In this week’s Must Know
- Federal FY2014 Budget – how it affects our sector
- Question of the Week: Who’s Your Nominee for the Faces of Entrepreneurship Award?
- The Goodies: This week’s highlight is the Women and Business Ownership Forum at AEO on May 6, 8:00am-12noon. Join CAMEO members Marsha Bailey (WEV) and Sharon Miller (Renaissance Center) at a very special forum celebrating the 25th anniversary of the Women’s Business Ownership Act.
Federal FY2014 Budget
President Obama released his budget on Wednesday. It’s a mixed bag for our sector. We’re happy about increases for the CDFI fund and the Workforce Innovation Fund, but we’re not happy about the cuts to Women’s Business Centers and SBDC’s or the zeroing out of PRIME. We’re in the process of figuring out our positions and strategy. We intend to take a strong position on restoring funds to these critical programs.
You can read more about what the President’s budget means for programs near and dear to our community, as well as for small business in general.
The other policy pieces that happened this week: AB 285, a bill that will integrate entrepreneurial training into local Workforce Investment Boards, passed out of it’s first committee. This is a step toward having local WIBs contract with their local entrepreneurship training program. If this bill passes, we would expect more Workforce resources coming your way. AB 152, that would allow unemployed to keep their benefits while starting their own businesses was put ‘on suspense’ so that cost differentials between EDD estimates and our estimates can be worked out.
Question of the Week: Who’s Your Nominee for 3rd Faces Award?
Last year, we awarded two great businesses the CAMEO Faces of Entrepreneurship Award: MiHo Food Truck nominated by Accion San Diego (see pic left) and Mendocino Solar nominated by West Company (see pic right.) This year it could be your client. So the question is…
‘Which client will you nominate for the 3rd annual Faces of Entrepreneurship Awards?’
Awards will be presented on June 5, 2013 at a reception following CAMEO’s Annual Meeting in Sacramento (so mark your calendars). Legislators from the business owners’ districts will present awards. This is a great opportunity for your clients and helps us build strategic connections with our legislators. Award winners will be selected based on the following criteria: type of business, region, demonstrated growth and job creation, and contributions to their community. Nominate your businesses by April 30, 2013.
Post a photo and a one-liner of your nominee on CAMEO’s Facebook page.
Have a pressing question affecting the Micro sector? Share it with us so we can open up discussion on the Question of the Week..
The Goodies
New opportunities for trainings, 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 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!
Save the date for the Annual CAMEO member meeting in Sacramento on June 5-6.
LA2050 competition: Opportunity Fund is vying for $100,000 from the Goldhirsch Foundation to support microlending in Southern California in a competition to creatively use $100,000 to shape the future of Los Angeles. From its new branch office in Huntington Park, Opportunity Fund will lend $4 million in the coming year to help more than 600 entrepreneurs in Los Angeles to grow their business, boost their income, and hire new employees. Vote for Opportunity Fund today as the contest ends April 17, 2013.
California Economic Forums: They began this week and are taking place all over the state. The ones in April are in SLO, Inland Empire and San Joaquin Valley. The goal is to identify local priorities for investing in people, infrastructure and innovation to prepare our state to compete in the 21st century global economy. Please participate if you can and represent our sector. Make sure you identify as a member of CAMEO.
Healthcare Info: Thanks to Small Business Majority for healthcare resources. Small business owners and the self-employed need to know how the Affordable Care Act will bring down costs, create a greater choice of insurance options, and the opportunities it offers to expand coverage. Also there is a teleconference to help answer questions you or your clients may have on April 18.
Free Webinars: Opportunity Finance Network hosts Scaling Up Microfinance, a series of ten, free technical assistance webinars from April to October 2013. The goal of the CDFI Fund’s Scaling Up Microfinance Capacity Building Initiative is to create jobs, build assets, and reduce poverty by scaling microfinance operations. The next topic is Encouraging Innovation and Developing Talent on April 30, 2013 at 11:00am PT. Find a full list of topics and webinars as well as registration information.
Women and Business Ownership Forum at AEO: On May 6, 8:00am-12noon, join CAMEO members Marsha Bailey (WEV) and Sharon Miller (Renaissance Center) at a very special forum celebrating the 25th anniversary of the Women’s Business Ownership Act. They have a great line up of speakers and panelists that include Michele Ozumba, CEO of the Women’s Funding network and other key leaders in the field.
AEO Conference: Let us know if you are going so we can invite you to the CAMEO member dinner. If not, we’d love to see you there! Tilt Forward is May 5-8 in St. Louis. If you’re not an AEO member, CAMEO members receive a $75 discount with the code SMA2013. If you’re an AEO member, registration fees are 50% of the full conference price – another reason to join the national network. CAMEO can offset some of the costs for this conference; contact Shufina English. Three pre-conference sessions are being offered in coaching skills, designing a revolving microloan fund, and rural policies and programs. Early bird prices are still available.
Economic Development Conference: California Community Economic Development Association (CCEDA)’s annual teaching and learning conference is in San Francisco on May 9 at the Hilton. Registration fees are $75 for members and $90 for non-members Scholarships are available, contact CAMEO for information.
Public Banking Conference 2013: Funding the New Economy will take place in San Rafael, California on June 2-4. They will explore one of the core foundations of successful economies around the world: a distributed network of public banks that operate in the public interest of each respective community. It starts off with a Conversation among Matt Taibbi (Rolling Stone magazine), Birgitta Jonsdottir (Member of Icelandic Parliament), Ellen Brown (author of Web of Debt), and Gar Alperovitz.
Refugee Microenterprise Development Grant: The Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) within the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) has announced the availability of funds for the Refugee Microenterprise Development Project. ORR has supported microenterprise development projects since 1991 through the award of discretionary grants to a variety of public agencies, community economic development agencies, local mutual assistance associations, and voluntary agencies. Non-profits qualify. Applications are due June 10, 2013.