July 19, 2022
Are you a fan of amazing speakers, great food, or good vibes? Consider joining us for our Congressional luncheon! On Monday, August 1st, the Chamber will be hosting our congressional delegation at the Omni San Diego Hotel, where you’ll be able to listen in on what policy makers are working on and connect with other community leaders in San Diego.
To show you how cool this event is, check out this highlight from a previous luncheon! Avoid FOMO and register today!
Business Updates
Go Aztecs! SDSU’s Wendy Gillespie Center for Advancing Global Business was awarded a $1.28 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education to continue the work of our Center for International Business Education & Research (SDSU CIBER). This makes SDSU one of only 16 universities to receive federal funding and the only public university in California to receive funding.
Legislative Updates
Federal:
The National Labor Relations Board has advanced a policy to establish union voting online as part of the larger appropriations package.
The FDA is set to announce plans that will help overseas baby formula producers that have sent emergency supplies to the United States secure long term authorization to sell their product in the country. The FDA will host meetings and ensure ways for these baby formula companies to meet regulations and requirements so that they can operate in the American market.
The United States Department of Transportation recently announced that nearly 1 billion dollars from the Bi-Partisan Infrastructure Law will fund airport terminal improvements. Congratulations to the San Diego International Airport, which received $24 million dollars for the airport terminal improvement grant!
The President unveiled a significant set of reforms to student loan repayment, expected to be finalized by November. In short: it would limit interest capitalization rates and help those in the public service get their loans forgiven. This comes as the President gets pressure to forgive student loan debt more broadly… which still hasn’t been ruled out.
International:
In this week’s episode of The Crown, streaming live from the UK, Prime Minister Borris Johnson resigned following ongoing pressure from the Conservative Party and the resignation from several of his cabinet members who were no longer willing to work under his leadership. An announcement will come next week for choosing a new prime minister.
Foreign Affairs Secretary Marcelo Ebrard & his counterpart from South Korea met in Seoul to promote a bilateral Free Trade Agreement and sign an MOU to finance development in Central America. Secretary Ebrard shared that a delegation of officials and executives will meet with Korean representatives to seek business deals and agreements in diverse sectors including pharmaceuticals, academics, and innovation.
Following NATO’s summit in Madrid last week, the 30 member states agreed to invite Finland and Sweden to join NATO following an agreement between Türkiye, Finland, and Sweden. The Accession Protocols was signed, confirming their willingness and ability to meet the political and military obligations of NATO membership.
Thousands of migrants who have been living in Germany for several years will now be eligible for permanent residency with the approval of a new migration bill. Germany seeks to ease this process by allowing qualified individuals to apply for a one-year residency status and then apply for permanent residency. This new migration regulation will allow asylum seekers to become well integrated and have better access to opportunities in the country.
Our friends at Tijuana Innovadora released the initiative “Promoting a Democratic Culture Addressing Citizen Insecurity and Promoting Youth Entrepreneurship and Citizen Participation”. Its first step is mapping the creative ecosystem of the city, promoting the creative and cultural industry and thereby strengthening democracy.
We have great news for you all: we’re going back to Mexico City this year! Registration is now open for this year’s Binational Delegation to Mexico City taking place October 23-26th. Delegates will meet with key federal officials and diverse business industry leaders to discuss the major areas of focus: border infrastructure efficiency, transboundary pollution impacting the Tijuana River, and trade & economic opportunities.
Happening a lot earlier than CDMX: join us on August 16 for our next IBA forum featuring a conversation on innovative advancements iclean energy and regional strategies to aid businesses to a low-carbon transition (stay tuned for more details!). We also want to hear from you on what topics, issues, and initiatives you would like us to focus on for upcoming forums. Click here to take a quick survey.
SAVE THE DATE: Sister Cities International’s U.S.-Mexico Mayors’ Community Summit will take place October 11-14 in San Diego and Tijuana. City and County representatives from both sides of the border will gather to discuss ways to advance and expand sister city programs between the U.S. and Mexico.
State:
Ballot szn is officially underway. Californians will vote on 7 ballot measures this fall and we’ve got the numbers for ya:
- Prop 1: Abortion constitutional language
- Adds language to protect abortion rights in the Californian Constituiton
- Prop 26: Sports betting on tribal land
- Makes tribal casinos & racetracks the home for sports betting in California
- Prop 27: Allow online sports betting
- Major online sports betting companies would be required to pay $100m licensing fee
- Prop 28: Art and Music K-12 Funding
- Establishes min. funding for arts and music education in all K-12 public schools
- Prop 29: Kidney dialysis rule reforms
- Dialysis companies must tell patients about physicians with clinic ownership interests
- Prop 30: Wealth tax to support clean air programs
- 1.75% pt. tax increase on personal income >$2m; funds for EVs & wildfire prevention
- Prop 31: Overturn flavored tobacco ban
- Tobacco companies are challenging 2020 law that banned flavored tobacco products
Related: the proposed initiative to raise the minimum wage from $15 to $18/hr statewide failed to get certified and will not be on the ballot.
Emergency fossil fuels? Last week, California lawmakers passed legislation that would loosen environmental protections in exchange for energy security, making it easier for state officials to buy electricity from gas plants and diesel generators. Gov. Newsom is expected to sign the bill soon.
Cannabis growers and industry groups are stoked that state lawmakers have eliminated a cultivation tax, which is expected to lower costs and help make legal sales more competitive with a robust illicit market. On the flip side, cannabis retailers and advocates for social equity operators argue that the broader changes don’t do enough to support small businesses and equity operators.
Local:
Do you know an “ordinary” person with extraordinary courage? Someone who has saved a life, helped a neighbor in need or made a difference in our community? The American Red Cross of San Diego and Imperial Counties is accepting nominations for their 20th Annual Real Heroes Awards. Your hero could be a colleague, family member, neighbor, friend or an organization that performed a selfless act of bravery or improved our community. For more information on award categories or to submit a nomination, visit here. Nominations are due by July 22, 2022.
We’re back and busy! Leisure travel to San Diego is now exceeding pre-pandemic levels and we now have $38 million to spend on tourism promotion. Just this month, San Diego will be welcoming visitors for the ESRI global mapping conference, San Diego Pride festivities, and Comic-Con.
Mayor Todd Gloria launched a new Office of Immigrant Affairs and appointed Rita Fernandez, the current Director of Global Affairs as the new Executive Director of Immigrant Affairs. As a part of the Welcome San Diego strategic plan, the Office of Immigrant Affairs will focus on workforce development, promote an inclusive integration process, and develop a language access plan to provide interpretation services in all city services for immigrants.
Happy ribbon cutting! On Monday, Caltrans and SANDAG Build NCC celebrated environmental, highway, and bike/pedestrian improvements throughout North San Diego County. Check out video highlights here.
Art, theater, and museum fans should be excited to learn that the County of San Diego has officially formed a new arts and culture commission to manage funding and support art activities in the region.
The updated Climate Action Plan (CAP) was unanimously approved at a special City Council Environment Committee hearing last week and is expected to be brought to City Council for final adoption later this month. The Committee and community advocates broadly support the CAP’s focus on climate equity and will recommend that the City Council prioritize air quality challenges in addition to GHG emissions reductions in the final plan. In addition, City staff committed to a draft implementation plan by February 2023.
Building a carbon-free city one coalition at a time: San Diego will join the White House’s recently launched National Building Performance Standards (BPS) Coalition. Joining the coalition will directly support the City’s updated Climate Action Plan, which has an ambitious goal to phase out natural gas from 90% of all existing buildings by 2035.
San Diego Navy officials are frantically scrambling to address the shortage of childcare providers for more than 4,000 military children waiting for daycare spots. The pandemic has only made the military child care system more strained and now military families must wait in long wait lists or resort to costlier options outside of the military facilities.
Upcoming City of San Diego Public Input Opportunities:
- Build Better SD, the citywide fee proposal to provide a more equitable funding approach for public spaces and facilities, is expected to be heard at City Council later this summer. Learn more here. If you have any questions, please contact Chamber staff – Angeli Calinog.
Upcoming County Public Input Opportunities:
- Planning & Development Services will be holding the third round of outreach events to discuss the creation of a Community Benefits Agreement (CBA) program in the County. More information can be found on the CBA webpage.
- The County is hosting a series of workshops on the proposed strategies and measures of their Climate Action Plan update. A workshop focused on Agriculture & Conservation will be held on July 19. To learn more and to find the dates of future meetings, click here.
- The next Regional Decarbonization Framework public meetings will take place on July 26.
Upcoming Hearings
- The SANDAG Board of Directors will meet on July 8 at 9:00AM.
- The San Diego City Council will meet on July 11 at 2:00PM and July 12 at 10:00AM.
- The San Diego Housing Commission will meet on July 12 at 2:00PM.
- The City of San Diego’s Economic Development & Intergovernmental Relations Committee will meet on July 13 at 2:00PM.
- The City of San Diego’s Land Use & Housing Committee will meet on July 14 at 1:00PM.
Capital Opportunities & Resources
- Round 2 is open for the County of San Diego’s $2,500 grants for microbusinesses (five employees or less) operating within the County.
- The city of La Mesa recently announced a small business program aimed at promoting economic development in the city. The La Mesa Entrepreneurship Accelerator Program (LEAP) will give recipients up to $20,000 dollars for startups who stay in the city.
- Applications for micro-enterprise home kitchen operations (MEHKOs) in the County of San Diego can be found here.
- The California Dream Fund has micro grants up to $10k available for entrepreneurs and small business creation.
- The California Rebuilding Fund is offering small businesses with fewer than 50 full-time equivalent employees loans up to $100,000. Learn more and apply here.
- Businesses can reach out to their nearest Small Business Development Center (SBDC), which has developed the Small Business Survival Resources Guide. SBDC can help with applying for COVID-19 relief, guiding you through available resources, and assisting with cash flow concerns, supply-chain interruptions, workforce capacity, insurance coverage, and more–all at no cost.
Future Chamber Meetings (Virtual) & Committee Actions
Public Policy Committee:
Our next meeting will be July 12th from 8-9am via Zoom.
Transportation & Land Development Committee
Our next meeting will be on July 19, 8:00am via zoom.
Health Committee
We are dark in July. Our next meeting will be on August 10, 8:00am via zoom.
International Business Affairs Forum:
Our next forum will be August 16 from 10-11am via Zoom.