I have heard there are grants for ex-felons who are classified as disabled and trying to start a business.There are supposedly grants from the federal level that can help an ex-felon who has served several years and cannot get back in their previous trade.
Having a felony limits one with what they can do, but there is something called Assets for Independence that might allow you to build up matching funds in an Individual Development Account which could be used to purchase assets related to business start-up and development. These all depend on the funding source of the matching funds and the program limits.