TEDCO Announces the Business Resource Information, Development, & Guidance Ecosystem (BRIDGE) Program

New program aims to expand assistance to underserved entrepreneurs and businesses 

COLUMBIA, Md., (September 9, 2024) — TEDCO, Maryland’s economic engine for technology companies, announces receiving the State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI) Investing in America Small Business Opportunity Program (SBOP) Competitive Technical Assistance Program award from the United States Department of Treasury. The award will target the Mid-Atlantic region and provide total funding of nearly $10 million over three years. Furthermore, this award will allow TEDCO to collaborate with the Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs) in Maryland, Delaware, Virginia, and the District of Columbia, the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law, Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs), and other organizations across the region to continue empowering the Mid-Atlantic regional ecosystem with the creation of the Business Resource Information, Development, & Guidance Ecosystem (BRIDGE) program.

“In passing the American Rescue Plan we committed not only to keeping our small businesses afloat amid the pandemic, but also to position them for long-term success. As our Investing in America agenda continues to generate new opportunities across our state, this $10 million investment in TEDCO’s BRIDGE Program will help connect our local entrepreneurs with these opportunities and boost the resources available for them to capitalize on this moment to innovate and compete,” said Senator Van Hollen, who as chairman of the Senate Appropriations Financial Services and General Government Subcommittee oversees funding for the Treasury Department and IRS.

“Turning an idea into a job-creator takes time, money, and support. By working together across the state and federal levels, we are helping entrepreneurs and small business owners access all three,” said Maryland Governor Wes Moore. “Maryland is grateful for the strong leadership of the Biden-Harris Administration, as we continue moving in partnership to make our state more competitive and leave no one behind.”

Through their work to pass the American Rescue Plan, Senator Van Hollen, Congressman Hoyer, and members of the Maryland Congressional Delegation reauthorized and expanded the SSBCI, which provides nearly $10 billion to support small businesses and empowers them to access the capital needed to invest in job-creating opportunities.

The BRIDGE program will aim to uplift Socially, Economically Disadvantaged Individuals (SEDI)- owned businesses and Very Small Businesses (VSBs), providing better access to capital and resources. To do this, the BRIDGE program will not only expand upon several existing programs while also creating new opportunities. The eight programs that will make up the BRIDGE program include:

• Financial Literacy, Credit Repair, and Building: to be led by the regional SBDCs, this program will provide consulting services in an effort to assist business owners in improving their credit, allowing them to better position themselves for loans and other debt capital.
• CDFI Technical Assistance: to be led by TEDCO, this competitive program will engage CDFI partners across the region by awarding 8 grants of up to $100K each year to support technical assistance programs managed by the CDFIs.
• Back-Office-In-a-Box: a new, competitive TEDCO program that will offer grants to organizations that can provide accounting, bookkeeping, human resources/payroll, and marketing software and support to others.
• Institute for Women Entrepreneur Excellence, Inc.: the TEDCO program will receive funding to expand the current program to allowing it to reach more SEDI women and women leading VSBs.
• Rural and Urban Business Innovation Initiative: the TEDCO programs will receive additional funding to support the program’s expansion, allowing for two more venture advisors to reach more Maryland-based startups and entrepreneurs.
• BRIDGE Proposal Lab: the new TEDCO program will allow for the expansion of the SBIR/STTR Proposal Lab to support companies seeking other government funding opportunities.
• IPEC Free Legal Services: to be led by University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law, funding for this program will allow for the expansion of the Carey School’s legal clinic, allowing for more opportunities for pro bono services to entrepreneurs.
• Loaned Executive Program: the TEDCO program housed under the Venture Development department will receive additional funding, allowing for 30 more loaned executive engagements each year.

“Working with our partners in Delaware, the District of Columbia, Virgina and Maryland, it is our privilege to lead the Mid-Atlantic regional BRIDGE Program supported by Treasury’s SSBCI SBOP Program,” said Troy LeMaile-Stovall, TEDCO CEO. “In a close-knit region like the Mid-Atlantic, state and district boarders should not constrain access to programs supporting business growth because the economic impact of that growth does not recognize those boarders.  BRIDGE will benefit each of our districts by strengthening our broader region.”