Our audit of the Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds federal grant program, administered by the Department of Small Business and Supplier Diversity (DSBSD), for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023, found:

• proper recording and reporting of all transactions, in all material respects, in the Commonwealth’s accounting and reporting system;

• no matters involving internal control and its operation necessary to bring to management’s attention nor instances of noncompliance with applicable laws and regulations or other matters that are required to be reported.

In July 2020, the Commonwealth of Virginia created the Rebuild VA Small Business Grant Program (Rebuild VA) to provide financial assistance for Virginia’s small businesses and non-profits whose operations were impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and funded the grant program with $120 million in Coronavirus Relief funds from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. During fiscal year 2022, DSBSD received $380 million in Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds from the American Rescue Plan Act to continue to administer this program. The Commonwealth’s Secretary of Commerce and Trade established the eligibility requirements for Rebuild VA grant payments in fiscal year 2021 with the initial CARES Act funding, and the requirements remained the same through the end of the program in November 2022. During fiscal year 2023, DSBSD made payments of over $120 million to approximately 1,900 small businesses throughout the Commonwealth that met Rebuild VA grant requirements.