Existing law establishes a public school financing system that requires state funding for school districts, county offices of education, and charter schools to be calculated pursuant to a local control funding formula, as specified. Existing law requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction, by not later than July 25 each year, to prepare an estimate of the amount of state school money that will be apportioned to each county or city and county during the current school year, as provided.

This bill would instead require the Superintendent to prepare that estimate by July 31 each year, as provided.

SENATE COMMITTEE ON

Senator Anthony Portantino, Chair

2023 - 2024 Regular Session

SB 715 (Rubio) - Los Angeles Community College District Small Business and Entrepreneurship Center

Bill Summary:

This bill would establish the Los Angeles Community College District (LACCD) Small Business and Entrepreneurship Center (Center) at East Los Angeles College to promote and support entrepreneurship education and the job-creation potential of regional small businesses.

Fiscal Impact:

This bill includes an appropriation of $2.5 million from the General Fund which may be encumbered for up to a five-year period for the development and initial operation of the center. This bill could also lead to ongoing General Fund cost pressure in the hundreds of thousands to low millions of dollars to continue the center’s operations after it has been established.

Background:

Existing law establishes the California Community Colleges (CCCs) under the administration of the Board of Governors as one of the segments of public postsecondary education in California. The CCCs are comprised of districts which are under the control of a board of trustees, known as the governing board. The mission of the CCCs is to offer academic and vocational instruction at the lower division level and grant associate degrees. The CCCs are also required to offer remedial instruction, English as a Second Language instruction, and adult noncredit instruction, and other student support services. The CCCs may conduct institutional research concerning student leaning and retention to facilitate their mission.

Proposed Law:

This bill establishes the LACCD Center at East Los Angeles College and specifies that the mission of the Center is to promote and support entrepreneurship education and microbusiness development at CCCs and to support the growth and job-creation potential of regional small businesses through greater access to business education, mentors, and networking opportunities.

This bill requires the center to do all of the following:

• 1. Serve as a resource for the community through events and workshops on entrepreneurship education and access to small business development resources with the understanding that at its core, formal entrepreneurship training and access to entrepreneurship resources is an economic justice and equity issue.
  2. Build a clear management and entrepreneurship pathway that leads to high-demand certificates, degrees, careers, and business development opportunities.
  3. Enhance partnerships with business and nonprofit organizations that encourage the development of an entrepreneurship ecosystem for students to connect, both inside and outside the college environment.
  4. Establish student resources and support on campus to blend the importance of academic and entrepreneurial development.
  5. Partner with local, state, and federal governments, regional small businesses, and regional entities to support the local small business and entrepreneurial ecosystem.
  6. Develop and sustain an annual regional entrepreneurship and small business resource fair to impart technical assistance and essential business skills for business growth, management improvement, increased productivity, and innovation.
  7. Support local small businesses and entrepreneurs through startup microgrants, informational tools, networking and convening opportunities, and access to resources that enhance growth.
  8. Partner with existing technical assistance and entrepreneur development organizations, including the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce and other public or private agencies that have a record of programming, workshops, and development programs.
  9. Manage center overhead and operational expenses, including website development, office furnishings, and product prototype equipment and materials.

This bill requires the Center, when building clear management and entrepreneurship pathways, to consult with relevant faculty and administrative groups of the CCCs.

This bill appropriates $2.5 million General Fund, which may be encumbered for up to a five-year period, in 2023-24 for the development and initial operation of the center. It allows the funding appropriation to be used for specific purposes, including the establishment of internships and work-study opportunities for students to engage in entrepreneurship resources, activities, and other learning opportunities; and student business and entrepreneur boot camps, workshops, seminars, annual business fairs, and membership subscriptions to business organizations that will provide discounted membership rates to participants and business incorporation fees as one-time business startup costs.

This bill requires the LACCD to prepare a summary report by January 1, 2028 that includes an evaluation of the Center in accomplishing its mission, recommendations for improving the programs offered, and an accounting of how the funds appropriated accomplished the purposes of the Center.

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SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION

Senator Josh Newman, Chair

2023 - 2024 Regular

Bill No: Hearing Date: April 12, 2023

Subject: .

SUMMARY

This bill would establish the Los Angeles Community College District (LACCD) Small Business and Entrepreneurship Center (Center) at East Los Angeles College to promote and support entrepreneurship education and the job-creation potential of regional small businesses.

BACKGROUND

Existing law:

1) Specifies the mission and functions of public and independent higher education institutions, under which the mission of the California Community Colleges (CCCs) is to offer academic and vocational instruction at the lower division level and grant associate degrees. The CCCs are also required to offer remedial instruction, English as a Second Language instruction, and adult noncredit instruction, and other student support services. The CCCs may conduct institutional research concerning student leaning and retention to facilitate their mission. (Education Code (EC) § 66010.4)

2) Establishes the CCCs under the administration of the Board of Governors as one of the segments of public postsecondary education in California. The CCCs are comprised of districts. (EC § 70900)

3) Establishes that CCC districts are under the control of a board of trustees, known as the governing board, who has the authority to establish, maintain, operate, and govern one or more CCCs, within its district, as specified. (EC § 70902)

ANALYSIS

This bill:

1. Establishes the LACCD Center at East Los Angeles College.
2. Specifies that the mission of the Center is to promote and support entrepreneurship education and microbusiness development at CCCs and to support the growth and job-creation potential of regional small businesses through greater access to business education, mentors, and networking opportunities.
3. Requires the center to do all of the following:
   1. Serve as a resource for the community through events and workshops on entrepreneurship education and access to small business development resources with the understanding that at its core, formal entrepreneurship training and access to entrepreneurship resources is an economic justice and equity issue.
   2. Build a clear management and entrepreneurship pathway that leads to high-demand certificates, degrees, careers, and business development opportunities.
   3. Enhance partnerships with business and nonprofit organizations that encourage the development of an entrepreneurship ecosystem for students to connect, both inside and outside the college environment.
   4. Establish student resources and support on campus to blend the importance of academic and entrepreneurial development.
   5. Partner with local, state, and federal governments, regional small businesses, and regional entities to support the local small business and entrepreneurial ecosystem.
   6. Develop and sustain an annual regional entrepreneurship and small business resource fair to impart technical assistance and essential business skills for business growth, management improvement, increased productivity, and innovation.
   7. Support local small businesses and entrepreneurs through startup microgrants, informational tools, networking and convening opportunities, and access to resources that enhance growth.
   8. Partner with existing technical assistance and entrepreneur development organizations, including the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce and other public or private agencies that have a record of programming, workshops, and development programs.
   9. Manage center overhead and operational expenses, including website development, office furnishings, and product prototype equipment and materials.
4. Requires the Center, when building clear management and entrepreneurship pathways, to consult with relevant faculty and administrative groups of the CCCs.
5. Appropriates $2.5 million General Fund, which may be encumbered for up to a five-year period, in 2023-24 for the development and initial operation of the center.
6. Allows the funding appropriation to be used for any of the following purposes:
   1. To establish internships and work-study opportunities for students to engage in entrepreneurship resources, activities, and other learning opportunities.
   2. Student business and entrepreneur boot camps, workshops, seminars, annual business fairs, and membership subscriptions to business organizations that will provide discounted membership rates to participants and business incorporation fees as one-time business startup costs.
   3. Micro-grants for under-resourced, underrepresented, and disadvantaged students seeking to start or grow a microbusiness.
   4. To develop management and entrepreneurship education curricula for community colleges.
   5. Faculty professional development, faculty open education resource course development, and workshop material development.
   6. Business resource fairs to establish workforce and business partnerships to meet regional entrepreneurship needs.
   7. Outreach, recruitment, and marketing and branding materials.
   8. Guest speaker honoraria to serve as a resource for local and regional small businesses to enhance their productivity and growth.
   9. Staffing and startup operating costs for the center and the establishment of a small business regional advisory council.
7. Requires the LACCD to prepare a summary report by January 1, 2028 that includes an evaluation of the Center in accomplishing its mission, recommendations for improving the programs offered, and an accounting of how the funds appropriated accomplished the purposes of the Center.

STAFF COMMENTS

1. Need for the bill. According to the author, “California is home to 4.1 million small businesses, representing 99.8% of all businesses in the state and employing 7.2 million people or 48.5% of the private workforce. It is worth noting that more than 700,000 establishments closed in the second quarter of 2020 and we have continued to deal with the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. Our communities are struggling. We must continue to take action to strengthen our local economy by expanding opportunities for small businesses, which is why SB 715 is critical. This bill establishes the Small Business and Entrepreneur Center at the East Los Angeles College; it will further promote and support entrepreneurship education and micro-business development at California Community Colleges. Furthermore, the bill will support the growth and job-creation of regional small businesses through greater access to business education and training. The center will help remove barriers to small business sustainability, open doors for our disadvantaged communities and revitalize the local and regional economy.”
2. CCC Mission. The Master Plan for Higher Education and state statute differentiate the mission and functions of public institutions of higher education. The CCCs are designated to bear the most extensive responsibility for lower-division undergraduate instruction. The CCCs’ three primary mission areas are leading to associate degrees and university transfer, career technical education, and basic skills. As a secondary function, the community colleges may conduct institutional research concerning student learning and retention as is needed to facilitate their educational missions. This bill appropriately limits the responsibility of the Center to fit within CCCs’ core functions of workforce training and building pathways that lead to certificates and degrees. Additionally, the Center is charged with hosting business resource fairs to establish workforce and business partnerships to meet regional entrepreneurship needs.
3. Why East Los Angeles College? According to the East Los Angeles College, “At the core of East Los Angeles College's mission and goals is ‘to empower students to achieve their educational goals, to expand their individual potential, and to successfully pursue their aspirations for a better future for themselves, their community and the world,’ which aligns with building the skills needs of 21st-century employers and businesses. As one of the top largest community colleges in the State of California, the Small Business and Entrepreneurship Center at ELAC bill (SB 715) is critically needed to enhance a robust ecosystem approach to small business capacity building, a critical tactic for economic development in underserved areas of the County of Los Angeles. Moreover, the unincorporated community of East Los Angeles presents one of the densest communities, with diverse commercial and retail corridors, growing consumer markets, and prime areas for investment opportunities. Senate bill 715 if funded, would provide a small business and entrepreneurship hub to build talent and innovation that drives productivity gains and economic growth, and creates jobs, wealth, and opportunity in our underserved communities in East Los Angeles.”
4. Similar budget activity included in last year’s state budget. The 2023-24 state budget included a $5 million General Fund appropriation to the CCC Board of Governors for allocation to the LACCD for the development and initial operations of the California Center for Climate Change Education, located at West Los Angeles College. The mission of this center is to promote climate change education at the CCCs and establish opportunities for students to engage in hands-on internships and other learning opportunities. This center is required to consult with relevant faculty and administrative groups of the CCC, the California State University, and the University of California when developing clear climate change pathways. The LACCD is required to prepare a summary report on this center by January 1, 2027.

SUPPORT

Los Angeles Community College District (sponsor)
Asian Youth Center
Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce

Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation

OPPOSITION

None received

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