SDCN Staff
Sacramento, CA–Governor Gavin Newsom announced he has signed new legislation to level the playing field for California’s small businesses, cut red tape, strengthen competition, and give entrepreneurs more tools to open businesses, grow, and succeed.
The new laws will crack down on monopolies, help turn vacant storefronts into thriving pop-up businesses, speed up commercial permitting, and protect businesses from abusive financial practices.
“California didn’t become the fourth-largest economy in the world by chance. We got here because of the innovators, risk-takers, and entrepreneurs who started small and helped build this state from the ground up. Today we’re leveling the playing field for small businesses by making it easier to open and expand businesses, cutting red tape, and protecting competition, We’re taking on predatory practices that drive up costs and shut entrepreneurs out — making sure California’s economy works for everyone, not just the biggest and best-connected,” Gov. Newsom stated in a news release.
New legislation to support small business owners:
AB 2116 by Assemblymember Pilar Schiavo (D-Santa Clarita) — Commercial financing.
AB 685 by Assemblymember José Luis Solache (D-Lynwood) — Small Business Development Technical Assistance.
AB 1679 by Assemblymember Mark González (D-Los Angeles) — Local pop-up small business program.
AB 1693 by Assemblymember Rick Chavez Zbur (D-Hollywood) — Accelerated retailer building plan approval: tenant improvements.
AB 1776 by Assemblymember Cecilia Aguiar-Curry (D-Winters) – Cartwright Act: violations. View signing message here.
AB 2418 by Assemblymember Mark González — Local building permits: nonresidential private permitting review.
AB 2663 by Assemblymember Chris Rogers (D-Santa Rosa) — Alcoholic beverages: retail on-sale license: off-sale privileges.
California’s economy has continued to expand during Newsom’s tenure, according to state economic data. Annual gross domestic product reached approximately $4.25 trillion in 2025, an increase of more than $1.18 trillion. Economic output in the first quarter of 2026 reached an annualized rate of about $4.4 trillion, while annual gross domestic product increased by more than $200 billion in each of the previous two years.
California also has more small businesses than Texas or Florida, according to federal small-business data. The state is home to more than 4.3 million small businesses employing approximately 7.6 million people.
