Business

Black Biz Owners Push for Equal Access to Trillions of Dollars in Upcoming Fed Spending

Some Black business owners are concerned that, as has often been the case with large government spending programs, they will be overlooked.

Published

3 years ago

October 6, 2021

Isabelle Price

Female Owner Of Start Up Coffee Shop Or Restaurant Turning Round Open Sign On Door

Black-owned businesses in California and around the country are closely watching as Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi decides when she has enough support from the congressional Democratic caucus to call a vote on the $1.2 trillion bipartisan federal infrastructure spending bill.

Dubbed the “American Jobs Plan” by the Biden administration, the spending bill finances construction projects, airports, roads, bridges, education initiatives, and more. As a component of Biden’s broader “Build Back Better plan,” the legislation includes spending to combat climate change and support expanding the country’s social service and safety net programs for lower income families.

The infrastructure bill is expected to expand opportunities for small businesses, including minority-owned ones, who procure contracts to implement various parts plan, hopefully accelerating racial equity, minority business owners say.

Some Black business owners are concerned that, as has often been the case with large government spending programs, they will be overlooked.

“Here is an opportunity for Black businesses to profit from unprecedented taxpayer spending that will help build all of our communities across America. But we also know, from the past, that inclusion of Black-owned and other minority-owned businesses is not always automatic in situations like this,” said Gene Hale, president of the Greater Los Angeles African American Chamber of Commerce.

“Even informing us that these opportunities exist – letting us know how we can grow and secure our businesses – is never a priority,” added Hale. “That has to change.”

Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA-37) said the infrastructure plan reflects the agenda that helped Democrats reclaim the White House.

“The needs in our communities, especially for Black and Brown people, are too great to be put on hold,” said Lee in a statement issued on Sept. 22. “This is an opportunity for Democrats to be unified in our goal of realizing the vision and promise of this nation.”

United States Deputy Secretary of Commerce Don Graves said the financial investment by the federal government is “historic in nature” and should allow California Black businesses to utilize goods and services represented the plan’s vision.

“It’s making sure that Black-owned businesses have the opportunities, that for decades, missed out on,” Graves told California Black Media in a one-on-one interview by telephone. “We’re going to make certain that Black businesses have a seat at the table because the President has required that every agency have a plan for how Black businesses are going to be included in every single investment decision.”

The Senate passed the infrastructure bill on August 10 and a budget reconciliation bill that calls for an additional $3.5 trillion more in spending is being debated. Now the House of Representatives has to approve the legislation and forward it to Biden for his signature.

Pelosi (D-CA-12) has yet to set a date for a floor vote on the bill as a battle continues between liberal and moderate Democrats on the package’s price tag.

“Let’s be clear: for months, progressives have been open, honest, and transparent with House leadership and the administration about our focus on passing both bills,” Lee stated. “We all proudly support the President’s entire Build Back Better package, which is why, from the inception of these negotiations, my colleagues and I advocated for the passage of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Framework alongside the reconciliation package.”

The Senate infrastructure bill includes an amendment that would allow the Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) to become a permanent fixture of the federal government.

The amendment will expand the agency’s ability to open regional offices and rural business centers. The outreach facilities would be managed through historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) and other minority-serving institutions (MSIs), according to the office of Democratic Sen. Ben Cardin of Maryland, who co-sponsored the measure with Republican Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina.

Minority business owners have historically been systematically excluded from securing often lucrative federal contracts for infrastructure work, such as building bridges and highways, Graves said.

According to a 2016 MBDA report, public contracting data indicated that disparities exist in contracting activity between minority and non-minority business enterprises.

Specifically, the report revealed that minority business enterprises (MBEs) typically secure a lower number and dollar amount of contracts in proportion to the number of MBEs that are available in the marketplace to bid on and perform contract work.

Graves told CBM as the federal government “deploys” infrastructure funding the old way of bidding on contracts will be eliminated.

“(MBDA) is the single agency across the federal government that is focused solely on supporting the growth and long-term success of minority businesses,” Graves said. “(MBDA) is working with every single federal agency to make sure that as we deploy these dollars, make these investments, minority businesses are right there at the table.”

Under the guidance of Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo, Graves is tasked with administering increased job opportunities, establishing economic policies to shore up small businesses and train workers for in-demand jobs.

Graves, the 19th deputy Secretary of Commerce, is also African American and comes from a family of successful business people.

Graves’s four-times great grandparents operated a successful horse and buggy taxi business in Washington, D.C., that once stood at the site of the Department of Commerce’s headquarters. Their son went on to be a proprietor of a widely regarded hotel nearby and become one of our nation’s first Black patent-holders through the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

In California, voters rejected the 2020 general election Proposition (Prop.) 16, a ballot measure that would have reinstated affirmative action in California. Over 56% of the state’s 11 million voters checked “no” on the measure.

What appears to be a barrier on the state level, at the federal level, Graves said “the door is open for all of us.” The federal government is asking states and localities to develop plans to make sure no minority business is dissuaded from participating in the plan.

“We want to see how they play to use these dollars effectively in an inclusive and equitable way to make certain that opportunities exist for every minority business out there (in California) that have capabilities,” Graves said. “We do want to make sure they don’t get discouraged or turned away.”

The infrastructure plan, Graves listed, would also eliminate lead pipes in drinking water systems, provide high-speed broadband, upgrade schools and federal buildings, replace buses and rail cars, and more.

“It’s also the single-largest public investment in history and the most important investment in ensuring that every American has access to reliable, affordable broadband,” he said.

Isabelle Price

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Pamela Price Appoints Deputy D.A. Jennifer Kassan as New Director of Community Support Bureau

On Monday, District Attorney Pamela Price announced Deputy District Attorney Jennifer Kassan as the new director of the Community Support Bureau. Kassan has over 25 years of experience as an attorney and advisor for mission-driven enterprises including benefit corporations, low-profit limited liability companies, nonprofits, cooperatives, hybrid organizations, investment funds, and purpose trusts.

Published

15 hours ago

November 4, 2024

Oakland Post

Alameda County Deputy District Attorney Jennifer Kassan. Courtesy photo.

Special to The Post

On Monday, District Attorney Pamela Price announced Deputy District Attorney Jennifer Kassan as the new director of the Community Support Bureau.

Kassan has over 25 years of experience as an attorney and advisor for mission-driven enterprises including benefit corporations, low-profit limited liability companies, nonprofits, cooperatives, hybrid organizations, investment funds, and purpose trusts.

Working in the DA’s new administration since 2023, Kassan was most recently assigned to the Organized Retail Theft Prosecution team.

Kassan has a master’s degree in City Planning from the University of California, Berkeley. She received a National Science Foundation Fellowship from Yale Law School, and graduated from Yale Law School in 1995. She earned her B.A. in Psychology with a minor emphasis in Ethnic Studies from UC Berkeley.

Kassan’s education, extensive legal background, list of notable accomplishments and impressive resume includes helping to found and lead multiple organizations to support community wealth building including:

Community Ventures, a nonprofit organization that promotes locally-based community economic development,
the Sustainable Economies Law Center, a nonprofit that provides legal information, training, and representation to support sustainable economies
the Force for Good Fund, a nonprofit impact investment fund
Crowdfund Main Street, a licensed portal for regulation crowdfunding
Opportunity Main Street, a place-based ecosystem building organization that supports under-represented entrepreneurs and provides education about community-based investing.

In addition, Kassan served as an elected member of the City Council of Fremont, California from 2018 to 2024, and on the Securities and Exchange Commission Advisory Committee on Small and Emerging Companies.

In 2020 she was named to the list of World-Changing Women in Conscious Business by SOCAP Global.

“We are excited to see Jenny accept the role as the new leader for the Community Support Bureau,” said Price. “She brings a wealth of talent, experience, and a vision to expand our office’s engagement with community groups and residents, that will level-up our

outreach programs and partnerships with local organizations with the aim of promoting crime prevention.

“We thank Interim CSB Director Esther Lemus, who is now assigned to our office’s

Restitution Unit, for her hard work and a great job fostering positive relationships between the DAO and the community.”

Oakland Post

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Business

Sacramento Kings and Black-Owned Digital License Plate Firm Enter History-Making Partnership

Reviver founder and Chief Strategy Officer Neville Boston attended the Sacramento Kings’ season opener at Golden 1 Center, witnessing players debut the company’s patch. Reviver proudly supports the Sacramento Kings’ community and diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives. Photo by Antonio Ray Harvey, California Black Media (CBM).

Published

16 hours ago

November 4, 2024

Oakland Post

Reviver founder and Chief Strategy Officer Neville Boston attended the Sacramento Kings' season opener at Golden 1 Center, witnessing players debut the company's patch. Reviver proudly supports the Sacramento Kings' community and diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives. Photo by Antonio Ray Harvey, California Black Media (CBM).

By Antonio Ray Harvey, California Black Media

Reviver, the world’s first digital license plate and connected vehicle platform, has entered into a history-making jersey patch partnership with the Sacramento Kings, team officials announced right before the team’s season opener on Oct. 24.

The collaboration establishes Reviver as the first Black-founded technology jersey patch partner in the National Basketball Association (NBA).

The Reviver logo now appears on the left front strap of Kings’ uniforms.

Reviver founder and Chief Strategy Officer Neville Boston was in attendance to see the company’s patch worn by the Kings, during a game with the Minnesota Timberwolves at Golden 1 Center in downtown Sacramento.

“It was an absolutely amazing night. More than I ever expected,” Boston told California Black Media (CBM). “The Sacramento Kings have been incredible. On a national, and maybe a worldwide level, this partnership raises the profile of Reviver with the assistance of (Kings chairman and CEO) Vivek Ranadivé and the Kings.”

According to the Kings’ brass, Reviver, supported by the Black Star Fund, a Black-led venture capital firm based in Sacramento, is now an official “innovation partner” of the Kings and Golden 1 Center; a presenting partner of “Capitalize Technology,” a King’s corporate social investment initiative; and the exclusive digital license plate of the Sacramento Kings.

Headquartered in Granite Bay, a suburb of Sacramento, Reviver was born from a vision to modernize and streamline the vehicle registration renewal process. On Jan. 1, 2023, the state of California joined Georgia, Colorado, Michigan, and Arizona as states that have approved digital license plates for use statewide, after Reviver completed a four-year pilot program that evaluated a replacement for metal plates.

About 10,000 California drivers bought digital plates during the pilot program. Vehicles registered with the state are eligible to adopt the new high-tech tags. Reviver existence was made possible when Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill (AB) 984 in September 2022.

Under that law, California vehicle owners can update their titles, registrations, and other records remotely. In addition, the digital license “RPlate” includes a flashing message if a vehicle is reported stolen or if there is an Amber Alert.

Ranadivé is spreading the news that Reviver has international potential.

“This jersey patch partnership with Reviver continues the Kings long tradition of using our global platform to promote innovation and technology,” Ranadivé stated. “It’s particularly exciting to showcase a homegrown company that was part of our Kings Capitalize program. This is just the beginning of our work together, and we look forward to helping Reviver in its mission to modernize the driving experience.”

The commercial use of patches in professional basketball all began in 2009 when the Women’s Basketball Association (WNBA) Phoenix Mercury removed its name to replace it with sponsor, LifeLock, an identity-theft protection company. The landmark deal netted a contract worth about $1 million annually.

Kindra Montgomery-Block, vice president of diversity, equity, and social impact for the Sacramento Kings, was the integral facilitator who assisted Boston and his team in connecting with the sports franchise that is boasting 40 years in the Capital City.

“This partnership between the Kings and Reviver, backed by the Black Star Fund, will invest in the Sacramento community to promote technology and innovation in the region,” Montgomery-Block stated. “Reviver will support the Sacramento Kings community and diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives.”

Editor’s Note: Neville Boston is a California Black Media board member.

Oakland Post

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Activism

NAACP California-Hawaii State Convention Highlights Black Voter Engagement, and More

A Friday panel featuring NAACP Chairman Leon W. Russell and Regina Wilson, Executive Director of California Black Media, examined Project 2025, an initiative perceived as a potential threat to civil rights, healthcare access, and environmental protection. This session emphasized Project 2025’s projected impact on Black communities, noting that policies within the initiative could diminish gains in civil and environmental rights over decades. Russell and Wilson highlighted the need for vigilant monitoring and community mobilization to address these challenges.

Published

1 day ago

November 4, 2024

Oakland Post

NAACP State Conference President Rick Callender (right) engages in a discussion on voter engagement and community advocacy with NAACP President and CEO Derrick Johnson during the 37th NAACP California-Hawaii State Convention in Los Angeles. Photo by Rich Woods.

By Bo Tefu, California Black Media

The 37th NAACP California-Hawaii State Convention concluded on Sunday, Oct 27, following four days of discussions and workshops at the Los Angeles Airport Marriott. Bringing together civil rights leaders, policymakers, and advocates from California and Hawaii, the convention operated under the theme “All In.” The participants discussed critical issues impacting Black communities, including criminal justice reform, health equity, economic empowerment, education, environmental justice, and voting rights.

On Saturday, the President’s Fireside Chat brought together NAACP President Derrick Johnson and CA/HI State Conference President Rick Callender, who discussed the urgency of voter engagement and community advocacy.

Guest speakers included Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA-43), who spoke at the Women in NAACP (WIN) Labor Luncheon about the intersection of labor rights and civil rights. California State Superintendent Tony Thurmond delivered remarks at the Leadership Dinner on education equity, focusing on policies to ensure all students have access to high-quality education.

Honors were given to longtime social justice advocate and former Assemblymember Mike Davis for his work in community activism. At the same time, actor and activist Danny Glover and the Rev. Dr. Amos C. Brown received the 2024 Legacy Hall of Fame Awards, recognizing their lifelong commitments to advancing civil rights.

The convention also offered practical workshops, including “What’s On Your Ballot?,” where coalition leaders provided analyses of California propositions, explaining their potential impacts on community rights and resources. The Voter Turnout Workshop provided background and encouraged participants to promote voter turnout through community-centered outreach strategies.

Sunday’s events closed with a Prayer and Memorial Breakfast honoring the contributions of past and current civil rights leaders.