes BRC Rules Changes FAQs Provide Public Comment Public Comment period open until Sunday, July 27, 2025, at 11:59 MST. Review Existing BRC Rules on the Wyoming Secretary of State website. Public Comment Goal 100 56 Proposed BRC Rules Public Comment Themes & Responses First and foremost, we want to thank everyone who was involved in or provided the 57 official public comments we received about the proposed rule revisions to the Business Ready Community (BRC) grant and loan program. Reading and digging into these comments was incredibly helpful in the process of creating the best rules possible for today’s BRC program. These changes better focus BRC on addressing critical state and local barriers to economic growth. They also narrow the focus of these public investments to projects that are more focused on economic development than community or amenity development. We understand both are important to communities and their future growth; however, our goal is to serve all communities by addressing economic constraints that are holding them back from thriving. Other program and service offerings are available to help communities with their community development needs. 25% Match Requirement Many commenters expressed concern that the proposed 25% minimum match requirement will disproportionately hinder smaller and rural communities and those facing declining property tax revenues and limited funding options. Critics argue it forces communities to choose between essential services and development projects. Suggestions included tiered match requirements, waivers for communities in significant need, and increased technical assistance. It is also worth noting that we received several comments in support of increased match and co-investment from applicants. We understand these concerns and that many communities, both large and small, do not have cash on hand for this level of match; however, there are several options built into these rules to mitigate these concerns. We know this requirement may seem onerous, but it is a crucial co-investment for communities and the state to be able to make impactful investments to reverse economic decline. Waiver Option: Included in the draft rules, we allow for the ability to waive the required 25% match for extraordinary circumstances, therefore lowering the acceptable match for a specific project. Cash Match: Match can come from many different sources, and only 12.5%, or half of 25%, is required to be cash. Sources of Match: Match can be from federal grants, other state partners, partner organizations, regional municipality contributions, or BRC loans. Other Match Call-Outs Additional comments proposed match requirement revisions. Some concerns focused on the revision that previously, BRC-funded infrastructure or property could not be used toward the minimum match, as this may be burdensome for rural communities. This stipulation was added to prevent double leverage of public funding when state funds have previously been deployed in the project. Furthermore, once the minimum match has been met, that asset may be counted towards an additional match.