Business News
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- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
The meeting will be held Tuesday, Nov. 3, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. via GoToWebinar.
The meeting link is here; the webinar ID is 956-464-427
Earlier this year, the California Department of Food and Agriculture released the Farmer Equity Report which identified four key challenges facing socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers in California.
CDFA is committed to furthering equity and inclusion within California agriculture and addressing the challenges outlined in the report, among them “Access to Available Resources and Programs.”
The State Board of Food and Agriculture is focusing Tuesday’s discussion on strategies to bolster agricultural education program outreach, engagement and communication with socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers.
“Creating career opportunities in farming and ranching for our diverse communities is essential to strengthen the resiliency of our state’s agriculture industry and move us closer to a California for All,” said CDFA Secretary Karen Ross. “On-farm innovation and advances in agricultural technology, biosciences and natural resource management are creating new jobs that are redefining agriculture. Successful implementation will depend upon continual skills development for employees and on agtech training and educational career pathways that attract the best and the brightest for a diverse, inclusive workforce.”
Invited speakers include Dr. Quentin Tyler, Minorities in Agriculture, Natural Resources and Related Sciences (MANRRS); Gissel Neri Corcoles, MANRRS (CalPoly); Thea Rittenhouse, CDFA Farm Equity Advisor; Lisa Benson, National Association of State Departments of Agriculture (NASDA) Foundation; Lynn Schmitt-McQuitty, 4-H; and Matt Patton, California FFA Association. Other invited speakers include representatives from the Center of Agroecology & Sustainable Food Systems (UC Santa Cruz) and the Cultivating Change Foundation.
“We have great agricultural programs in this state, but we are seeing a divide not only in the job skill gap, but also in a lack of diversity and inclusion for individuals interested in the agricultural field,” said Don Cameron, President of the California State Board of Food and Agriculture. “California is committed to helping the farming community address these divides and meet the challenge of fulfilling new employment needs that focus on agricultural technology, biosciences and other emerging fields.”
The California State Board of Food and Agriculture advises the Governor and CDFA Secretary on agricultural issues and consumer needs. The Board conducts forums that bring together local, state and federal government officials; agricultural representatives; and citizens to discuss current issues and concerns to California agriculture.
Follow the board on twitter at www.twitter.com/Cafood_agboard.
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- Written by: Lake County News Reports
SAN DIMAS, Calif. – Golden State Water Co. Senior Vice President of Regulated Water Utilities Denise Kruger has been recognized as this year’s recipient of the George Warren Fuller Award, presented by the California-Nevada Section of the American Water Works Association, or AWWA, for distinguished service and leadership to the water supply field.
The announcement was made on Tuesday as part of the CA-NV AWWA’s Annual Fall Conference.
“I am truly humbled to receive this recognition and have my name forever linked to George Warren Fuller and the past recipients who have been pioneers and leaders in the industry,” said Kruger. “This really is a team recognition, one that I share with those who mentored me in the industry and the talented professionals we have at Golden State Water. I’ve been fortunate to work with some of the brightest minds in the industry, and I’m proud of our dedicated team at Golden State Water that shares the focus of serving our customers and protecting our region’s precious water resources.”
Kruger has nearly 30 years of experience in the water industry and has been an instrumental figure in helping to ensure Californians have access to quality drinking water through reliable water service.
In her role as senior vice president of regulated water utilities, she oversees all functions of the company’s operations, asset management, water resources, environmental quality, water-use efficiency, customer service, community engagement and regulated new business.
Kruger has an active voice in the water industry. She is on the Board of Directors for the California Foundation on the Environment and the Economy and has served as bhair of the Board of Trustees for the Water Research Foundation and American Groundwater Trust.
She earned her Bachelor of Science in mechanical engineering from the University of California, Davis, and received a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of California, Irvine.
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- Written by: Lake County News Reports
This first-of-its-kind, industry-wide campaign is designed to educate consumers about the persistent threat of phishing scams.
The FTC estimates that consumers lost 1.9 billion to phishing schemes in 2019.
To combat phishing, the #BanksNeverAskThat campaign provides tips to empower consumers to identify bogus bank communications. It’s not just phone calls from suspicious numbers. It’s also emails and text messages masked to look like they’re from your bank asking for sensitive information like passwords and social security numbers.
If you’re contacted by phone, email or text and are asked for your account number, username, password or Social Security number, that’s not your bank.
Watch out for emails with misspelled words, poor grammar or that ask you to click a link or provide personal information. The sender may claim to be someone from your bank, but it’s a scam.
Your bank will never ask you to sign in or give personal information via text message.
Would your bank ever call you to verify your account number? No! If you’re ever in doubt that the caller is legitimate, just hang up and call the bank directly at a number you trust.
You’ve probably seen some of these scams before. But that doesn’t stop a scammer from trying.
Do you think you fell for a scam email, phone call or text message? Here’s what to do next: Take a deep breath. You’re going to get through this. Change your passwords. Call your bank and let them know what happened. Notify credit agencies and set up fraud alerts. Protect yourself moving forward by adding multi-factor authentication.
For anti-phishing tips follow Savings Bank of Mendocino County on Facebook and Instagram and test your scam IQ by taking a 5-minute quiz at www.BanksNeverAskThat.com.
Share your scam spotting score on Twitter for a chance to win weekly prizes courtesy of the American Bankers Association.
Each Friday in October the ABA will draw 15 winners. One lucky grand-prize winner will receive $1,000. Will it be you?
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- Written by: Lake County News Reports
As the COVID-19 pandemic spurred layoffs across the nation in March, the federal government created the Paycheck Protection Program, or PPP, loan as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act or CARES Act to provide a direct incentive for small businesses to keep their workers on the payroll during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The program allowed the SBA to guarantee and forgive the full principal loan amount if businesses used the funds to cover payroll and other select expenses.
However, on Aug. 27, the SBA issued an interim final rule outlining the appeals process for PPP loan review decisions.
In the comment letter, the coalition argues the rule would make it harder for small businesses to access needed relief by setting up an appeals process that lacks transparency, is detrimental to borrowers' rights, and violates due process.
“Small businesses have taken a crushing hit in this COVID-19 pandemic, and the last thing they need is bureaucratic red tape and cryptic decisions about why they were denied a loan or loan forgiveness,” said Attorney General Becerra. “Many businesses are simply trying to stay afloat right now, and these loans from the Paycheck Protection Program are critical. This proposed rule is confusing and puts borrowers at a disadvantage – we need to do better to protect small businesses during this unprecedented pandemic.”
For many businesses suffering during the COVID-19 pandemic, a PPP loan is the only way to stay in business. However, not all small businesses have the resources to defend their PPP loan in response to an SBA investigation, and as a result, rely heavily on appealing adverse loan decisions.
The new rules apply to the appeals process in instances when the SBA determines that a borrower was ineligible for the PPP loan, was ineligible for the PPP loan amount received, or is ineligible for PPP loan forgiveness.
The attorneys general argue that the appeals procedure established by the proposed rule is confusing and puts borrowers at a disadvantage.
Attorney General Becerra and the coalition urge the SBA to establish an appeals process for PPP loan decisions in which each level of review is independent and neutral. This would ensure that the same individual who made an initial decision regarding the loan could not review an appeal of their own decision.
In its comment letter, the coalition also argues that the proposed rule:
– Fails to articulate procedures for initial loan decisions: The SBA has failed to articulate how it evaluates PPP loans in its investigations. This means that while filing an appeal, the borrower does not know what facts or law the SBA considered in its loan review decision. Additionally, the lack of procedures leaves borrowers’ confidential information unprotected from disclosure.
– Creates a circular review process with no outside oversight: Without independent and neutral decision-makers, the proposed rule denies borrowers due process and violates the Administrative Procedures Act.
– Lacks fair procedures: The proposed rule requires borrowers to file a petition of appeal before release of the administrative record, upon which their appeal depends.
– Is unfair: The proposed rule forces borrowers to continue to make payments on a loan while they await an outcome of their appeal on the denial of forgiveness of that loan.
Attorney General Becerra joined the attorneys general of Illinois, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Iowa, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, Rhode Island, Oregon, Virginia, Vermont, Washington, and the District of Columbia in sending the comment letter.
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