Last Thursday, the CBA hosted a productive meeting with representatives from the United States Department of the Treasury, the state’s California Capital Access Program (CalCAP), the Small Business Loan Guarantee Program (SBLGP) and bankers representing 10 California banks. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the State Small Business Credit Initiative. California is slated to receive a total of $168 million in federal funds over the duration of the initiative invested into the state’s CalCAP and SBLGP.

The bankers provided substantive feedback regarding the functionality of these state programs and reforms that might be necessary to make them more attractive as a means to fully utilize the funds appropriated to California by the federal government. The meeting also provided an informative opportunity for those not familiar with the state programs. In a similar vein, the Department of Financial Institutions is convening a Small Business Lending Fair in Los Angeles on Thursday, June 13 with the goal of bringing together lenders and representatives of the two state programs as a means to expand access to credit for small businesses.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact Kevin Gould, CBA’s senior vice president and director of state government relations at kgould@calbankers.com or (916) 438-4410.