Dear ,

Next year will be a defining opportunity for Northern California communities to invest in their economic futures.  Over two decades ago a pilot project was launched at CSU, Chico and CSU, Pomona.  The pilot program created small business assistance centers to support new and existing business owners and entrepreneurs.   Today, there are over 1,000 Small Business Development Centers located in communities across the country.  Independent studies have proven the SBDC model, present in every Northern California county, is the most effective means of supporting high growth entrepreneurs.  Nationally an SBDC helps entrepreneurs create a new job every 9 minutes, create a new business every 45 minutes, generate $100,00 in new sales every 17 minutes, and generate $100,000 in financing every 18 minutes.

Whereas most other federal jobs programs have an average cost per job around $15,000 per job, the California SBDC program between 2010-11 had an average cost per job of only $839 per job.   For regional elected officials such as county supervisors and city council members, its important to remember that every $1 you invest in your local Small Business Development Center office results in a $1 investment from the Federal Small Business Administration, a 100% return on your economic development investment.