Mayor Karen Bass announced that the Banc of California has moved to the City of Los Angeles and donated $1 million to support the launch of a contract financing program to help small businesses pursue procurement opportunities with the City.
“Los Angeles is open for business, and City Hall will support businesses and work to make it easier for businesses to open, expand, and prosper in our city,” said Mayor Bass.
This announcement is part of Mayor Bass’ tour of Los Angeles ahead of her one-year anniversary on December 12, highlighting work on homelessness, safety, business, climate and city services.
“Since her first day in office, Mayor Bass has actively engaged with the business community to listen and understand the pain points when doing business with and in the city of Los Angeles. Mayor Bass’ directives have helped streamline the way businesses can work with City Hall and grow their businesses,” said Maria S. Salinas, President and CEO of the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce.
During the press conference Jared Wolff, CEO of Banc of California, explained that last week Banc of California closed its merger with PacWest Bancorp.
“We are now the third largest bank and that puts us in a unique position to do more for Los Angeles, more for our communities and more for the businesses that call this city home,” Wolff said. “That is why I am pleased to announce that I have chosen to designate Brentwood, our office here in Los Angeles, as our headquarters.”
Currently, Banc of California is headquartered in Santa Ana and Wolff added that although Banc of California has more than 100 offices in the United States, they chose Los Angeles because the city is the heart of California business.
In addition to this Banc of California announcement last month the American football team, the Los Angeles Rams, announced that they are going to have their first headquarters and practice facility in Woodland Hills.
“As we get used to our new facility and begin to envision broader development, we look forward to the opportunities this project will bring to the area, including community engagement and job creation,” said Kevin Demoff, director of operations for the Rams.
During the press conference, Mayor Bass explained that the business community historically has a negative perception toward Los Angeles City Hall and is currently working to change the narrative through programs to support small businesses.
Mayor Karen Bass signed Executive Directive 4 in June (ED4): “Identifying Barriers to the Creation, Development and Growth of Small Businesses.” This directive calls for a review of the processes and fees that impede the creation, development and growth of small businesses in the City of Los Angeles.
He also established the Los Angeles Business Steering Committee (LABSC), a committee of 11 select city departments including the Department of City Planning, the Department of Public Works, and the Mayor’s Office of Business and Economic Development, to oversee and manage the goals of ED4.
One goal is to speed up bill payments to Los Angeles small businesses.
According to City Comptroller Keneth Mejía, Los Angeles paid more than 100,700 providers in fiscal year 2022-2023 for a total of approximately $7.67 billion.
9.92% of these payments were issued late, 30 days or more after the billing date, causing a problem for businesses that do not have cash reserves to draw on to maintain cash flow and sustain their business operations. .
The Office of Procurement is also working to centralize and digitize the City’s billing process.
This new system will reduce the likelihood of billing errors and discrepancies, track the status of invoices and payment requests, and ensure accurate record-keeping.