Notes from the 2/21 Small Business Committee Meeting
February 27, 2019
In case you missed the Small Business Committee meeting on 2/21/19, details of the meeting are included below.
In August 2018, Congress passed the Main Street Employee Ownership Act of 2018, which makes employee-owned businesses eligible for Small Business Administration (SBA) section 7(a) loans for the first time. The bill also provides that the SBA assist small business owners in converting their companies to employee ownership through outreach and training programs in coordination with Small Business Development Centers.
1) Ili Spahiu, Assistant District Director for Lender Relations, Massachusetts District Office, U.S. Small Business Administration provided an overview of the Main Street Employee Ownership Act of 2018
2) David Hammer, Executive Director of the ICA Group, a leading practitioner of employee buyouts of small business and worker cooperatives, described how demographics are driving a need for business succession options that include conversions to employee ownership. He provided an overview of both employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs) and worker co-ops.
3) Micha Josephy, Interim Co-Director and Program Manager at the Cooperative Fund of New England, a Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) facilitating investing in cooperatives and worker-owned businesses, described how conversions to work co-ops are financed. Access the presentation here.
4) Josh Daly, Southern Rhode Island Regional Director, RI SBDC at the University of Rhode Island and Board member for the Cooperative Development Institute, provided examples of how regional SBDCs support worker co-op conversions.
5) MCBC’s meeting presentation, including updates and announcements, can be accessed here.
6) MCBC is forming committee working groups. If you are interested in participating, please complete this brief (2-3 minute) survey to indicate your interest and availability. Working groups will be announced at the next meeting.
Our next committee meeting will be held on Thursday, April 11th at 9:30 AM at Eastern Bank, 265 Franklin Street, Boston. Register here.