VICA Weekly
Valley Industry & Commerce Association
Friday, May 21, 2021
In This Issue
  • Quote of the Week
  • Newsmaker Connection with LA County Assessor Jeff Prang
  • VICA Advocacy
  • Government Handbook
  • Upcoming Events
  • Committee Recap
  • Hot News
  • Member Spotlight
  • Member Messages
"The last 14 or 15 months have been transformational — not only from a health perspective, but from an economic perspective as we’ve seen things like remote work and new tools for jobs and workplaces rethink how they operate. And so I think we’re still in the middle of that transition, and we’re not sure what the ‘next normal’ is going to look like."
Dee Dee Meyers
Senior advisor to Governor Newsom and Director of the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development.
VICA Newsmaker Connection With LA County Assessor Jeffrey Prang
LA County Assessor Jeff Prang, (left) with moderator Samona Caldwell (right) representing sponsor State Farm, take questions from VICA members and staff.
Today, Los Angeles County Assessor Jeff Prang engaged our members at another VICA Newsmaker Connection. Our Newsmaker Connection series, presented by State Farm, allows VICA members to hear from and hold discussions with leaders who make the news.

The Assessor discussed issues including problems with recently passed Proposition 19, which allows for property tax exemptions and familial transfers, the San Fernando Valley as a community of interest, and the assessment of property ownership when it comes to Trusts. Assessor Prang shared with members the latest news regarding Business Property Statements, updates on business revenue, and how the Assessor’s Office provided a proactive reduction of personal property (assessments to 47,000 small business in LA County.) The presentation provided insight into the Assessment Roll of 2020 which included $1.7 trillion in total assessed value, saying that property values grew at 5.97%, and that transfers of real property were the largest contributors to growth.

Following the presentation, questions from VICA members included interest in the Assessor's insight into the COVID-19 impacts such as property tax relief and the recent decline in California's population. In response, Assessor Prang shared that if there is an exodus out of the state, this could benefit renters and property owners. When it came to property tax relief, Assessor Prang states that "There is property tax relief available to businesses where the market value has been impacted to the property. The market value has to be less than the assessed value to get that relief. “

Thank you so much to State Farm for sponsoring our Newsmaker Connection series, and to LA County Assessor Jeff Prang for sharing his insight.
VICA Advocacy
VICA Speaks Up for Revisions to the CalOSHA Emergency Temporary Standards
VICA and the business community are very concerned that the reimplementation of the COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standards will freeze employers into a compliance model that is already out of date and will only grow more outdated in the coming months. 

The reimplementation includes provisions to provide unvaccinated employees with N95 respirators. This burdens employers financially for choices made by employees regarding vaccinations and could potentially leave the global healthcare sector without access to critical respirators in the case of an outbreak. Further, the reimplementation will take away nuanced jurisdictional control over businesses, especially in areas such as Los Angeles County, that are quickly returning to normalcy and rapidly increasing vaccination rates.

The Board decided yesterday to extend the COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standards until June 3 - revisions will come out May 28. VICA will continue to advocate for safe and efficient employment practices for everyone in the business community.
Action Alert: Advocate For a Diverse and Affordable Energy Grid
VICA supports Senate Bill 18 (Skinner), which would create a strategic plan for accelerating the production and use of green hydrogen to help meet the state’s greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets.
 
Advancing the planning and deployment of green hydrogen will enable California to accelerate our decarbonization targets across the power sector and many hard-to-abate sectors, including industrial end uses, maritime transport, aviation, and heavy-duty transportation. Further, renewable hydrogen, particularly green electrolytic hydrogen, is poised to experience cost declines over the next decade. Creating an affordable and diversified energy portfolio is critical to economic development and exporting opportunities as global demand grows. 

VICA urges you to send a letter of support to your legislators. SB 18 has passed through appropriations and is now heading to the Senate floor. Therefore, your support is critical for SB 18 to move to the Assembly.
The 2021 Government Handbook is here!

VICA continues to send out Government Handbooks to our Members, please keep an eye out for their delivery. If you need to update your mailing address, please email [email protected]. If you do not receive the delivery by the end of May, please contact Cathy.
Upcoming Events
The Week Ahead
Access DC Advocacy Trip
Monday through Wednesday, May 24-26
Virtual Event
VICA Board Meeting
Wednesday, May 19
12:00 noon to 2:00 p.m.
Online Video Conference
Save the Date
SETH Committee
Sponsored by: History for Hire Inc.
Thursday, June 3
9:00 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.
Virtual event
Land Use Committee
Sponsored by: The Garland
Tuesday, June 8
8:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.
Virtual event
VICA Hospitality Roundtable
Tuesday, June 8
2:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Virtual event
Leaders Forum with Councilwoman Nithya Raman
Sponsored by: Comcast NBCUniversal, EKA & Southern California Gas Company
Friday, June 11
Noon to 1:30 p.m.
Virtual Remo Event
VICA Advocacy Day
Tuesday, June 15
Virtual Event
First Sip with VICA
Thursday, June 17
9 to 10 a.m.
Virtual Remo Event
San Fernando Valley Business Hall of Fame - Home Edition
Friday, June 18
5:30 to 8 p.m.
Virtual Remo Event
Committee Recap
Government Affairs Committee (5/19)
Sponsored by Amazon

  • The Committee had a productive discussion on CAL/OSHA and LA County Health Reopening Guidelines.
  • The Committee opened a discussion on the California Budget and ways it would affect the business community.
  • The committee recommended that VICA support Assembly Bill 14 (Aguiar-Curry) if amended.
  • The committee recommended that VICA oppose Assembly Bill 260 (Allen).
  • The committee recommended that VICA support Assembly Bill 977 (Gabriel).
  • The committee recommended that VICA support Senate Bill 4 (Gonzalez) if amended.
VICA In the News
Hot News
State Reopening
State officials on Friday unveiled perhaps their most eagerly anticipated pandemic-related guidelines, which will steer California into a new, fully reopened age.

COVID-19 Equitability
Los Angeles County must ensure COVID-19 vaccinations are far more accessible to Black and Latino residents if the region wants to reach herd immunity and an end to the pandemic, officials said Tuesday.

Tourism
The owner of U.S. Bank Tower in downtown Los Angeles will spend $60 million to upgrade and reposition the 73-story skyscraper.
CDC Guidelines
While the CDC is loosening mask requirements for vaccinated Americans, California is keeping its face-covering rules in place for another month.

Environment
Ninety percent of miles logged by Uber and Lyft drivers in California must be in electric vehicles by 2030 under a state mandate adopted Thursday.

Vaccine Efficacy
It is exceedingly rare for fully vaccinated Los Angeles County residents to still get infected by the coronavirus, according to a new analysis by the Department of Public Health.
Member Spotlight
MUST BE A CURRENT VICA MEMBER TO BE FEATURED!

> Please share a brief biography and a fun fact about yourself that people would love to learn, ie: you love skydiving, you have run a marathon, you started your own business at a young age, etc. (2-3 sentences) 

> Tell us about your belief in VICA, how has VICA been most valuable for you? 

> If you were to share an experience with someone about VICA, what would that be? 
 
> Share with us what you believe to be the greatest accomplishment VICA has achieved?

> What was your organizations and/or your greatest accomplishment in 2020?

> Can you share what VICA has meant for you and your business during COVID?

Send responses and headshot to Shauna Carter
Member Messages
Member Messages
Get Your Message in VICA Weekly!
VICA members can promote their business, events and news in VICA Weekly. Member messages are available for $50 per week or $175 for four weeks. Messages are text-based and may not contain more than 70 words. A logo may be added for an additional $5 per week. For more information or to schedule your member message, contact [email protected] or call (818) 817-0545.
ABOUT VICA
Presenting the business perspective on behalf of employers in the
San Fernando Valley cities of Los Angeles, Burbank, Glendale, Calabasas,
Hidden Hills, San Fernando and Santa Clarita.
STAY CONNECTED WITH VICA