Shela Tobias-Daniel leads three very different programs as the Executive Director of CPCFA: risk management tools for small business lending as well as for zero-emission vehicles and infrastructure for small fleets; issuance of private activity bonds; and grants for community development organizations. The common thread is increasing access to capital, either to improve the growth and success of small business in CA, or to improve effects on climate—and sometimes both as in the CalCAP ZEHD program. As a Black woman with family ties to underserved communities throughout California, Ms. Tobias-Daniel is proud her agency is implementing half of the $1.1 billion in credit enhancement for California’s small businesses —including those which are very small businesses (VSB) with 9 or fewer employees, and those which are owned by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals (SEDI) which includes underserved communities—from the State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI), part of the American Recovery Plan Act.
Ms. Tobias-Daniel is a 26-year veteran of state service, having served 25 of those years in the State Treasurer’s Office (STO). She earned a bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of California Santa Cruz, UCSC, and a master’s degree in business administration, MBA, from the Eberhardt School of Business at the University of the Pacific. Ms. Tobias-Daniel was also a Sloan fellow at the State University of New York at Stony Brook as part of the Public Policy and International Affairs program.