In this week’s Must Know:
- FY 2012 Federal Micro Funding
- The Goodies: information on important opportunities like trainings, funding, scholarship programs. For this week’s highlight, find out about opportunities to contribute to CAMEO content, like the new impact story from Orange County Goodwill.
FY 2012 Federal Micro Funding
SBA Micro Funding: As you know from last week’s emails from CAMEO and AEO, the Senate sub-committee that budgets for the SBA zeroed out PRIME. CAMEO called you to action to write Senator Dianne Feinstein. Thanks to everyone who wrote and faxed letters. Your efforts are greatly appreciated.
Despite our best efforts, PRIME is zeroed out in the Senate Appropriation bill, but it wasn’t eliminated. See page 112 for the SBA budget.
Townsend Public Affairs prepared a run down of what is in the budget, but in a nutshell the Senate funded PRIME at $0 and the SBA Microloan TA fund at $22 million. The House funded PRIME at $5 million and the Microloan TA fund at $14.5 million.
The two appropriations bills that deal with the SBA funding need to be reconciled – as do the other 11 appropriations bill. Congress until end of fiscal year 2011 to do so (Sept 30). It is highly unlikely that the 12 bills can be reconciled by the deadline, so there is a 2-month continuing resolution (CR) on the table. We should know in a week at the latest about the CR, but most people expect it to pass. No timeline has been set for a conference committee to work out differences between the House and Senate versions of the budget.
I’ve been told by our DC insiders that they negotiate in conference. CAMEO is and will do everything we can to make sure that the negotiation work in our field’s favor.
Note that the final conference numbers will be subject to a mandatory 1.5% cut to the federal budget agreed to by Congress and the President as part of the recent debt-ceiling legislation. (“Yay!” she says sarcastically.)
Workforce Innovation Fund: The Senate Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education (LHHS) Subcommittee appropriations bill includes $100 million to continue the Workforce Innovation Fund, which will help reform the nation’s workforce investment system and improve the delivery of training programs to workers. CAMEO plans to apply for the Fund when the NOFA is released. We are told that it will be sometime this fall.
Other Industry Funding News: Yesterday, Vice President Joe Biden, joined by Small Business Administration (SBA) Administrator Karen Mills, announced new commitments by 13 US banks to increase small business lending by $20 billion over the next three years – Wells Fargo, Key Corporation, Regions Financial Corporation, Huntington Bancshares, M&T Bank, JP Morgan Chase, Citizens Financial Group, Citigroup, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, TD Bank, U.S. Bank, PNC Bank, and Sun Trust Banks. In particular, the SBA intends to focus on channeling more capital towards the Community Advantage program, which allows community-based lending intermediaries to access 7(a) loan guarantees for loans up to $250,000.
One last thing to let you know relating to funding, albeit FY 2013 – CAMEO is in the process of connecting with Congressman Xavier Becerra (LA) who sits on the Super Committee. We will keep you posted.
The Goodies
New opportunities for trainings, conference information, funding, scholarships, and other information that have crossed our desks since the last Must Know. A running tab of current Goodies is on the CAMEO website.
Find out about opportunities to contribute to CAMEO content, like the new impact story from Orange County Goodwill.
Feedback on Community Advantage: AEO is eager to hear your thoughts aboutyour experience with the Community Advantage program.
For Your Clients: The California Health Coverage Guide is an online resource available in English and Spanish that provides California small business owners with objective, step-by-step information on how to navigate the healthcare market.
For your clients: CARAT has funding from the California Emerging Technology Fund (CETF) to provide technology training to small businesses in California. This is stimulus project funding through the US Department of Commerce, National Telecommunications and Information Agency (NTIA). CARAT is collaborating with partners in six regions in California to administer the targeted technology training program for free. Check out the schedules for September and October.
Free Webinar: “Innovations in Green Microlending and Entrepreneurial Training” is on Wednesday, September 28, 2011 at 11:00am PT/2:00pm ET. Register now.
Free Webinar Training: The Center for Rural Entrepreneurship is offering a comprehensive and specialized training program for local economic developers and community leaders related to the knowledge and skills necessary to work effectively with area entrepreneurs. The training consists of seven hour-long webinars starting October 4. Learn more and register. The target audience for this training is local and regional leaders and economic developers who are exploring how to create a more effective entrepreneur-focused economic development program.
Webinar: BALLE Accelerating Community Capital – The “Soup” Model: Supporting Small Businesses through Local Crowdfunding and Community Engagement. October 4, 10:00-11:00am PT.