Maine small business grants, loans and training funds (2026)

Which Maine programs pay cash, and which you repay

Sort each program by what you actually receive before you spend time on an application:

• Repayable credit. Grow Maine direct loans, FAME Commercial Loan Insurance, the Regional Economic Development Revolving Loan Program and CEI loans ⁠¹⁠³⁠⁴⁠¹⁵.
• Equity and investor incentives. Grow Maine equity through the Maine Venture Fund, MTI and CEI ⁠¹, and the Maine Seed Capital Tax Credit, which goes to your investors, not to you ⁠⁵.
• Grants with conditions. MTI Business Innovation Funding (1:1 match) ⁠⁶, STEP export reimbursements ⁠⁹, employer training reimbursements ⁠¹⁰⁠¹¹, and CDBG grants requested by a municipality ⁠¹².
• Free help. Maine SBDC advising ⁠¹³.

Grow Maine: how FAME spends the state’s SSBCI money

FAME splits Maine’s $62,232,918 SSBCI allocation three ways: $34,032,918 for direct loans, $26,200,000 for direct equity and $2,000,000 for fund equity investments ⁠¹. Treasury’s program list, current as of August 25, 2026, shows four Maine programs under FAME: the Regional Economic Development Revolving Loan & Direct Loan Program, the Commercial Loan Insurance Program, the Maine Venture Fund, and a CDFI and MVF fund program ⁠².

Source: FAME Grow Maine page ⁠¹.

Direct loans go out through more than 30 partners, including CDFIs, economic development districts and municipal lenders, or straight from FAME ⁠¹. Loan insurance runs through your bank’s access to FAME’s OnLine Answer (OLA) portal. Equity comes from the Maine Venture Fund, MTI and Coastal Enterprises, Inc. (CEI), and you contact those investors directly ⁠¹.

Timing matters. In a June 2026 update, FAME said the first tranches of SSBCI money are winding down and that it will redeploy repaid funds as new SSBCI investments ⁠¹. Ask your lender whether Grow Maine money is available now.

FAME loan insurance and the regional revolving loans

FAME’s Commercial Loan Insurance protects your lender, not you. Through OLA, a bank can get an instant decision on insurance covering up to 75% of a term loan or line of credit, with FAME exposure capped at $1.5 million. Startups can get up to 60% coverage on loans up to $1 million ⁠³. The lender pays FAME a 0.50% commitment fee and an annual insurance fee of 1.00% to 2.00%, so ask your lender who will bear that cost ⁠³. Religious organizations, gambling facilities, residential housing, investment real estate and personal expenses are excluded ⁠³.

The Regional Economic Development Revolving Loan Program lends FAME money through 26 regional agencies, such as CEI, Eastern Maine Development Corporation and Southern Maine Finance Agency ⁠⁴. Loans run up to $350,000, with terms of up to 20 years and rates the agency negotiates, usually below market. The program can fund all of a project under $50,000, but only half of a project of $50,000 or more ⁠⁴. Your business must have under $10 million in sales or 100 or fewer employees and fit a listed sector, such as manufacturing, exporting, tourism, child care or micro-businesses with fewer than 15 employees ⁠⁴.

For small loans, look at CEI’s own products. Its Wicked Fast Microloans lend up to $15,000 to a startup and $30,000 to an existing business at 7.25% for up to five years, and you must already be working with a business advisor. Its standard business loans go up to $1 million at 6.0% to 10.0% for three to seven years ⁠¹⁵.

MTI’s innovation grants and SBIR help for technology firms

The Maine Technology Institute pays the closest thing Maine has to a business grant. Business Innovation Funding has three tiers: up to $30,000 at an early stage, $30,000 to $60,000 at a growth stage, and $60,000 to $100,000 when you are approaching commercialization. The total is capped at $100,000 per company ⁠⁶. You must bring at least a 1:1 match. Cash is required, and in-kind contributions count only partly at lower levels ⁠⁶.

The project must sit in one of seven sectors: biotechnology, composites and advanced materials, environmental technologies, forest products and agriculture, information technology, marine technology and aquaculture, or precision manufacturing. You also need Maine-based leadership and documented customer validation ⁠⁶. There is no deadline. Review takes about two months, after a self-assessment, an interest form and a meeting with an MTI officer ⁠⁶. MTI also offers loans and equity to established companies with the capacity to repay ⁠⁶.

For federal R&D money, MTI runs Federal Funding Application Support, which MTI describes as personalized support for federal R&D grant applications ⁠⁷. Ask MTI about it if you plan an SBIR or STTR proposal. We found no Maine program that pays a cash match on federal SBIR/STTR awards. Investors in qualifying Maine companies with under $5 million in gross sales can claim a state tax credit of 40% of their investment through the Maine Seed Capital Tax Credit Program. The business must apply to FAME before the investment is made, and credits are capped at $3.5 million per business over its lifetime ⁠⁵.

STEP export awards from the Maine International Trade Center

The Maine International Trade Center (MITC) runs the federal STEP grant in Maine. Its 2026-2027 guidelines set awards at $3,000 to $8,000, paid as a reimbursement of 75% of eligible costs. You pay everything up front and cover at least 25% yourself ⁠⁹. To receive $5,000, for example, you would submit at least $6,700 in paid invoices ⁠⁹.

To qualify, you must be a for-profit company based in Maine that pays Maine taxes, has been in business at least one year, makes or performs at least 51% of the good or service in Maine, and exports products with at least 51% U.S. content. Nonprofits, schools and cannabis businesses are excluded ⁠⁹. Eligible costs include international trade shows, B2B matchmaking, foreign-market digital marketing, export training and compliance work such as CE marking or ISO certification ⁠⁹.

Applications open November 16, 2026, for projects between December 15, 2026 and August 30, 2027 ⁠⁸⁠⁹. A review committee scores applications, giving extra points to first-time STEP applicants and to companies in Aroostook, Franklin, Piscataquis, Somerset, Waldo and Washington counties ⁠⁹. Submit invoices within 30 days of the activity. Payment arrives within 90 days after the end of the quarter in which your paperwork is complete ⁠⁹.

Training money from the Department of Labor and community colleges

The Maine Department of Labor’s Defense & Manufacturing Training Fund reimburses 40% of approved training costs, rising to 80% with bonuses for small employers, apprenticeship programs and wage gains ⁠¹⁰. The cap is $8,000 per employee and $250,000 per employer per year, from a $7.2 million pool. You must be in defense shipbuilding (including its supply chain) or advanced manufacturing, and the training must lead to an industry-recognized credential within two years ⁠¹⁰. Half the reimbursement is paid when training ends and half when the worker is still employed six months later. The program is open, and training must be approved before it starts ⁠¹⁰.

The Maine Community College System’s Workforce Development Compact gives member employers up to a $1,200 match per frontline worker for training at a college, with an outside vendor or in-house ⁠¹¹. Membership is free ⁠¹¹. Its Maine Quality Centers program also offers training grants for new and current employees, but the college system’s pages do not publish the cost share. Ask the workforce coordinator at your local community college.

CDBG grants your town applies for

Maine’s federal Community Development Block Grant money for businesses goes to municipalities, which then pass it to a business. Under the 2026 Program Statement, the Economic Development Program provides up to $100,000 for working capital and equipment for one identified business. At least 51% of the jobs created or kept must go to low- and moderate-income people ⁠¹². Towns submit letters of intent on the first Friday of each month starting July 3, 2026, and DECD invites full applications. The 2026 budget for this program is $1,000,000 ⁠¹².

The Community Enterprise Grant pays for exterior facade improvements, with up to $25,000 per business and $100,000 per community. The town must put up a 25% cash match. The 2026 application deadline in April has passed ⁠¹². Auburn, Bangor, Biddeford, Lewiston, Portland and Cumberland County (except Brunswick and Frye Island) receive their own federal CDBG money and cannot use these state programs ⁠¹². The 2026 statement does not include a Micro-Enterprise Assistance category.

A Maine financing plan in seven steps

1. Start with a free SBDC adviser

   Request an appointment through the Maine SBDC site or call 207-780-4420. Advising is free and confidential ⁠¹³. Bring a business plan or projections, your loan amount and your timeline. A relationship with an adviser also counts toward CEI’s Wicked Fast microloan requirement ⁠¹⁵.

2. Ask a local lender about Grow Maine and FAME insurance

   Ask your bank whether it will insure the loan with FAME through OLA ⁠³, or ask a CDFI or economic development district whether Grow Maine or REDRLP money is available now ⁠¹⁠⁴. Bring your financial statements or projections and the full project budget, and be prepared to show $3 of private money for each SSBCI dollar ⁠¹.

3. For technology projects, contact MTI early

   Complete the self-assessment, submit the interest form and line up your cash match before the formal application ⁠⁶. Plan for about two months of review.

4. Register for STEP before November 16, 2026

   Meet an MITC trade specialist, choose your target country and gather the W-9, U.S. content form and eligible small business self-certification ⁠⁹. Do not book trade show costs you want reimbursed before your award email ⁠⁸.

5. Ask for training money before training starts

   Manufacturers and shipbuilding suppliers submit a training request to the Department of Labor ⁠¹⁰. Other employers can join the Compact through the community college system ⁠¹¹.

6. Talk to your town about CDBG

   If your project creates jobs for low- and moderate-income workers, ask your town or regional council to file a monthly letter of intent with DECD ⁠¹².

7. Reapply or switch programs if refused

   A lender’s credit decision can be taken to another Grow Maine partner. STEP awards are competitive, so ask MITC ([email protected]) how your application scored before the next round ⁠⁹.

For other Maine assistance, see the Maine overview and Maine heating help, or compare states on the small business grants hub.