Help for Evacuees: Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara issued a Notice to all California property and casualty insurance companies urging them to cover Additional Living Expenses (ALE) for those policyholders who remain under mandatory evacuation or whose homes are otherwise inaccessible or uninhabitable due to the wildfires. http://www.insurance.ca.gov/0400-news/0100-press-releases/2020/release084-2020.cfm
Fire Assistance: California Office of Emergency Services released this summary of the state’s wildfire assistance.
Office of Diversity Testimony: The Program Director for the Office of Diversity and Inclusion at the Federal Reserve Bank testified before the US House Committee on Financial Services, Subcommittee on Diversity and Inclusion. https://www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/testimony/clark20200908a.htm Highlights of the testimony include:
The Board is committed to equal employment opportunity and fostering diversity and inclusion in our workplace. As part of this commitment, the Board has made progress in increasing the level of diversity in senior leadership.
The Federal Reserve System focuses considerable time and attention on increasing racial and ethnic, gender, and sectoral diversity among Reserve Bank and Branch directors. This focus on diversity stems from our belief that these boards function more effectively when they are constituted in a manner that encourages a variety of perspectives and viewpoints. Information on racial and ethnic, gender, and sectoral characteristics of the boards of directors are updated annually and posted on our website. In 2020, approximately 75% of Class C directors—those directors appointed by the Board to represent the public—and 70% of Class B directors—those elected by member banks to represent the public—are diverse in terms of race and ethnicity or gender.
Identification of minority- and women-owned businesses for the Board's capital projects is critical, and we align minority- and women-owned businesses with prime contractors for subcontracting opportunities, when possible. The Board has made significant progress in the inclusion of minority-owned and women-owned businesses in the Board's acquisition process. For example, 2019 contracts awarded to minority- and women-owned businesses increased 9% over 2018.
We continue to strongly encourage the institutions we regulate to provide information on their diversity policies, practices, and self-assessments. In the last two years, regulated entities slightly increased their submissions of assessments of their diversity policies and practices. However, we are not satisfied with the level of responsiveness from these entities.
GOOD NEWS ABOUT SMALL BUSINESS AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT FRIENDS
National Small Business Week to Kick-off September 22-24: The US Small Business Administration rescheduled Small Business Week from May 2020 to September 22 through 24, 2020. This year’s virtual events will honor the nation’s entrepreneurs and small businesses - many of which are owned by veterans, women, and individuals of color - for their achievements and dedication to their communities. https://www.sba.gov/article/2020/sep/03/national-small-business-week-kick-september-22-24 California, generally, celebrates Small Business Month during May.
STATE LEGISLATION RELATED TO COVID-19, MARCHES FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE, AND ECONOMIC RECOVERY
Small Business Tax Credit: Governor Newsom signed SB 1447 (Bradford, Caballero, and Cervantes) Small Business Tax Credit. The bill establishes a capped and allocated tax credit for qualifying small businesses who increase employment between July 1 and November 30, 2020. The businesses’ second quarter employment is used as a base for comparing full time equivalent employment. For small businesses that obtain a tax credit reservation, they may receive a $1,000 tax credit per additional person being employed for a maximum of $100,000. Total tax credits awarded are limited to $100 million. The tax credit may be used to offset income tax or sales and use tax liability. https://a60.asmdc.org/press-releases/20200909-california-creates-100-million-hiring-tax-credit-small-businesses
Paycheck Protection Program Exclusion: Governor Newsom signed AB 1577 (Burke) which excludes from a taxpayer’s gross income moneys that were forgiven by the federal government under the Paycheck Protection Program. This bill conforms state law with the forgiveness provisions under the federal CARES Act and subsequent amendments in the Paycheck Protection Program and Health Care Enhancement Act of 2020. https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=201920200AB1577
Economic Stimulus Funding: Governor signed SB 115 (Senate Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review), a budget trailer bill, which appropriates $561 million in fiscal year 2020-21. According to the announcement, this bill includes $411.5 million to advance economic stimulus with $230.5 million to help jumpstart construction projects. Among other appropriations, SB 115 includes $100 million to backfill local governments to offset tax credits used in lieu of sales and use tax payments. https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=201920200SB115
DATA, SURVEYS, AND ANALYSES
State Unemployment Benefit Numbers Released: EDD released unemployment insurance data for California for the week ending August 29. https://www.edd.ca.gov/About_EDD/pdf/news-20-44.pdf Unemployment Benefits include Unemployment Insurance (UI), Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PAU), Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation, and FED-ED. Among other information, the weekly Unemployment Benefits report stated:
652,329 Unemployment Benefit claims were filed for the week ending August 29.
Between March 14 and August 29, EDD received 9.7 million Unemployment Benefit claims.
$77 billion has been paid to out-of-work Californians since start of pandemic.
National Unemployment Data Released: The US Bureau of Labor Statistics released national unemployment figures for August 2020, showing total US nonfarm payroll employment rose by 1.4 million and the unemployment rate fell to 8.4%. These numbers reflect 13.6 million unemployed people in the US with a labor participation rate of 61.7%. The largest increase in employment was in the government sector, which accounted for one-fourth of the over-the-month gain in total nonfarm employment. Among other data, August shows a significant drop in the number of individuals temporarily laid off (decrease of 3.1 million for a total of 6.2 million). However, the number of individuals who permanently lost jobs increased by 534,000 for a total of 3.4 million. For comparison, the number of individuals who have permanently lost jobs has risen by 2.1 million since February 2020. National data for September 2020 will be released Friday, October 2, 2020, and state-level data for August 2020 will be available on or around September 15.
Safely Making Website: California manufacturers who produce PPE, including face masks and gloves, can advertise their wares on https://www.safelymakingca.org/. The website is a joint effort by the California Manufacturers and Technology Association (CMTA) and the State of California. A manufacturer does not have to be a member of CMTA to participate. To apply, manufacturers should complete this form. At his September 9, 2020, press conference, Governor Newsom announced that the web platform currently includes 450 California manufacturers.
Individuals and Businesses Impacted by Fires: The Employment Development Department is accepting Federal Disaster Unemployment Assistance applications for workers, business owners and self-employed individuals who lost their jobs or businesses or had their work hours substantially reduced as a result of the wildfires that began in several California counties on August 14, 2020. https://www.edd.ca.gov/About_EDD/pdf/news-20-43.pdf Individuals can receive up to $450 per week in benefits for a maximum period of 27 weeks. Applications can be submitted through this webpage: https://www.edd.ca.gov/unemployment/UI_Online.htm
COVID-19 PPP Aggregate-Level Data Update: The US Small Business Administration released program utilization information for the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). As of August 8, 5.2 million PPP loans have been approved in the US for a total of $525 billion. In California, 623,360 PPP loans have been approved for a total of $68.6 billion.
SBA Weekly Lending Reports: The US Small Business Administration (SBA) released its weekly lending report for the week ending August 28, 2020. Information includes race, ethnicity, gender, and veteran participation in the SBA 7(a), 504, and Advantage Loan Programs. https://www.sba.gov/document/report-2020-weekly-lending-reports
CA Small Business Loans: The Governor’s Office of Emergency Services received updates from the US Small Business Administration on small businesses that are utilizing the two federal disaster loan programs, the Economic Injury Disaster Loan and Paycheck Protection Program.
COVID - SBA Disaster Assistance – Result of Fires that Began August 14
CA Loans (EIDL) Approved (as of 8/15)
533,876
Dollar Amount of CA Loans (EIDL) Approved (as of 8/15)
$33,022,133,987
CA Loan Advances (EIDL) Approved (as of 7/15)
809,792
Dollar Amount of CA Loan Advances (EIDL) Approved (as of 7/15)
$2,666,662,000
Payment Protection Plan (as of 8/8)
5,212,128
Payment Protection Plan Approved (total) (as of 7/31)
*Data received from Great Plates Data Portal updated twice per week.
FREE WEBINARS
JEDE maintains a list of on-demand webinars on our website. You can access this list at https://ajed.assembly.ca.gov/content/demand-webinars-available-24-7. Webinars cover a range of topics, including federal disaster programs, marketing during the COVID-19 pandemic, and accessing international markets.
