Office of Small Business.

Existing law establishes the Office of Small Business Advocate within the Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development, also known as GO-Biz, and prescribes the duties and functions of the Small Business Advocate, who is also the Director of the Office of Small Business Advocate. Among these duties, the director is to serve as the principal advocate in the state on behalf of small businesses and to represent the views and interests of small businesses before other state agencies policies and activities of which may affect small businesses. This bill would require the Small Business Advocate to collaborate with the Office of Small Business and Disabled Veteran Business Enterprise Services in their activities under the Small Business Procurement Act and to post a variety of information related to small business activities on the GO-Biz Internet Web site or the advocate's Internet Web site. Among other things, the bill would require the advocate to be prepared for designation by the Office of Emergency Services to serve as an official liaison between small businesses impacted by a state of emergency and other government and nonprofit service providers and to assist in the state emergency recovery, response, and preparedness efforts related to small businesses. The bill would eliminate the duty of the Office of Small Business Advocate to post information on its Internet Web site regarding small business financial development and the efficient use of energy, as specified.