CalOSBA Introduces Full Roster for 2022 California Entrepreneurship & Economic Mobility Task Force

Bakersfield, CA – Tara Lynn Gray, Director of the California Office of the Small Business Advocate (CalOSBA), part of the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development (GO-Biz), today introduced the complete membership of the 2022 Entrepreneurship & Economic Mobility Task Force (EEMTF) at the California Economic Summit organized by California Forward.

With the support of CalOSBA, the mission of the 2022 Entrepreneurship & Economic Mobility Task Force (EEMTF) is to propel inclusive entrepreneurship by recommending policies and programs to ensure that all California small businesses have access to the resources they need to grow and scale.

“I am delighted to have the opportunity to tap into the experiences and perspectives of these thirty-four Task Force members to help address the challenges faced by small business owners,” said Director Gray. Our roster has been carefully curated to truly represent the diversity of background, geography and perspective that make California so powerful on the global stage. Together we will form a bridge to small businesses and help California maintain its entrepreneurial and innovation leadership.”

Additionally, during the California Economic Summit, Director Gray facilitated a plenary panel discussion about California’s economy featuring Task Force members Carolina Martinez, CEO of CAMEO, Jason Paguio, President and CEO of the Asian Business Association San Diego and the Asian Business Association Foundation, and Lorraine Salazar, 2nd generation partner of Sal’s Mexican Restaurants in the Central Valley.

“As a second-generation family business entrepreneur, I look forward to working with leadership and my fellow task force members to inform policy that helps small business entrepreneurs achieve their dreams and build and protect generational wealth,” said Lorraine Salazar, regarding her role as a new member of the 2022 Entrepreneurship and Economic Mobility Task Force.

The activities and deliverables of the 2022 Entrepreneurship and Economic Mobility Task Force will expand upon the work completed by the 2019 Entrepreneurship Task Force and focus on three main subject areas:

• Democratizing Access to Capital
• Diversifying the Innovation Economy
• Driving Economic Mobility through Entrepreneurship

CalOSBA had previously announced the selection of Task Force leadership: Chair Lenny Mendonca, former Chief Economic and Business Advisor to Governor Gavin Newsom and small business owner in Half Moon Bay, as well as Vice-Chairs Maria S. Salinas, President & CEO of the Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce, and Gurinder S. Ahluwalia, Director of Hightower Advisors and a co-founder of fintech capital markets company 280 CapMarkets.

To recognize the new members, CalOSBA and CDFI Access Plus Capital hosted a breakfast for the 2022 EEMTF members, local Chambers of Commerce and small-business owners who attended the California Economic Summit.

For more information about the Task Force, including the names and bios of its members, please click here.

About CalOSBA
The Office of the Small Business Advocate (CalOSBA) helps support economic growth and innovation by working to ensure that California’s small businesses and entrepreneurs have the information, tools and resources they need to plan, launch, manage and grow their businesses successfully and be resilient. The CalOSBA serves to elevate their voices in state government and to advocate on their behalf to help ensure all aspiring and current small business owners and entrepreneurs are provided with the opportunity to access capital, access markets, and connect to the networks and resources they need to succeed. For more information visit the website.

Heather Purcell
Deputy Director of Communications
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