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The workshop will be held from 6 p.m. to 6:59 p.m. in the city council chambers at Lakeport City Hall, 225 Park St. The workshop will start promptly at 6 p.m., there is still time to RSVP and let us help you grow your business.
Email is a proven and effective communication and marketing tool, but many people don’t use it to its fullest potential. Is your business using email to achieve its goals?
A 2008 study by the Direct Marketing Association shows a return on investment of $45 for every $1 spent on email marketing. This is over twice the return on investment of other forms of Internet marketing, and nearly triple that of “offline” marketing such as postal mail or telephone. In these tough economic times, we can’t afford to waste marketing dollars!
Part of the “59 Minutes to a Better Business” monthly workshop series, this workshop will be conducted by Eric Schlange, former chairman of the chamber’s technology committee.
Schlange runs three different Internet-centric companies including BitSculptor, a local Web site development, hosting and marketing firm. He also consults with customers on a regular basis, helping them market effectively via email.
Topics covered in this short workshop include:
Email list marketing;
Managing your email workload;
Composing effective emails;
Avoid receiving (and sending) spam;
The future of email.
The cost is free to chamber members, or $10 for non-members. Space is limited – make your reservation today.
Please RSVP online, by phone at 707-263-5092 or via email at
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SACRAMENTO – The California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) and the UC Davis-based Center for Produce Safety (CPS) have signed a no-cost agreement to enhance the department’s food safety grants process and leverage additional funding.
“The Center for Produce Safety’s exemplary grant-review process adds substantial technical expertise to this program,” said CDFA Secretary A.G. Kawamura. “Add to that their ability to provide matching funds for these projects, and it’s easy to see how this agreement will help strengthen the safety of our food supply.”
“Food safety is a focal point for consumers,” said CPS Executive Director Bonnie Fernandez-Fenaroli. “Both of our organizations are dedicated to ensuring the highest possible confidence in California’s food supply, and this partnership will accelerate the research and other projects that will help us achieve that common goal.”
CDFA recently announced a specialty crop grants program that will award up to $15 million to projects that enhance the competitiveness of California’s specialty crops.
The department intends to dedicate a portion of this funding to projects that improve food safety; exact amounts will depend on the strength of the various proposals, and on final notice from USDA regarding available funding.
CDFA receives funding for this grant program from the U.S. Department of Agriculture through its Agricultural Marketing Service.
Under the agreement, CPS will issue a request for food-safety grant proposals, assemble an appropriate technical review committee to conduct reviews, and submit recommendations for funding to CDFA. The two organizations will later collaborate on the announcement and dissemination of research results.
For the purposes of this program, specialty crops are defined as fruits and vegetables, tree nuts, dried fruits, horticulture and nursery crops (including floriculture).
Prospective applicants for food safety grants may contact CPS at 916-757-5777 or visit www.cps.ucdavis.edu.
Prospective applicants for other specialty crop grants may contact CDFA’s Federal Funds Management Office at 916-657-3231 or
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“The defendant embezzled hundreds of thousands of dollars from the State Bar of California over a period of eight years,” Attorney General Brown said. “She was responsible for collecting rent for the State Bar, but instead used the money to pay for spa treatments, designer clothes, lavish meals, and fancy hotel rooms.”
On Monday, April 6, Attorney General Brown filed seven criminal charges in Alameda County Superior Court against Ms. Pearl, 51, of Oakland. The charges include:
One criminal count of embezzlement for violating section 504 of the state Penal Code.
Six counts of filing false tax returns for violating section 19706 of the state Revenue and Taxation Code.
The State Bar of California admits attorneys for practice in the state, provides continuing education classes, and conducts disciplinary hearings.
In 1999, the State Bar purchased an office building at 180 Howard St., San Francisco, for use as its headquarters. The State Bar inherited tenants who leased retail space within the building. As the director of real property, Pearl handled building management and was responsible for collecting tenant's rent.
As early as 2002, Pearl allegedly began to embezzle a portion of the rental funds she collected. Here's how the scheme worked:
Pearl allegedly directed some tenants to make their rent checks payable to "PLOT-The State Bar of California." Unknown to the renters, "PLOT" stood for the Piedmont Light Opera Theatre.
She allegedly deposited some of the checks into accounts held by the PLOT.
Pearl, who was a signatory on the theater's accounts, would then allegedly transfer funds from the theater accounts to her personal bank account.
She would then allegedly use the embezzled funds to pay for spa treatments, designer clothes, lavish meals and fancy hotel rooms.
Brown alleged that Pearl was able to continue the scheme for years because the State Bar did not keep track of the rent payments it was owed.
The State Bar finally uncovered Pearl's scheme in 2008 when she requested a check that she claimed was for a tenant's security deposit refund. Because there were no records that the tenant in question had ever paid a security deposit, the State Bar launched an internal investigation into the financial discrepancies.
The State Bar ultimately discovered that Pearl was maintaining two sets of books, and the investigation was referred to the Attorney General's Special Crimes Unit for prosecution.
Pearl has agreed to surrender herself to authorities next Monday. She could face up to nine years in state prison if convicted on all charges.
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SACRAMENTO – Thanks to swift action by the Governor’s Recovery Act Task Force and the state legislature, $415 million in federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (Recovery Act) stimulus funds are now available to assist unemployed Californians in job-training and in helping to find new jobs.
Following Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's request, the Joint Legislative Budget Committee moved to quickly allocate Recovery Act funds making them immediately available to unemployed Californians.
“With unemployment affecting historic numbers of Californians in this difficult economy, I am committed to doing everything within my power to provide relief to our unemployed and get Californians back to work,” said Schwarzenegger. “The legislature is a great partner in this and acted quickly to get this money out to the people, providing immediate assistance with job training and job placement. My administration will continue to work around the clock to push Recovery Act funding into our economy as quickly as possible to help create jobs and put California on the road to economic recovery.”
To assist workers displaced from their jobs, the Recovery Act funds will be distributed by the Employment Development Department to 49 local Workforce Investment Boards to help bolster services at the local Workforce Services Offices and One Stop Career Centers, serve workers displaced from their jobs and work to address workforce development priorities.
The $415 million nearly doubles the amount of Workforce Investment Act funds the federal government has allocated to California in the current fiscal year.
For more information on this allocation please visit www.labor.ca.gov and www.recovery.ca.gov.
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