- Local Economies: the National Parks and Buying Local
- Federal Appropriations Update
- The Goodies – This week’s highlight is Dan Beam’s report – 2016 CAMEO Member Meeting Report. CAMEO is ready for a whole new stage of evolution. Ushering in a new economic era carries both challenges and opportunity for CAMEO and its member organizations. Find out what’s shifting in the world today, and how CAMEO – and you!- can engage with the changes.
Local Economies: The National Parks and Buying Local
Our national park system celebrates its 100th anniversary this summer. The Obama Administration is committed to protecting iconic landscapes and enhancing local economies. The Administration shows how important these iconic places are to the economic health of local communities. In 2015, more than 305 million people visited America’s national parks – setting an all-time record – with visitors spending $16.9 billion in nearby local communities. Here’s the data for California.
- Number of National Parks: 27 parks
- Park Visits: 38.4 million visitors
- Visitor Spending in Local Economies: $1.8 billion
- Jobs Supported: 25,800 jobs
- State Economic Output Supported: $2.6 billion
Studies have shown that every dollar invested in the National Park Service generates $10 for the economy through visitor spending. National parks, monuments and other protected public lands help contribute to local communities by supporting jobs, boosting tourism, and attracting new businesses and residents who believe that easy outdoor access improves their quality of life.
Claudia wrote a November 2015 op-ed in The Hill – “The small business case to designate California Desert monuments” – on this very subject.
And so the urban folks don’t feel left out, American Independent Business Alliance gave a presentation to the SF Chamber of Commerce on how cities can organize a buy local campaign.
Federal Appropriations Update
Madison Services Group (our boots on the ground in DC) combed through the FY17 Financial Services and General Government Appropriations appropriations bill that funds the SBA and Treasury. The chart below compares last year’s funding levels with CAMEO’s FY17 requests and the House and Senate versions of the appropriations language.
| Program | FY 2016 Enacted | CAMEO’s FY17 Requests | FY17 House Version | FY17 Senate Version |
| Treasury CDFI Fund | $233.5 million | $246 million | $250 million | $233.5 million |
| Treasury CDFI BGP | $750 million | $1 billion | $250 million | $500 million |
| Microloan Lending | $35 million | $44 million | $44 million | $44 million |
| Microloan TA | $25 million | $31 million | $31 million | $25 million |
| PRIME | $5 million | $10 million | $5 million | $0 million |
| Women’s Business Centers | $17 million | $21.75 million | $19 million | $17 million |
| SBDCs | $115 million | $125 million | $125 million | $120 million |
The next steps are for each side of Congress to debate their bills. CAMEO’s efforts to, once again, save the PRIME program were successful in the House, which funded the program at $5 million. This is consistent with the FY16 funding level. The Senate did not provide an appropriation for the PRIME program, but they have not done so in recent years. As we’ve done in previous years, CAMEO will advocate to keep the program, as well as the larger appropriations for other programs. Stay tuned on how you can take action!
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!
Dan Beam’s Report: The 2016 CAMEO Member Meeting Report by Dan Beam is a Must Read. CAMEO is ready for a whole new stage of evolution. Ushering in a new economic era carries both challenges and opportunity for CAMEO and its member organizations. Find out what’s shifting in the world today, and how CAMEO – and you!- can engage with the changes.
White House on Inclusive Entrepreneurship: This week, President Obama hosted the first-ever White House Demo Day focused on inclusive entrepreneurship, welcoming startup founders from diverse walks of life and from across the country to showcase their innovations. One initiative was the Start Up in a Day Pledge to make it easier for entrepreneurs to start a business by reducing the amount of time it takes to register and apply for permits and licenses on the local level. Fresno, Long Beach, LA, Oakland, Riverside, San Francisco, San Jose, Santa Cruz, and West Hollywood made pledges while Long Beach Oakland, Riverside, and San Francisco received $50,000 to support the development, implementation, and improvement of online tools that let entrepreneurs learn about the business startup process in their area. Los Angeles received $250,000 to develop an “open source” Startup in a Day solution, which could be replicable and scalable to other localities. Congrats California!
New Report: “The State of Small Business in America” was issued by Babson College this month.
Take Action: If there’s ever a time in politics that really needs a woman’s voice, that time is now. CAMEO has joined Women Impacting Public Policy (WIPP) for their campaign – WE Decide 2016 – to engage women in business in the 2016 election. This week’s poll is on capital access. Women receive only 4% of loans, yet represent 30% of all small businesses! Check out the video.
For Your Clients: Small Business Majority is hosting Access to Capital 101: Funding Options to Start and Grow Your Business every Wednesday, the next one is June 29. They present an overview of alternative lending options including community development financial institutions, SBA’s loan guarantee program and reputable online options, key questions to consider when seeking funding, the Small Business Borrowers’ Bill of Rights and helpful tools and resources.
OFN Western Regional Meeting: Registration is open for the June 29, 2016 OFN Western Regional Meeting. The meeting will take place in Los Angeles, CA at Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, Los Angeles Branch (950 S Grand Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90015). Check out the agenda.
Free Webinar: On Thursday, June 30 at 11:00am PDT, CFED will host How the CFPB Proposes to Regulate Payday Lending. The webinar will explain how the regulation works and the potential implications for state-level rule-making. We will also discuss what you can do during the comment period to stay engaged and support the Bureau’s efforts.
Free Rural Webinar: ASBC hosts a webinar on the Young Farmer Success Act (H.R. 2590) on Wednesday, July 6, 2016 11:00am-12:00pm PDT. Under this bill, a farmer would see the balance of his or her student loans forgiven after making 10 years of income-based loan payments, making it easier for new farmers to enter the business. The bill’s co-sponsors and a representative from a leading advocacy group will make the case for why the Young Farmer Success Act is the solution to strengthening our agricultural system.
Professional Development Opportunity: You’re invited to join the CFED Assets & Opportunity Network and Center for Financial Security for a new four-part virtual Listening & Learning Series on Financial Coaching & Counseling. They are on the following Wednesdays from 12:-1:30pm PDT: July 13, August 10, and September 14. The A&O Network has also released Financial Coaching Census.
Nonprofit Taxes Webinar: The California Board of Equalization is offering free nonprofit seminars and workshops discuss tax laws, exemptions, and reporting requirements as they apply to non-profit and exempt organizations during the month of August in Perris, Oakland, Apple Valley, Fullerton, and Chula Vista.
PayDay Lending Rules: The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has proposed a rule aimed at reshaping the market for payday loans and other short-term credit. The proposal would require lenders to ensure that the consumer has the ability to repay the loan, provide notice that the lender is withdrawing funds from the consumer’s account and cease automatic withdraws if the consumer’s account is overdrawn. Comments on this proposal are due September 14, 2016.
New Report: Opportunity Fund released a very important research report, “Unaffordable and Unsustainable: The New Business Lending on Main Street.” Until now, we have been relying on stories to explain what’s happening with online lending. Now we’ve got some data on the loans and cash advances being offered to small businesses by short-term, high-cost alternative lenders. Cliff notes on findings: 94% interest rates; average payment is 1.78x income -YIKES.
For Your Client: OFN has a new small business borrower education platform – Venturize.
FIELD’s EntrepreneurTracker: FIELD worked with 19 microenterprise organizations in 2015 to collect data on the outcomes of 1,086 clients they had served in 2014. Each dollar spent on program costs generated between $8.96 and $9.45 in benefits. Learn more about EntrepreneurTracker.