Small Businesses Call on Governor Newsom to Sign Legislation Key to Accessing Responsible Capital and Improving Healthcare Costs

"With the conclusion of the 2023 legislative session, Governor Gavin Newsom has a tremendous opportunity to promote critical measures that will allow California's small businesses to grow and thrive. Targeted legislation currently on the governor's desk will remove barriers to responsible capital and improve access to quality healthcare for California's job creators. The following bills are instrumental in efforts to support continued entrepreneurship and, when signed, will build on the progress California has made to invest in our state's small business owners.

• SB-33: Disclosing Annual Percentage Rate (APR) to provide price transparency - Small businesses should be protected as they search for capital. However, key provisions in the state's small business truth-in-lending law were set to expire in 2024, leaving small business borrowers unaware of the entire cost and terms of the money they borrow. California small business owners support SB-33, which will make permanent a requirement that commercial finance providers disclose the APR of their products.

• SB-666: Tackling hidden fees in small business lending products - Hidden fees are costly to borrowers and can stifle competition and entrepreneurship. Small business owners typically don't have access to resources such as lawyers or accountants who can help them identify and understand hidden or duplicate fees. SB-666 implements important safeguards protecting small business owners as they seek affordable, transparent financing, which is critical to maintaining business operations and growth. 

• AB-1092 and AB-4: Addressing the high cost of healthcare and expanding coverage - Healthcare costs remain a top concern for the small business community as it is typically the biggest cost for smaller firms outside of payroll. Hospital consolidation has played an outsized role in making healthcare less competitive, and therefore less affordable for consumers and employers. We are glad that the legislature continues to advance measures to address hospital mergers that reduce competition and increase healthcare costs, and look forward to continuing this work in 2024. Additionally, many undocumented Californians own or work for small businesses. Advancing efforts to expand access to Covered California in 2024, regardless of immigration status will be key to ensuring all within the small business community receive the healthcare they need to thrive. 

We are pleased to see that the legislature ended the 2023 session by passing critical bills to support the resources small businesses need. We encourage the governor to quickly sign these key bills into law and advance efforts to promote a healthy small business ecosystem in California."

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