As of Tuesday, Oct. 6, the Miami-Dade Economic Advocacy Trust has no grant application open and has published no date for a next one. Its 2026 Business Empowerment Blueprint Grant Cycle is finished: a county news release dated Aug. 24 says MDEAT awarded $232,500 to 36 small businesses and nonprofit organizations. For owners who missed it, the useful question is what the winners had to have in hand.
The answer is mostly paperwork, and paperwork can be built ahead of any announcement. This guide lays out what MDEAT’s 2026 grant guide and county pages say about two grants, $10,000 and $2,500, what the county has not published, and how to prepare. Everything below comes from county pages and documents read on Oct. 4, 2026, with the county’s MDEAT page rechecked on Oct. 6.
What MDEAT Says Today
MDEAT is a county trust, and its small business page lists grant funding, marketing help and technical resources among the ways it supports owners. Its 2026 grant guide still sits on the county site and opens with a launch announcement, but it describes a cycle that has ended. It says all applications “must be submitted via the new online platform.” Neither the county pages read on Oct. 4 nor the MDEAT page rechecked on Oct. 6 lists an open window, a deadline or a 2027 cycle.
The Aug. 24 release is the latest word. It says the 2026 cycle is “completed” and that MDEAT will keep supporting this year’s recipients through “technical assistance, networking opportunities, and future funding initiatives.” That sentence is about recipients, not a new round for everyone else.
What the 2026 Cycle Awarded
The release reports $232,500 across two tracks. The Small Business Capitalization Grant paid $10,000 to 19 established businesses, and the Business Resource Grant paid $2,500 to 17 emerging businesses. The math holds: 19 awards of $10,000 plus 17 of $2,500 equals $232,500.
Recipients were spread across North, Central and South Dade, and the release says the awards touched ten commission districts. MDEAT’s executive director is quoted calling them “36 businesses that are now stronger, better resourced, and better positioned to grow.” A recipient reception was set for Aug. 27 in Miami Gardens.
One housekeeping note. The recipient lists printed under the release contain 35 names, 18 in the $10,000 lists and 17 in the $2,500 lists, and one Central Miami-Dade subheading misprints the $2,500 grant as a capitalization grant. This story uses the release’s stated totals. If the exact roster matters to you, ask MDEAT.
The Two Grants Side by Side
The 2026 guide sets separate tests for each grant. This table collects the for-profit rules as printed. Nonprofits face the same age and size tests plus extra documents, covered below.
| Item | Capitalization Grant | Business Resource and Education Grant |
|---|---|---|
| Amount | $10,000 | $2,500 |
| Business age | 3 years or more on Sunbiz | 6 months to 2 years on Sunbiz |
| Revenue test | Average of $24,000 or more, not over $750,000, across the last three years | None listed |
| Employees | Fewer than 25 | Fewer than 25 |
| Prior MDEAT award | Not a 2025 Capitalization Grant recipient | Never received this grant; it is one-time |
| Tax records | Three most recent years of signed returns or Schedule C, plus transcripts | Signed return or Schedule C with transcripts if 1 to 2 years old; six months of receipts if under 1 year |
| Awards in 2026 | 19, per the release | 17, per the release |
Both grants share rules that catch owners off guard. Franchises and national-chain affiliates are ineligible, and only one business per owner or affiliated group can be funded. Owners with several companies cannot sidestep that by applying under a different name.
Who Qualified: Geography and Size
The guide describes the capitalization grant as supporting businesses “countywide,” and its eligibility list asks for “a physical Miami-Dade County address listed on Sunbiz.org.” It names no neighborhood, district or target area as a condition. A shop in Homestead and a shop in Miami Gardens met the same address test.
MDEAT does keep a separate Targeted Urban Areas page naming 23 communities, from Carol City and Coconut Grove to Overtown and West Little River, as its priority for raising awareness of economic issues. The grant guide does not mention that list, and the list page does not mention the grants, so owners should not read it as a boundary.
The other filters are about size and standing. A business must employ fewer than 25 people, stay out of default on county loans and grants, and avoid illegal activity. It must also align with economic development goals, which the guide gives as community improvement, job creation or sustainability, without saying how that is scored.
The Workshop Requirement
Both grants required attendance at “at least 1 2026 grant cycle workshop.” The wording ties the rule to the 2026 cycle, so a workshop you attended this year may not count next time. The guide lists no dates, and the county pages list none for 2027.
MDEAT’s own social posts fill in the 2026 pattern. A February post said registration was open for required workshops, and a March post said the cycle was officially open. A post dated March 23 called a March 26 session, 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the North Dade Regional Library, the final opportunity. Those posts send owners to MDEAT’s organizer page on Eventbrite.
The sequence was workshops first, application second. That is a pattern from one year, not a promise, and the county has not said whether the workshop will be required again.
The Documents to Gather Now
Every item below appears in the 2026 guide, and none of it depends on a new announcement. For the $10,000 grant, a for-profit applicant needed:
- A physical Miami-Dade address on Sunbiz.org and a business that has existed at least three years there.
- A valid, maintained Local Business Tax Receipt.
- IRS EIN documentation. The guide does not say which form.
- The three most recent years of signed business tax returns or Schedule C, with the matching IRS tax transcripts.
- Average revenue of at least $24,000, not over $750,000, across those three years.
Nonprofits added more. The guide asks for proof of active IRS status, three years of Form 990, three years of balance sheets, income statements or profit and loss statements, a Solicitation of Contributions registration from the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, and IRS tax-exempt documentation.
The start-up track depends on age. Businesses one to two years old supplied the latest signed return or Schedule C with transcripts. Younger ones supplied six months of recent receipts or transactions, which the 2026 guide dated September through February, so keep clean monthly records now.
What Is Not Published
Plainly stated, a lot is missing. The guide and county pages give no application window, deadline, review timeline or scoring method. They do not say whether grants are paid up front or by reimbursement, or what the money may be spent on. The release offers only broad purposes, such as scaling infrastructure and building “an operational foundation.”
| Question | What the county publishes |
|---|---|
| Is a grant cycle open as of Tuesday, Oct. 6? | No. The Aug. 24 release calls 2026 “completed.” |
| Is a next cycle announced? | No date, amount or application link is published. |
| Will a workshop be required again? | Not stated. The 2026 rule named 2026 workshops. |
| When was the 2026 window? | The guide gives no dates. MDEAT’s posts say it opened in March. |
| How are winners scored? | Not published. |
| How is money paid, and what can it buy? | Not published. |
| What counts as the age measuring date? | Not published. Age is “as stated on Sunbiz.org.” |
Could a Next Cycle Come?
The best public signal is the county budget. The FY 2026-27 proposed budget, released in July, says it “continues grant funding to outside organizations in the amount of $275,000 from the Countywide General Fund,” to give “small business owners access to capital to expand their business.” The same document describes MDEAT’s Economic Development Division as providing Small Business Capitalization Grants and Business Resource and Education Grants.
Read that carefully. The $275,000 comment does not name the two grants, does not split the money between them and does not promise a 2027 cycle. The budget also says the division worked “despite a reduced grant budget” and lists a goal, by September 2027, of launching a centralized online grant platform for about $20,000, so the process itself could change.
The county reports that the budget was adopted at its second public hearing on Sept. 17. An MDEAT-specific figure in the adopted version was not located, so the proposed figure is the one cited here.
MDEAT also ran a separate Pitch Fest in 2026, with $30,000 in prizes and an application period of Aug. 3 to 28. It is past, and no 2027 dates are published.
Your Checklist for This Week
Start with Sunbiz. Confirm the address is a physical one in Miami-Dade and note your filing date. As the 2026 guide was written, a business between two and three years old fit neither grant, and the guide did not say when age is measured.
Next, check the Local Business Tax Receipt, collect your three most recent signed returns or Schedule C pages and order matching IRS transcripts. Work out your three-year average revenue against the $24,000 to $750,000 band, and count your employees.
Then make two calls. Ask MDEAT at 305-375-5661, or by email at EconomicDevelopment@miamidade.gov, whether a 2027 cycle is planned and how workshops will be announced. If you hold a 2025 MDEAT Capitalization Grant, or share ownership with someone who does, ask what that means for you, because the 2026 guide barred both.
Finally, do not confuse programs. As of Tuesday, Oct. 6, our District 9 Mom and Pop guide covers a separate district program with hand-delivered applications Oct. 5 to 9. It is not MDEAT money. Our SBE certification comparison explains a county contracting program, and the 2026 MDEAT guide lists no certification requirement. For the wider Miami backdrop, see our tri-county economic corridor map, and for other programs browse the SoFla Business Grants and Incentives Guide.
Key Facts for Owners and Search
Is MDEAT accepting small business grant applications right now? As of Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2026, no. The county’s Aug. 24 release says the 2026 Business Empowerment Blueprint Grant Cycle is completed, and the county’s MDEAT page, rechecked that day, lists no open window, deadline or next-cycle date. Owners can ask MDEAT at 305-375-5661 or EconomicDevelopment@miamidade.gov whether a 2027 cycle is planned.
How much did the 2026 MDEAT grants pay? The Small Business Capitalization Grant paid $10,000 to businesses operating three years or more, and the Business Resource and Education Grant paid $2,500 to businesses six months to two years old. The county release reports $232,500 in total for 36 businesses and nonprofits, made up of 19 awards of $10,000 and 17 awards of $2,500.
Who was eligible for the 2026 grants? Applicants needed a physical Miami-Dade address on Sunbiz, a valid Local Business Tax Receipt, IRS EIN documentation, fewer than 25 employees, good standing with county programs, and no franchise or national-chain affiliation. The $10,000 grant also required three years in business and average revenue from $24,000 to $750,000. The guide names no target area.
What did applicants have to attend and submit? Applicants had to attend at least one 2026 grant cycle workshop, then apply through MDEAT’s online platform. Documents included signed tax returns or Schedule C with IRS transcripts, or six months of receipts for businesses under a year old. Nonprofits added Form 990, financial statements, Florida solicitation registration and IRS tax-exempt paperwork. No 2027 workshop dates are published.
Does the county say what the next cycle will fund? Not yet. The FY 2026-27 proposed budget continues $275,000 in General Fund grant money for small business access to capital, but it does not name the two grants, set a cycle date or confirm the 2026 rules will return. The county says the budget was adopted Sept. 17. Check the adopted budget and MDEAT before relying on any figure.
Sources: These pages were opened on Oct. 4, 2026. The county’s MDEAT page was rechecked on Oct. 6, 2026.
- Miami-Dade County, MDEAT 2026 Grant Cycle Overview and Guide (PDF)
- Miami-Dade County, MDEAT news release, Aug. 24, 2026
- Miami-Dade County, MDEAT Small Business and Economic Development
- Miami-Dade County, Economic Advocacy Trust home page
- Miami-Dade County, MDEAT Targeted Urban Areas
- Miami-Dade County, MDEAT contact page
- Miami-Dade County, FY 2026-27 Proposed Budget, Economic Advocacy Trust (PDF)
- Miami-Dade County, 2026-27 Budget Adopted
- MDEAT on Eventbrite
Brian D’Antoni writes The Sundaze Gazette from Palm Beach County. He reports on business, film and technology for South Florida owners.
