A political appointee who was heading California’s Office of the Small Business Advocate leased her southeast Fresno home in 2023 to a local agency, the same year her office awarded that agency a technical assistance grant totaling nearly $400,000, GV Wire has learned.

The 2023-24 technical assistance grant awarded to the Fresno Community Development Financial Institution, also known as Access Plus Capital, was significantly larger that year than in prior  or subsequent years.

The leased home is on East Platt Avenue in the Fancher Creek neighborhood, and the owner of record is Tara Lynn Gray, according to Fresno County property records.

Gray was appointed director of the California Office of the Small Business Advocate by Gov. Gavin Newsom in March 2021, and her annual compensation then was listed as $175,644.

Her last day on the job was Sept. 12.

She did not respond to several calls from GV Wire to her cell phone seeking comment.

The office, which is part of the California Office of Business and Economic Development, supports small businesses and start-ups through grant programs, information, and technical assistance.

Gray’s furnished three-bedroom home was leased by Tate Hill, president and CEO of Access Plus Capital, for $2,900 monthly, including $500 for utilities. The lease period was Aug. 3, 2023 through Aug. 2, 2024.

The lease that GV Wire obtained includes Hill’s signature and email address.

Hill: We Did Lease a House for AmeriCorps Workers

In an interview with GV Wire on Oct. 16, Hill acknowledged that Access Plus Capital rented a home in Fresno for AmeriCorps workers. But Hill was unable to confirm that the home on Platt Avenue was that same home.

“I would have to check on that. I know we did have a house for, we provided housing for our AmeriCorps, some of them are from out of state,” he said. “That was our first year of having AmeriCorps from out of state and it was in the middle of the pandemic. And so we had a couple, like two or three AmeriCorps and they probably would not have been able to move to Fresno (unless housing was provided).”

When asked about the potential conflict of interest of Access Plus Capital renting Gray’s home, Hill said, “I’ll have to check into that.”

Since that Oct. 16 interview, GV Wire has been unable to reach Hill by phone, email, or in a visit to Access Plus Capital’s downtown headquarters.

The lease contract lists Yadari Enterprises as the landlord of the East Platt Avenue property, which apparently was at one point occupied by Gray’s family members. Yadari Enterprises LLC is owned by Gray, according to California Secretary of State records.

Fresno Connections

Access Plus Capital began as a subsidiary of the Fresno Economic Opportunities Commission but subsequently broke off from Fresno EOC and became an independent agency. It has provided more than $62 million in funding to small businesses across the Central Valley, from Stanislaus County to Kern County.

Hill came to Access Plus Capital in 2016 after heading the Fresno Metro Black Chamber of Commerce. He was succeeded at the chamber by Gray, who remained its president and CEO until her state appointment in 2021, according to her LinkedIn profile.

Hill, a former Fresno City Council candidate, started as Access Plus Capital’s senior manager of administration in 2016, became director of administration in 2018, briefly served as interim CEO in 2019-20, and then was named president and CEO starting in July 2020, according to his LinkedIn profile.

California’s Office of the Small Business Advocate provides funding through several initiatives such as the capital infusion program and the technical assistance expansion program to organizations that support small businesses and start-ups.

Access Plus Capital was awarded technical assistance grants of varying amounts in recent years: $135,550 in 2019-20, $90,943 in 2020-2021, $80,575 in 2021-22, and zero dollars in 2022-23.

In 2023-24 — the same year as the home lease — Access Plus Capital got a grant of $398,369.55, which was significantly larger than the grants awarded in preceding years. Access Plus Capital’s grant in 2024-25 was $105,819.

Conflict of Interest Training Is Mandatory for State Officials

Tara Gallegos, deputy director of communications for Newsom’s press office, said in an email that all public officials must take mandatory state ethics training, including training on conflict of interest.

Officials also are required to file a Form 700 statement of economic interests, Gallegos said. She said Gray’s form could be requested from the Fair Political Practices Commission.

However, Shery Yang, the FPPC’s communications director, told GV Wire that Gray had not filed a Form 700 with the FPPC. She suggested checking with Gray’s former state office.

GV Wire send an email to the Office of the Small Business Advocate but did not receive a response by noon Friday.

According to the FPPC, public officials in general have a “disqualifying” conflict of interest in a government decision if it could have an impact on their personal finances or other financial interests.

The Lease