Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Small Business Recovery topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Assembly committee advances $100 million recovery fund for small businesses and nonprofits
Summary
The Assembly committee voted to send AB 265 to appropriations after proponents described a $100 million state-run grant program to help small businesses and nonprofits recover from declared states of emergency.
Assemblymember Colosa presented Assembly Bill 265 on behalf of a proposed state recovery program that would establish a $100,000,000 fund administered by the Office of the Small Business Advocate to provide financial assistance to small businesses and nonprofit organizations affected by declared states of emergency.
The bill’s author said California’s more than 4,000,000 small businesses and nonprofits — which the author said employ nearly half the state’s workforce — face gaps in federal disaster assistance, including eligibility and lengthy timelines. “This act would establish $100,000,000 state funded program administered by the Office of the Small Business Advocate to provide financial assistance to small businesses and nonprofit organizations impacted by declared states of emergency,” Colosa said.
Susie Pryor, regional director for the Central California Small Business Development Center, told the committee the state SBDC network has direct experience helping businesses recover after disasters and urged support. Pryor cited prior disaster response work and said the proposed program would allow quicker, local recovery aid. “AB 265 … is a lifeline in the time of extreme emergency for a small business,” Pryor said, describing SBDC mobile offices and direct outreach after past disasters.
Jennifer Fearing, representing CalNonprofits, testified the bill would help nonprofits continue delivering services during and after emergencies and that the bill’s definition of a qualified nonprofit would protect eligibility even if a nonprofit’s federal tax status were challenged. Supporters from statewide small-business organizations and local chambers spoke in favor during the hearing.
The committee voted to place AB 265 on call and later recorded the committee action as “due pass to appropriations” with an 8-0 tally. The committee record lists the motion outcome as a pass to the Assembly Appropriations Committee.
If enacted in later steps, the bill would create a new state-administered grant program; it does not itself appropriate the $100 million. Funding, eligibility rules, application timeline, and administrative details would be developed during further committee and budgetary work.
