BILL NUMBER: AB 9 INTRODUCED BILL TEXT INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Holden DECEMBER 3, 2012 An act relating to economic development. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AB 9, as introduced, Holden. State government: economic development. Existing law provides for the establishment of various job training and economic development programs, administered by the Employment Development Department and other state agencies. This bill would declare the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation that promotes job and business growth and encourages economic development. Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no. State-mandated local program: no. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. The Legislature finds and declares all of the following: (a) California workers and businesses are currently facing some of the harshest economic conditions since the Great Depression. (b) Unemployment in California remains in the double digits after the mortgage crisis and the subsequent economic collapse. (c) It is estimated that over 2.5 million Californians have lost jobs during this recession and bankruptcies among small businesses have been nearly double the national average. SEC. 2. It is the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation that promotes job and business growth and encourages economic development.