Two businesses recently joined the Family Business Association of California, the only organization in the state that focuses exclusively on issues affecting California’s 1.4 million family businesses.
Ming’s Recycling Corporation recycles 230,000 tons of aluminum cans, plastic, fiber, and non-ferrous metals every year. Founded in 1989 by Ming Luong, the Sacramento-based company employs 110 people and operates a second location in Hayward. Luong’s son, Kenny, is the current president and his brother, Kevin, gave up his practice as an orthopedic surgeon in 2006 to join the company as marketing director and CFO.
Joining as an associate member is The Policy and Taxation Group, a company formed in 2013 to fight the federal death tax and educate the public about estate and fight taxes and generation-skipping issues that can seriously affect the ability of family businesses to remain family-owned into the next generation. The group is based in Anaheim Hills.
FBA Executive Director Robert Rivinius welcomed the new members and said they will further enhance the Association’s ability to educate state policymakers about the importance of family businesses.
“California’s family businesses employ an estimated 7 million people statewide and are important foundations of their communities, yet the state continues to add requirements that make it harder for these Main Street businesses to succeed,” Rivinius said. “There is strength in numbers, and we appreciate the support that these two companies will make to our mission.”
The Family Business Association of California has named Assemblywoman Cottie Petrie-Norris as its Outstanding Legislator for 2021 for her strong support of family businesses and efforts to improve California’s business climate.
Petrie-Norris, a Democrat, represents coastal Orange County. A businesswoman and community leader, she chairs the Accountability and Administrative Review Committee and the Select Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship. FBA Executive Director Robert Rivinius said Petrie-Norris has carved out a solid position as a business-oriented lawmaker who understands the needs of family businesses.
“Assemblywoman Petrie-Norris was a successful businesswoman before entering politics, and as a lawmaker she has demonstrated that she wants to help businesses grow and create jobs,” Rivinius said. “She is a founding member of the California Problem Solvers Caucus, which includes Democrats, Republicans and independents from both the Assembly and Senate who are determined to put partisanship aside and find solutions to our problems.”
Petrie-Norris addressed FBA’s Legislative Conference in May and urged family business owners to reach out to their lawmakers and educate them on how legislative proposals could have disastrous impacts on small- and medium-sized businesses. She later invited Rivinius to testify before the Select Committee on steps the state could take to support businesses.
She has also earned solid ratings from business groups such as the California Chamber of Commerce and the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association.
“It is an honor to be recognized by the Family Business Association as the Outstanding Legislator of the Year,” Petrie-Norris said. “Making up nearly 1.4 million businesses, family businesses are a critical driver of California’s economy. I look forward to continuing to work together to remove barriers to success and cultivate opportunities for innovation and growth for California businesses.”
Petrie-Norris grew up in San Diego County and is a graduate of Yale University. Prior to being elected to the Assembly, she had a successful career in finance and technology. She has helped build businesses and lead teams at Fortune 500 corporations, small companies and start-ups.
She lives in Laguna Beach with her husband, Colin, their two sons, Dylan and Hayden, and their rescue dog,
Flounder.
FBA has taken positions on four ballot initiatives that will have an impact on family businesses.
No on Prop 15 — an $11-12 billion tax increase at the worst possible time. Public employee unions always want more money. The property tax on property owned 10 years or more could double or triple if Prop 15 passes.
No on Prop 19 — the California Association of Realtors want to see more people sell their homes and accomplish this with a $1-2 billion tax on parents transferring homes to their children.
No on Prop 21 — rent control is just bad public policy, period!
Yes on Prop 22 — FBA views any change to AB 5 as positive and many of our members use app- based delivery services. People should be free to decide if they want to be employees or contractors, not have the state decide for them.
If you would like more information on any of the 12 initiatives on the November ballot contact Robert Rivinius.
Two months into California’s economic lockdown, it’s time to start working on creating a V-shaped economic recovery.
Gov. Gavin Newsom has shown strong leadership during the past couple months in response to the coronavirus outbreak. Now he needs to unleash the power of private enterprise to protect our livelihoods.
Ken Monroe
He made the right decision in moving the state into a shelter-in-place strategy at a time when many people were still not convinced COVID-19 was that serious a threat. As a result, the virus has not had the same impact here as it has in many other large states.
It is also important that we continue to take prudent precautions to prevent a spike in cases or a later second wave of illnesses.
However, the unemployment statistics are beyond alarming. Nearly 4.6 million California workers have filed for unemployment benefits since March, and Newsom projects the state’s unemployment rate will peak north of 24.5%. In comparison, the jobless rate peaked at “just” 12.3% during the Great Recession in 2010.
While many counties are easing their shelter-in-place mandates and businesses are trying to reopen, many sectors of the economy remain shut down. And most businesses that are open or are trying to do so have had to radically rethink their operations to allow employees and customers to practice safe social distancing.
As a result, many of the state’s 1.4 million family businesses are struggling, even with the influx of federal assistance. If the strict quarantine lasts much longer, many of these businesses – and the 7 million jobs they provide – will be gone.
Needless to say, billions of dollars in tax revenues that state and local officials were counting on to provide the wide array of government services are gone as well. If the economy doesn’t rebound, the loss in tax dollars will be far greater, resulting in even more painful cuts.
We will not be going back to “business as usual” any time soon, but there are four things the governor could do to jumpstart the economy and help family businesses in particular before it’s too late for many of us to resume operations.
First and foremost, he should urge backers of the so-called split-roll initiative to stand down. Now is not the time to make dramatic changes to Proposition 13and burden struggling businesses with an additional $12 billion in commercial property taxes. Even in the best of times, raising business taxes by this huge amount would cause many companies to fail and cause many others to downsize or relocate out of state. Doing so now would be devastating to the economy.
Second, he should suspend AB 5. The prohibitions against independent contractors are so restrictive that they will make it hard for many family businesses to get back on their feet.
Third, he should work with lawmakers to provide protection during the rest of the year for employers against wage and hour lawsuits authorized by the Private Attorneys General Act. These lawsuits filed by trial lawyers can cost employers hundreds of thousands of dollars for paperwork violations even when workers incur no damages. Family businesses will need as much flexibility as possible to rebuild operations after this shutdown.
Finally, the governor has the authority to suspend the mandated minimum wage increases if economic conditions warrant it – and clearly they do. Holding off further increases until our family businesses can recover would be extremely helpful.
The governor has shown Californians leadership to prevent the coronavirus from causing a public health catastrophe. It’s now time for him to show the same leadership to prevent an economic catastrophe that could last for years.
_____
Ken Monroe is chair of the Family Business Association of California, kmonroe@holtca.com. He wrote this commentary for CalMatters.
The Family Business Association of California, the only organization advocating exclusively for California’s thousands of family businesses, has named Sen. Jim Nielsen, R-Tehama, as its Outstanding Legislator for 2019.
FBA Executive Director Robert Rivinius said the veteran lawmaker was selected because he’s always been a strong advocate for family businesses.
Robert Rivinius, left, and Sen. Jim Nielsen.
“Sen. Nielsen grew up in a family business and has always been a strong advocate for family businesses during his years in the Legislature,” Rivinius said. “We need more lawmakers who understand the unique issues facing family businesses and who recognize how important family businesses are to the state’s economy and the fabric of our communities, and we thank him for his support.”
Nielsen said he was proud to receive the recognition.
“California needs strong family businesses because they’re the cornerstones of their communities and the foundation of our state’s economy,” Nielsen said. “I want to thank the leaders and members of FBA. It is an honor to be recognized.”
Nielsen was first elected to the Senate in 1978, serving until 1990. He returned to the Legislature in 2008 as a member of the Assembly and was elected to the Senate in 2012. He represents all or portions of Butte, Colusa, Glenn, Placer, Sacramento, Sutter, Tehama and Yuba counties. He serves as Vice Chair of the Budget & Fiscal Review and Elections & Constitutional Amendments committees and is a member of the Governmental Organization, Governance & Finance and Veterans Affairs committees.
He has been recognized by numerous taxpayer and small business groups for his leadership on state budget issues and for his unrelenting fight against profligate government spending. He is also a leader in protecting and strengthening private property rights and for reforming state regulations and out-of-control spending.
Founded in 2012, the Family Business Association of California is the only organization working exclusively at the Capitol to educate lawmakers and regulators about the importance of family businesses to the state’s economy and to their communities and to advocate positions on legislation and regulations. FBA has also taken the lead to defeat recent proposals to impose a state inheritance tax, which would make it much more difficult to keep businesses family-owned from generation to generation.
The Family Business Association of California has named Assemblywoman Cottie Petrie-Norris as its Outstanding Legislator for 2021 for her strong support of family businesses and efforts to improve California’s business climate.
