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What’s Up for Micro in Sacramento

Reminder: It’s time to fill out the microTracker census with your 2013 impacts. Email Andrew if you have problems or questions.

  • Sacramento Update
  • 20th Anniversary
  • The Goodies – This week’s highlight is a survey initiated by AEO and Credit Builders Alliance to better understand the changing landscape of credit reporting and the implications of these changes on microlenders. Take their survey by tomorrow, April 18, 2014.

Sacramento Update

April is a busy month in Sacramento with bills being heard in committee. I will be attending the Committee on Jobs, Economic Development, and the Economy (JEDE) hearing next Tuesday April 22 as a bunch of the bills we’re supporting are in that committee. Here’s an outline of the bills we’re supporting so far this year.

  • AB 1990 (Gordon) – Community Food Producers: allows community food producers to sell or provide specified food products directly to the public and other specified users; and provides for enforcement and due process procedures. This is like the cottage food industry bill that went into effect last year.
  • AB 2096 (Muratsuchi) – Small Business Access to Capital, Crowd funding: enables small businesses to seek crowdfunding from unaccredited investors and includes investor protections.
  • AB 2682 (Wagner): ensures that state procurement procedures only use true small businesses for small business procurement (this closes a loophole for fraudulent claims of small business status).
  • AB 2670 (Medina) – Small Business Technical Assistance: establishes GoBiz as the state agency that will liaison with technical assistance providers.
  • AB 2717 (Bonta, Skinner): appropriates $6 million to the Small Business Development Centers for one year. If passes, only goes into effect if AB 2670 is passed.
  • AB 2723 (Medina): requires state agencies to consider the effect of major regulations on sole proprietorships and other small businesses, when assessing the economic impact of a proposed major regulation on new business formation or elimination of existing businesses.

We’re also looking at SB 896 (Correa) which would allow non-profits to make zero-interest loans, but more research needs to be done.

Most of these have not passed out of their first committee. When they do, we’ll be asking for letters of support. So stay tuned.

You can find information on all of the bills on the California Legislative Information site. If you have questions or want us to take a position on a particular bill, please email me.

20th Anniversary

We are very excited for this year’s annual member meeting! We’ve come a long way from 4 women leaders to a statewide network of over 170 organizations and individuals who support the microbusiness sector. (Scott Hauge of Small Business California, recipient of our Small Business Advocate Award, photo left)

The Goodies

New opportunities for training, conference information, funding, scholarships, and other information that have crossed our desks since the last Must Know. I have posted a running tab of current Industry Goodies on the CAMEO website that lists items that were in past emails. Check it out to make sure you’re not missing anything, like grants whose deadlines are still alive!

CAMEO White Paper: Download Do-It-Yourself Economic Growth: How Communities Can Cultivate Their Talent and Thrive. Read it. Use it as a resource. Share it. The Do-It-Yourself Economy is built on a foundation of small, locally-owned, diverse businesses. CAMEO’s white paper focuses on why we need a new approach to economic development, explains the reality of small business and self-employment labor market trends, and delineates some of the tools that local economic developers can use to create a sustainable future for their regions.

For Your Clients: Missed the March 31st deadline for Obamacare? Don’t despair, there’s still time to get health insurance. HackerCare open enrollment lasts until April 17 for a May 1st activation date. This will help businesses and freelancers avoid the tax penalty for not having a qualifying insurance plan. The 50.00 a year HackerCare enrollment fee will be waived until your coverage starts, so there’s no risk to join. Pay only when the plan starts! Check out the benefits and sign up for healthcare coverage.

Healthcare Webinars: The Small Business Administration and Small Business Majority are committed to helping businesses navigate the changes and opportunities in health care through the webinar series What the Healthcare Law Means For Your California Small Business . It’s every two weeks in English and monthly in Spanish. The next ones are on April 23 at 10:00am and May 21, 2014 at 3:00pm respectively. Note the Small Business Health Option Program’s online enrollment function is on hold and will be back online in the fall. Businesses can still purchase insurance through the traditional paper process, working with your Certified agent or the SHOP Service Center.

Industry Survey: AEO and Credit Builders Alliance, with generous support of Capital One, have partnered to better understand the changing landscape of credit reporting and the implications of these changes on microlenders. Answer their survey by April 18, 2014.

Economic Empowerment Conference: The SBA is partnering with the National Black Justice Coalition (NBJC) to host Many Faces One Dream, an economic empowerment tour for LGBT communities of color. It takes place at the Oakland Marriot Center, 1001 Broadway, Oakland on Monday April 21, 2014, 8:00am to Tuesday April 22, 2014, 2:00pm. Register for Many Faces One Dream.

Industry Conference: CCEDA is hosting its 25th Anniversary Conference on Thursday, May 8, 2014 from 9:00am-5:00pm at the Los Angeles Radisson Hotel @ Los Angeles Airport, 6225 W Century Boulevard. Join the discussion on trends, views of the field, financing resources, and organization diversification. Workshops include: Social Enterprise-Planning, Financing, and Management; New Market Tax Credits; and Project Structuring & Financing in Post Re-development Credit.