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AB 2178

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Date of Hearing: April 12, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY
Mark Stone, Chair
AB 2178 (Chiu) As Introduced February 18, 2016
As Proposed to be Amended
SUBJECT: SECURITIES TRANSACTIONS: QUALIFICATIONS BY PERMIT: LIABILITY
KEY ISSUE: SHOULD CALIFORNIA CREATE A NEW CROWDFUNDING PERMIT
ALLOWING FOR THE OFFER AND SALE OF RELATIVELY INEXPENSIVE EQUITYBASED SECURITIES UNDER THE STATES CORPORATE SECURITIES LAW, EVEN
THOUGH THE SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION RECENTLY
PROMULGATED REGULATIONS TO FACILITATE CROWDFUNDING, WHICH MAY
MAKE THE PROVISIONS OF THIS BILL UNNECESSARY, AND CONSUMER
ADVOCATES REMAIN CONCERNED THAT PERMIT HOLDERS MAY USE THEIR
PERMITS TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF UNSOPHISTICATED INVESTORS, INCLUDING
SENIORS, AND MAY NOT BE SUBJECT TO ADEQUATE REGULATORY OVERSIGHT?
SYNOPSIS
State law makes it a crime for any person to offer or sell any security in this state, unless such
offering or sale has been qualified by the commissioner of the Department of Business Oversight
(DBO), or the offering or sale is allowed by an express exemption from the qualification
requirement. AB 2178 would authorize an applicant to file an application to qualify for the offer
or sale of a security by obtaining a crowdfunding permit from the DBO if certain conditions
were met, including that the total offering of securities by the applicant to be sold in a 12-month
period was limited to one million dollars ($1,000,000); the aggregate amount of securities sold
to any investor did not exceed the lesser of five thousand dollars ($5,000) or ten percent of the
net worth of that person; sales are conducted through an intermediary (either an SEC-approved
portal, or a registered broker); marketing materials are submitted to DBO for approval; and the
issuer does not conduct any unsolicited telephone solicitation of the securities. Nevertheless,
despite these provisions and the proposed amendments in the bill, the proposed requirements
and safeguards on the sale of these financial products are still somewhat less rigorous than
either current state law, or under federal crowdfunding regulations. California currently
offers the Small Corporate Offering Registration (SCOR) program that is designed to help small
businesses raise capital. It requires that SCOR offerings (one million dollars or less) must be
qualified by the Commissioner of the DBO. Applicants who satisfy SCOR conditions must use a
standard disclosure form (Form U-7). According to supporters of this bill, the SCOR program is
perceived as time consuming and burdensome. Over the years, DBO has received very few
applications on an annual basis.
Meanwhile, on October 30, 2015, the SEC adopted new regulations to implement the
requirements of Title III of the Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act, which provided for
a new exemption under the Securities Act of 1933 that will permit securities-based crowdfunding
by private companies without registering the offering with the SEC. The final rules will become
effective in May 2016, although the forms enabling funding portals to register with the SEC
became effective on January 29, 2016. The new rules, which govern the offer and sale of

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unregistered securities, require issuers to use funding portals and brokers as intermediaries in
the offer and sale of securities.
This bill, sponsored by Small Business California, is very similar to last years AB 722 (Perea),
among other measures sponsored by the same group, which passed this Committee, despite some
concerns expressed by the Committee about AB 722s failure to require offerings to be made
through an intermediary. However, as proposed to be amended, this bill adds that requirement
and also requires that marketing materials be submitted for approval to DBO. A group of 27
small business organizations and advocates argue in support of this bill because they say earlystage financing is critically important today because with the advances in technology, seed
financing of even a few hundred thousand dollars can be sufficient to get a small business off the
ground. This bill, which passed out of the Banking and Finance Committee on a vote of 11-1
(with the Chair of this Committee casting the sole No vote) is also supported by the California
State Council of Laborers. Despite the proposed authors amendments, the bill is opposed by
California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform and Public Investors Arbitration Bar
Association. Both organizations (and the Committee) are concerned that given the relatively
small investment offerings, unsophisticated investors, including seniors, may be willing to invest
in inappropriately risky investments and could be targets of repeated scams, but will be unable
to hire attorneys to recoup their losses because of the small amounts involved in individual
purchases. Also, because approximately half of all small businesses fail within the first five
years of operating, even if a consumer obtains a judgment against an issuer under this new
program, the original issuer may be out of business and judgment-proof.
SUMMARY: Creates a new qualification by permit under California's Corporate Securities
Law of 1968 to allow equity-crowdfunding. Specifically, this bill:
1) Provides that any offer or sale of any security that meets the following criteria may be
qualified by permit:
a) An applicant may file an application for a "crowdfunding" permit if the applicant meets
the following conditions:
i) The applicant is a California corporation or a foreign corporation, as specified; the
applicant is not issuing fractional undivided interests in oil and gas rights, or a similar
interest in other mineral rights; the applicant is not an investment company subject to
the Investment Company Act of 1940; and the applicant is not subject to the reporting
requirements specified in the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.
ii) Provides that the total offering of securities by the applicant to be sold in a 12-month
period, within or outside this state, is limited to $1,000,000, less the aggregate
offering price for all securities sold within the 12 months before the start, and during
the offering of the securities.
iii) Offers and sales cannot be integrated with prior offers or sales of securities or
subsequent offers or sales of securities, as specified.
iv) Prohibits the securities sold during a 12-month period to any investor from exceeding
the lesser of $5,000 or 10% of the net worth of that natural person or such amount as
the Commissioner of the Department of Business Oversight (DBO) may provide by
rule or order.

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(1) States "net worth" shall be determined exclusive of home, home furnishings, and
automobiles. Other assets included in the computation of net worth may be
valued at the fair market value.
v) Requires the applicant to take reasonable steps to ensure that each investor who is a
natural person who is not an accredited investor has knowledge and experience in
financial business matters that he or she is capable of evaluating the merits and risks
of the prospective investment.
vi) Requires the applicant to file with the commissioner and provide to investors a
disclosure document, as defined, and a Small Company Offering Registration
(SCOR) disclosure document on Form U-7, no less than 10 business days prior to the
commencement of the offering of securities.
vii) Provides a three day right of rescission.
viii)

Prohibits an applicant itself, or through a third party, from direct solicitation.

ix) Defines "direct solicitation" as any in person face to face conversation between the
applicant or any of its founder, promoters, officers, directors, controlling persons,
agents, or other persons acting directly or indirectly on behalf of the applicant and
any investor or prospective investor or any person acting directly or indirectly on
behalf of, or in regular communication with, the investor.
x) Requires the applicant to set aside in a separate third-party escrow account all funds
raised as part of the offering to be held in escrow until that time the minimum
offering amount is reached. The issuer shall return all funds if the minimum offering
amount is not reached within one year.
xi) Prohibits an applicant itself, or through a third party, from conducting unsolicited
telephone calls.
xii) Places a fiduciary obligation on the applicant to any investor or prospective investor.
xiii) Prevents the offering from being approved if anyone connected with the offering
in specified capacities already is or has been disqualified under the bad actor
provisions under federal regulations.
xiv) Prohibits stock splits, stock dividends, spinoffs, or mergers for a period of two
years from the close of the offering.
xv) Any other requirement set forth by rule adopted by the commissioner of DBO.
2) Requires DBO to either issue or deny the permit within 60 days of receipt of the application
otherwise the applicant can demand a hearing with DBO to explain why the permit has not
been granted.
3) Imposes a filing fee of $200 plus 1/5th of 2% of the aggregate value of the securities sought
to be sold in California for qualification of the sale of securities by permit.

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4) Requires the court to award reasonable attorney's fees and costs, and authorizes the award of
treble and punitive damages, to a prevailing purchaser in an action brought against any
person who violates conditions of qualification by permit.
5) Requires an investor, upon recession of contract after an issuer is found to be in violation of
permit requirements, to reimburse investors for all their investments, plus interest.
6) Provides that a plaintiff is not required to plead or prove that the defendant acted with
scienter.
7) Requires sales to be conducted through an intermediary (an SEC- registered portal or broker).
8) Requires an applicant to comply with the following requirements related to advertisements:
a) Prohibits an issuer from placing an advertisement disseminated primarily in this state
unless the issuer discloses in the printed text of the advertisement, or the oral text in the
case of a radio or television advertisement, that the issuer has a permit issued by DBO.
b) Allows DBO to require that rates of charges or fees, if stated by the applicant, be stated
fully and clearly in the manner that DBO deems necessary to give adequate information
to, or to prevent misunderstanding by, prospective investors.
c) Prohibits an issuer from using advertising material after its use has been disapproved by
DBO and the applicant is notified in writing of the disapproval.
d) Requires the issuer to maintain a file of all advertising copy for a period of three years
from the date of its use and to make the file available to DBO upon request.
EXISTING FEDERAL LAW:
1) Provides for the Securities Act of 1933, which establishes a framework for regulating the offer and
sale of securities and ensuring the protection of investors that purchase those securities. Generally
speaking, the Securities Act of 1933 requires the offer or sale of all securities to be registered with
the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and to be structured as prescribed in federal law
and regulation, unless the offer or sale is covered by an exemption. This federal act also require
those who offer (i.e., market) and sell securities to be licensed as investment advisers or brokerdealers, unless either the transaction or the activity being undertaken is exempt.
2) Provides for Regulation D, one of the regulations promulgated by the SEC to implement the
Securities Act of 1933. Regulation D authorizes a series of exemptions from the registration
requirements of the Securities Act of 1933 and includes eight rules, denoted Rules 501 through 508,
which are codified as 17 CFR 230.501 through 230.508.
a) Rule 501 of Regulation D defines accredited investors as, among other things, financial
institutions, securities broker-dealers, large pension plans, corporate entities with assets in
excess of $5 million, and other large, financially sophisticated entities.
b) Rule 504 of Regulation D authorizes the offer and sale of up to $1 million in securities by an
issuer, as long as the offer and sale are made exclusively in one or more states that provide for
the registration of the securities, and require the public filing and delivery to investors of a

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substantive disclosure document before the sale of the securities (the provision of Rule 504
applicable to this bill);
i) In one or more states that have no provision for the registration of the securities or the
public filing or delivery of a disclosure document before sale, if the securities have been
registered in at least one state that does provide for such registration, public filing and
delivery before sale, as specified; or,
ii) Exclusively according to state law exemptions from registration that permit general
solicitation and general advertising, as long as sales are made only to accredited
investors (this is the provision of Rule 504 that was applicable to prior bills sponsored
by this bills sponsor).
3) Pursuant to the Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act (Public Law 112-106), authorizes the
use of general solicitation and general advertising in certain circumstances not previously
authorized; lifts the restriction on the use of general solicitation and general advertising, when sales
are made only to accredited investors and other requirements are met.
4) Pursuant to Title III of the JOBS Act, otherwise known as the CROWDFUND Act, lifts the
restriction against use of general solicitation and general advertising to both accredited and nonaccredited investors.
EXISTING STATE LAW:
1) Provides that it is unlawful for any person to offer or sell any security in this state, unless
such offering or sale has been qualified by the commissioner, as specified below, or unless
the offering or sale is covered by an express exemption. (Corporations Code Section 25110.
All further statutory references are to the California Corporations Code, unless otherwise
indicated.)
2) Authorizes the qualification by notification of any security issued by a person that is the
issuer of a security registered under Section 12 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, or
issued by an investment company registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940.
(Section 25112.)
a) Requires an application to contain the maximum amount of securities proposed to be
offered in California; consent to service of process; information about any adverse order,
judgment, or decree entered in connection with the offering by another state regulator, the
SEC, or a court (if applicable); and any additional information required by rule of the
commissioner.
b) Provides that if no stop order or other order postponing or suspending the effectiveness of
any qualification is in effect, qualification of the sale of the securities automatically
becomes effective, and the securities may be offered and sold in accordance with the
application, on the tenth business day after the application is filed.
3) Establishes "qualification by permit," in which all securities, whether or not eligible for
qualification by coordination under Section 25111, or qualification by notification under
Section 25112, may be qualified by permit under this section. (Section 25113.)

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4) Contains a number of exemptions from the requirement immediately above. Two of the most
relevant exemptions for purposes of this bill include Sections 25102(f) and 25102(n).
a) 25102(f) provides an exemption for any offer or sale of any security in a transaction that
meets all of the following criteria: i) sales of the security are made to an unlimited
number of accredited investors and up to 35 other persons, who are not accredited
investors; ii) all purchasers either have a pre-existing personal or business relationship
with the offeror, or can reasonably be assumed to have the capacity to protect their own
interests in connection with the transaction, by reason of their business or financial
experience, or the business or financial experience of their professional advisers; iii) each
purchaser represents that he or she is purchasing for his or her own account, and not with
a view to or for sale in connection with any distribution of the security; and iv) the offer
and sale of the security is not accomplished through the publication of any advertisement.
b) 25102(n) provides an exemption for any offer or sale of any security in a transaction that
meets all of the following criteria: i) the issuer is not a blind pool issuer, as that term is
defined by the commissioner; ii) sales of securities are made only to qualified purchasers
or other persons the issuer reasonably believes to be qualified purchasers; iii) each
purchaser represents that he or she is purchasing for his or her own account, and not with
a view to or for sale in connection with any distribution of the security; iv) each natural
person purchaser is provided with a disclosure statement that meets the disclosure
requirements of federal Regulation D, at least five business days before they purchase or
commit to purchase the security; v) the offer and sale of the security is made by way of a
general announcement, whose content is strictly limited; and vi) telephone solicitation by
the issuer is not permitted, until and unless the issuer determines that the prospective
purchaser being solicited is a qualified purchaser.
5) Defines qualified purchasers as those who meet one or more of several criteria listed in
subdivision (n). Generally speaking, these criteria describe persons with some degree of
financial sophistication, though the qualified purchaser bar is lower than the accredited
investor bar. As an example, an individual is a qualified purchaser if that person
individually, or jointly with their spouse, has a minimum net worth of $250,000 and had,
during the immediately preceding tax year, gross income in excess of $100,000, and
reasonably expects gross income in excess of $100,000 during the current tax year.
Alternatively, the term applies to individuals who have a minimum net worth of $500,000,
exclusive of their home, home furnishings, and automobiles. Natural persons are limited to
investing no more than 10% of their net worth in any 25012(n) investment.
6) Provides a fee of $2,500 for filing an application for qualification of the sale of securities by
permit. (Section 25608.)
FISCAL EFFECT: As currently in print this bill is keyed fiscal.
COMMENTS: Under existing law, there are only three ways to qualify a securities offering to
the public, all of which require significant review by either the federal SEC or the states DBO.
Those three ways include coordination, which involves offerings registered under the Federal
Securities Act of 1933; notification, which involves securities registered under Section 12 of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934, or investment companies registered under the Investment
Company Act of 1940; and permitting, a rigorous and often costly process in which applicants
apply to the DBO for a permit that is good for one year. (Sections 25211-25213.) According to

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DBO, only 130 permit applications (under Section 25213) were filed with the DBO in 2013.
Further, between 20 and 50 people file forms with DBO annually, claiming exemptions pursuant
to Section 25102(n), according to DBO.
AB 2178 seeks to amend the rules governing qualification by permitting. Under existing law, an
applicant turns in a permit application to offer securities. The DBO has 60 days to approve the
application, should the review process take longer than 60 days, the offers automatically become
effective on the 60th day. According to the author, this bill, sponsored by Small Business
California, seeks to allow small businesses and start-ups to more readily access capital. It is
similar to bills advanced by the same sponsors in previous years, including last years AB 722
(Perea). Like AB 722, it provides a "qualification by permit" under which issuers can use
general solicitation and general advertising (excluding unsolicited telephone calls) to attract both
accredited and non-accredited investors. Also like AB 722, it uses the term "crowdfunding." As
explained below, it is unclear how the sales practices anticipated by the bill would be considered
to be crowdfunding. However, as explained below, AB 2178 is different from AB 722 in two
ways that provide significant consumer protections to potential investors.
Is This Actually Crowdfunding? Crowdfunding is a collective cooperation of people who
network and pool their money and resources together, usually via the internet, to support efforts
initiated by other individuals or organizations. Crowdfunding literally attracts a crowd of
people, each of whom makes a small contribution to a business by donating money towards an
online funding target. Crowdfunding has become a popular and alternative method of raising
finance for a business, real estate investments, projects or ideas and has become popularized
online by sites such as Kickstarter, Wefunder, Crowdfunder, and RockthePost.
Crowdfunding is a means to raise money by attracting relatively small individual contributions
from a large number of people. In recent years, crowdfunding websites have proliferated to raise
funds for charities, artistic endeavors and businesses. These sites do not offer securities, such as
an ownership interest or share of profits in a business. Rather, they raise money in the form of
donations, or in return for the product being made and delivered to the donor.
While the goal of this measure is admirable--providing increased access to capital for small
businesses--the risks associated with the measure could be at the expense of those most
vulnerable, un-sophisticated non-accredited and accredited investors. AB 2178 has a cap on
investments of $5,000, which weakens the ability for an issuer to take an investors lifesavings,
but investing in small business start-ups may be a substantially greater risk than traditional
investing. About 50 % of all small businesses fail within the first five years according to a
crowdfunding warning document issued by the North American Securities Administrators
Association (NASAA).
On April 5, 2012, President Obama signed landmark legislation, H.R. 3606, the Jumpstart Our
Business Startups Act (the JOBS Act). The JOBS Act makes it easier for startups and small
businesses to raise funds. This legislation passed Congress through a 73-26 Senate vote and a
380-41 House vote. As far as, AB 2178 is concerned, Title III of the JOBS Act required the SEC
to develop new rules permitting capital raising by crowdfunding.
In October of 2013, the SEC issued the proposed crowdfunding rules in a 585 page document.
The SEC struggled to create the final rules that respected the flexible and democratic nature of
crowdfunding (which makes it so appealing to very small and early stage start-up companies)

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while also implementing sufficient regulation to satisfy consumer and investor protection critics
who fear that investment crowdfunding is far too open to abuse and fraud.
On October 30, 2015, the SEC adopted final rules under Title III of the JOBS Act. The JOBS
Act provided for a new exemption under the Securities Act of 1933 that will permit securitiesbased crowdfunding by private companies without registering the offering with the SEC. The
final rules become effective in May 2016 except that the forms enabling funding portals to
register with the SEC became effective on January 29, 2016. Additionally, the SEC staff must
submit a report to the SEC no later than three years following the effective date of crowdfunding
on the impact of the regulation on capital formation and investor protection.
Key features of the SECs final rules:

A company will only be able to raise a maximum aggregate amount of $1 million through
crowdfunding offerings per 12-month period.

Companies raising less than $500,000 through crowdfunding within any 12-month period
will need to share financial statements and income-tax returns with their investors and
those raising more than $500,000 will be obligated to provide audited financial
statements to investors.

Investors with an annual income or net worth of less than $100,000 will be permitted to
invest a maximum of $2,000 or 5% of their annual income or net worth (whichever is
greater) per 12-month period.

Investors with an annual income or net worth equal to or greater than $100,000 will be
permitted to invest up to 10% of their annual income or net worth (whichever is greater)
per 12-month period up to a total maximum of $100,000 in securities.

Companies conducting a crowdfunding offering will need to file certain information with
the SEC, the relevant intermediary facilitating the crowdfunding offering and potential
investors.

Private crowdfunding offerings will be conducted exclusively online through a registered


broker or funding platform (portal). Funding platforms will be required to register with
the SEC. Non-U.S. crowdfunding platforms will be able to register with the SEC, subject
to an on-site examination.

Private crowdfunding offerings will be conducted exclusively online through broker or


funding platforms developed in partnership with the Financial Industry Regulatory
Authority (FINRA) and registered with the SEC.

Federal Regulation A+: On March 24, 2015, the SEC adopted final rules to implement the
rulemaking mandate of Title IV of the JOBS Act by adopting amendments to Regulation A. In
December 2013, the SEC had released a proposed rule that essentially retained the current
framework of Regulation A and expanded it for larger exempt offerings. Existing Regulation A
provided an exemption from the registration requirement of Section 5 for certain smaller
securities offering by private companies. The securities sold in Regulation A offering are not
considered "restricted securities" and are freely transferable. The "New" Regulation A provides
an exemption for U.S. companies to raise up to $50,000,000 in a 12-month period. The final

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rules create two tiers: Tier 1 for smaller offerings raising up to $20,000,000 in any 12 month
period and Tier 2 for offerings raising up to $50,000,000. Tier 1 will be subject to both SEC and
state blue sky pre-sale review. The finalized rules of Regulation A+ should be very appealing to
small businesses.
Significant new Consumer Protection Measures in AB 2178, as it is Proposed to be Amended.
Whereas last years AB 722 did not require an SEC-registered intermediary (a portal or broker)
to be used for sales of these investments, proposed amendments to this bill will add that
requirement. Also, unlike AB 722, this bill requires an investor, upon recession of contract after
an issuer is found to be in violation of permit requirements, to reimburse investors for all their
investments, plus interest. In addition, as proposed to be amended AB 2178 will require the
applicant to comply with the following provisions related to advertising materials, which are key
requirements in light of the fact that permit holders will be able to engage in general solicitation:

A prohibition on placing an advertisement disseminated primarily in this state unless the


applicant discloses in the printed text of the advertisement, or the oral text in the case of a
radio or television advertisement, that the applicant has a permit issued by the department
pursuant to this section.
A provision allowing the Commissioner of DBO to require that rates of all charges or fees
(including all transaction fees, charges, commissions), if stated by the applicant, be stated
fully and clearly in the manner that the commissioner deems necessary to give adequate
information to, or to prevent misunderstanding by, prospective investors.
A prohibition on the use of advertising material after its use has been disapproved by the
Commissioner and the applicant is notified in writing of the disapproval.
A requirement to maintain a file of all advertising copy for a period of three years from the
date of its use. The file shall be available to the Commissioner upon request.

ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT: The sponsor, Small Business California, writes the following on
behalf of the coalition of 27 small businesses that support this bill:
Equity crowdfunding under federal law becomes effective in May 2016 under the
Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act of 2012. While the JOBS Act was designed to
address this capital gap, it could potentially open the floodgates to fraud.
AB 2178 offers both entrepreneurs and investors a safer means of filling the capital gap
that exists for smaller early-stage seed capital offerings and jumpstarting these
companies so that they can become candidates for larger rounds of financing.
AB 2178 would add to the California Corporate Securities Laws specific conditions
under which the Department of Business Oversight would review and issue a permit for a
crowdfunding offering in California. AB 2178 would also prohibit telephone
solicitations, but otherwise allow companies to communicate with potential investors
directly, even investors with whom they have no prior relationship.
ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION: Despite the proposed amendments to the bill, California
Advocates for Nursing Home Reform remain opposed for the following reasons:
CANHR is concerned that AB 2178 will open the way for unscrupulous promoters who
target seniors who are interested in improving their financial situation or those suffering
cognitive impairments. Senior investors are at particular risk of putting their money in

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questionable business opportunities. The recently released brain study, How Does
Aging Affect Financial Decision Making? Keith Jacks Gamble, Patricia Boyle, Lei Yu
and David Bennett, Center for Retirement Research of Boston College, January 2015,
Number 15-1, confirms that declining cognition, which is a common occurrence in the
elderly, is associated with a significant decline in financial literacy. . . . These same poor
decision makers display defective autonomic responses reminiscent of that previously
established in patients with acquired prefrontal lesions. The Iowa data demonstrates that
a substantial number of seniors have compromised real-world judgment and decisionmaking abilities.
There can be no doubt that seniors will be solicited to participate in the fund raising
opportunities AB 2178 makes way for. Given that currently 50 percent of new small
business fail, even when they are legitimate businesses, there can be no doubt that a
substantial number of seniors will lose their money. Passage of AB 2178 would attract
many new unscrupulous players to a market that already has more than its share of bad
actors. Although there is merit in making it easier to get investors to chip in their
resources to launch new and innovative products and ideas, it is too great a risk to remove
the protection of the Department of Business Oversight.
Public Investors Arbitration Bar Association similarly remains concerned about the potential for
AB 2178 to be abused by unscrupulous issuers and provides the following non-exhaustive list of
changes or additions that would ease its concerns:

A mandatory one-way attorneys fee shift in favor of investors.

Mandatory treble damages in cases in which an investor proved a violation of Corp. C.


Section 25400, et seq., or liability under Section 25501, et seq.

Provide that an offering under AB 2178 will not be approved if it contains a forced
arbitration provision, a class action waiver, a jury trial waiver, or other provisions
designed to limit investor rights and remedies, including choice of law and choice of
forum clauses.

[T]he uncollectability of amounts that are awarded. The GAO reported on that issue in
the SRO arbitration context in the late 1990s and early 2000s. . . PIABA recently released
a report about it that is getting some attention in Washington. Arbitration awards against
broker-dealers and associated persons are not the only sources of uncollectable
judgments. PIABA is open to suggestions regarding how this problem might be
addressed in the context of offerings under AB 2178.

[N]othing in the bill requires that investment dollars be used in such a way as to lead to
job creation in California. While that is not a direct part of PIABAs mission, it might
help indirectly in the form of enhanced transparency. It is easier to confirm the reality of
representations regarding a business operating in California than it is to confirm
representations regarding a business operating primarily in Hong Kong, for
example. PIABA is open to ideas regarding this issue as well.

Questions & Concerns with AB 2178, even as Proposed to be Amended. The Assembly
Banking and Finance Committee raised a number of concerns in its February 18, 2016 analysis
that are also concerns of this Committee:

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1) The federal Crowdfunding rules became final in October, 2015. We now have a process set
up in place nationwide to conduct equity crowdfunding. Why does California need its own
crowdfunding process? Considering, these final rules are so new, isn't it too early to cast a
shadow on federal Crowdfunding. The SEC is required to issue a report in 3 years. Should
California wait to reevaluate the success or lack of success of federal Crowdfunding after the
first report is released?
2) AB 2178, if enacted, could allow and promote "regulation shopping." Issuers/Applicants can
determine whether to register to adhere to federal regulations or state securities regulations.
Even if California's crowdfunding has better investor protections, why would this point
matter, since issuers would have the ability to choose the weaker regulations?
3) AB 2178 provides that the securities sold could be "within or outside California." Wouldn't
anything outside California conflict with federal rules? Other states who have enacted state
crowdfunding proposals only apply intrastate. How will DBO be able to enforce?
Despite the significant additional consumer protections in AB 2178 that were not in previously
introduced crowdfunding and alternative permit bills, the Committee remains concerned that
given the relatively small investment offerings, unsophisticated investors, including seniors, may
be willing to invest in inappropriately risky investments and could be targets of repeated scams.
Because of the relatively small amounts (that may nevertheless represent a significant percentage
of the investors liquid assets, especially in the case of multiple investments), investors will be
unable to hire attorneys to recoup their losses because of the small amounts involved in
individual purchases. Also, because approximately half of all small businesses fail within the
first five years of operating, even if a consumer obtains a judgment against an issuer under this
new program, the original issuer may be out of business and judgment-proof.
In an ideal world, sufficiently improved investor remedies could stand as a serious deterrent to
fraud and wrongdoing, and offerings under California law, as a result, could come to be viewed
by investors (and therefore by issuers) as being preferable to those under the JOBS Act. If
additional consumer protections and investor remedies were added to this bill (such as a
prohibition on class action waivers, forced arbitration, and issuers choice of venue), as well as
even more stringent penalties for violation (such as mandatory treble damages and attorney fees
to defrauded investors) the deterrent effect against abuse of the new crowdfunding permit would
be real and not easily evaded. Therefore, the author may wish to consider these proposed
additional amendments to address these concerns as the bill moves forward.
PRIOR SIMILAR LEGISLATION: AB 722 (Perea, 2015) created a new qualification by
permit under California's Corporate Securities Law of 1968 to allow equity-crowdfunding. This
bill died in the Assembly Appropriations Committee.
AB 2096 (Muratsuchi, 2014) created a new way in which a person seeking to offer or sell
securities could qualify their offering, by authorizing the qualification by notification of offers
or sales of securities advertised by means of general solicitation and general advertising, as
specified. This bill died in the Senate Appropriations Committee.
AB 783 (Daly, 2013) provided that an issuer can offer or sell securities using any form of general
solicitation or general advertising. This bill died in the Assembly Banking and Finance
Committee.

AB 2178
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AB 2081 (Allen, 2012) provided that an issuer can offer or sell securities using any form of
general solicitation or general advertising. This bill died on the Senate Floor.
SB 875 (Price, 2010) exempted from qualification offerings or sales of securities using a general
solicitation or general advertisement, provided the transaction meets specified requirements,
including a requirement that the sales are made to accredited investors. This bill died in Senate
Banking and Financial Institutions Committee.
AB 1644 (Campbell & Briggs, 2001) exempted from qualification offerings or sales of securities
using a general solicitation or general advertising, provided the transaction meets specified
requirements, including a requirement that the sales are made to accredited investors. This bill
failed passage in Assembly Banking and Finance Committee.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:
Support
Small Business California (sponsor)
Bay Area Council
California Asian Pacific Chamber of Commerce
California Association of Competitive Telecommunications Companies
California Association of Micro-economic Opportunity
California Black Chamber of Commerce
California Disabled Veteran Business Alliance
California Fence Contractors Association
California Hispanic Chambers of Commerce
California Metals Coalition
Flasher Barricade Association
Golden Gate Business Association
Greater Geary Boulevard Merchants & Property Owners Association
National Association of Women Business Owners Sacramento Valley
National Federation of Independent Business
Northern California Independent Booksellers Association
North East Mission Business Association
Plumbing Heating Cooling Contractors of California
San Francisco Builders Exchange
San Francisco Chamber of Commerce
San Francisco Committee on Jobs
San Francisco Council of District Merchants Association
San Francisco Locally Owned Merchants Alliance
San Francisco Small Business Network
Small Business Majority
Small Manufacturers Association of California
South Bay Entrepreneurial Center (SBEC)
Opposition
California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform
Public Investors Arbitration Bar Association
Analysis Prepared by: Alison Merrilees / JUD. / (916) 319-2334

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