Business News and Resources

• Press Releases

  Report: Illinois Small Businesses Received $2.3 Billion in Federal Contracts in FY 2019

  August 17, 2020

  SBA’s Great Lakes Region Has Nearly 308,000 Loans Totaling $22.8 Billion Approved in Paycheck Protection Program’s...

  May 3, 2020

  SBA Regional Administrator Rob Scott’s Statement on the Paycheck Protection Program’s Second Round of Funding

  April 29, 2020

• Small Business Contracting Resources

  SBA 8(a) Business Development and Contracting Program

  SBA HUBZone Program

  System for Award Management

  Illinois Procurement Technical Assistance Centers

  GSA Office of Small Business Utilization

  U.S. Dept. of Veterans Affairs Federal Supply Schedule Service

  E-Verify for Federal Contractors

  State of Illinois Procurement Policy Board

  Chicago Anchors for a Strong Economy

  ChallengeHER: Opportunities for Women in Federal Contracting - July 27, 2017

• Small Business Counseling

  Illinois Small Business Development Centers

  SCORE

  City of Chicago Small Business Center

  MBDA Business Center Chicago

  MBDA Business Center St. Louis, Missouri

  The John Marshall Law School Business Entrepreneurship Clinic

  The Law Project

  Northwestern University School of Law Entrepreneurship Law Center

• International Trade

  Export.gov

  U.S. Export Assistance Centers - Illinois

  USA Trade Online Trade Statistics Database

  Illinois DCEO Office of Trade and Investment

  Illinois SBDC International Trade Centers

  Export Legal Assistance Network

  Food Export Association of the Midwest

• Small Business Capital Access

  Information for Illinois lenders

  U.S. Department of Transportation Short-Term Lending Program

  National Association of Government Guaranteed Lenders

  SBA Information Notices for Lenders

• SBA Resources and Events

  World Business Chicago 1000 Jobs Initiative

  SBA.gov Online Small Business Tools

  Small Business Innovation Research and STTR Program

  Office of Advocacy Small Business Profiles of States

  Request an SBA speaker for your meeting or event

  Make Your Small Business Award Nomination Stand Out

  2020 Illinois Small Business Award Guidelines

  District Award Nomination Form

  2020 Illinois Small Business Awards flyer

• Chicagoland Resources

  World Business Chicago

  Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning

  Choose DuPage

  Lake County Partners

  McHenry County EDC

  Chicago City Treasurer

• Online Federal Resources

  Business.USA.Gov

  IRS Small Business & Self-Employed Tax Center

  Minority Buisness Development Administration Programs

  Equal Employment Opportunity Commission

  USDA Rural Development

  Citizenship and Immigration Services - E-Verify Site

  Delta Regional Authority Small Business Initiative

  Patent Office Inventors Assistance Center (IAC)

  Dept. of Labor Employee Benefits Security Administration

  Dept. of Labor Occupational Safety & Health Administration

  Dept. of Labor Wage and Hour Division

  Consumer Product Safety Commission

  Census Bureau American FactFinder

  Healthcare.gov

• Illinois Resources

  Illinois Department of Agriculture

  Illinois Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity

  Illinois Department of Revenue Business Resources

  Illinois Independent Tax Tribunal

  Illinois Department of Labor

  Illinois Human Rights Commission

  Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission

  Illinois Chamber of Commerce

  Illinois Manufacturing Extension Center

  Illinois Institute for Rural Affairs

  Illinois Department of Human Rights

• Success Stories

  Food distribution company on the path to smart growth, thanks to SBA’s Emerging Leaders

  Chicago construction company poised for big growth with help from Emerging Leaders training program

  Owner of Evanston painting company ready to take company to the next level after graduating from SBA Emerging Leaders program

  Illinois SBDC at the Women’s Business Development Center receives 2017 Illinois SBDC Excellence & Innovation Award

  Milhouse Engineering named 2017 Illinois 8(a) Graduate of the Year