Resolve Debt

Government grants for women are on the rise. Having a reported 75% chance at being successful in business at a time that they are still believed to be earning up to 75% less than men is a tricky position in which women today find themselves. Free government grants for women are established largely to give women a boost to continue improving that record.

At all levels of government – federal, state, and regional – government are not hesitant to offer programs for women to launch or expand businesses or enhance their education as they still face questions of discrimination and harassment. In addition, no matter how much practical understanding or capital they can bring forward on their own, women can still tap into many hundreds of government grants, including grants for minority women who face a double-strike of gender and racial or ethnic discrimination.

These grants include five-figure grants for entrepreneurs with disabilities including women. Some include six-figure grants for product development or launching day-care centers. Some include grants to begin businesses in small towns, or within certain zip codes. Low-income women who have thoughts of starting their own businesses in general have an estimated total of $3 million worth of available grants to tap into.

The challenge is finding them in the first place. This year’s economic stimulus package included funding for several hundred federal grants for women, but they still have to be found and applied for. Now, however, it is easier than it was four decades ago. Numerous websites can put women in touch with grant packages and applications. In addition, most of them cost little or nothing to complete.

Looking locally first is always a good idea. Local or regional government grants for women can be found to fit your need before you try for state or federal government grants. You can probably find voluminous information about local or regional grants targeted to women through your public library or through the nearest college campus library. Books that address the issue include such titles as Win Government Contracts for Your Small Business and Government Proposals: Cutting through the Chaos.

Whichever way you choose to go, you should beware that penalties apply if your project expenses do not get proper accounting or the project is not completed according to the approved schedule.

Entrepreneurial women are not the only women who can tap government grants. Governments have numerous grants for women to continue or expand their education, with an estimated $86.4 billion in government grant funding set aside for students, graduates, and research opportunities. Over a thousand federal and 24,000 state programs were said to be made available in 2009, including to women specifically.

Whatever 2010 offers, government grants for women are more available and better funded now than in past years. However, remember as well that you should research both the potential consequences and benefits of your project or education plans, and be ready to put up a small sum of money just to get you through the grant process.