Tim Schultz Named CEO of Family Enterprise USA, Family Enterprise USA Action at Congressional Family Business Caucus Meeting
Family Business Leader Schultz Takes New Positions to Keep Voice of Family-Owned Businesses Strong on Capitol Hill
Family Enterprise USA announced today that Tim Schultz was named Chief Executive Officer for Family Enterprise USA and for Family Enterprise USA Action, both new positions.
The announcement was made today by the organizations’ President, Pat Soldano, during the Congressional Family Business Caucus meeting inside the Capitol Building complex. The new position is effective July 1, 2026.
Soldano will continue as President of Family Enterprise USA (FEUSA) and Family Enterprise USA Action (FEUSA ACTION) through the end of the year, when she becomes a Strategic Advisor working with donors, supporters, and members of both organizations.
Schultz comes to the organizations after over two decades of serving family-owned businesses as a leader, advisor, and convenor of family businesses, including Executive Vice President of Operations at Lundberg Family Farms.
Most recently, he served as Director of the Center for Family Business at Cal State Fullerton’s College of Business and Economics in Fullerton, California, and as a Principle with LeadershipOne, advising family businesses on governance and generational transitions.
“We’re excited to have such an experienced family-owned business professional like Tim take our two organizations into the future,” said Soldano. “Tim knows the challenges family businesses face when it comes to taxation and transitioning businesses to the next generation. He also has experienced the important role family businesses play in the economy, the vital role they play in their communities, and the importance of advocating on Capitol Hill.”
Schultz and Family-Owned Businesses
“It’s a great honor to be part of Pat’s team and to support her work in advocating for America’s family-owned businesses, the most important economic engine in the country,” said Schultz of his appointment. “Family businesses need a strong voice in Washington, D.C., and Pat and her team have been that voice for many years. Part of my job will be to make sure our lawmakers are familiar with the challenges family-owned businesses face and the important role they have in our economy and local communities.”
Schultz’ first experience with family business came as a boy working in his grandparents’ family business in Bridgeport, Neb., where they owned and ran a small motel. After several years working in private and publicly traded companies, he returned to family business at Lundberg Family Farms, Richvale, Calif., the nation’s largest vertically-integrated organic rice brand.
Over his 18 years working with the company, Schultz held many leadership roles, including Human Resources, Product Development, Strategic Planning and ultimately Operations. He also served on its board of directors and family council.
Schultz has been a long-time advocate and supporter of family-owned businesses. Most recently, Schultz served as Director of the Center for Family Business at Cal State Fullerton, and a Principle with LeadershipOne.
He also served for many years on the board of the Capital Region Family Business Center in Sacramento and spearheaded its signature Generations Family Business Conference. He is a graduate of Claremont University’s Drucker School of Management.
The FEUSA and FEUSA Action missions are to promote the growth of family-owned businesses, provide a voice on Capitol Hill for family-owned businesses, family offices, and hardworking families and to work with national legislators to reform or repeal economic policies that hurt family businesses, including the gift, estate, generations skipping taxes, and savings penalty taxes.
America’s family businesses are the largest private employers in the country, accounting for 83.3 million jobs in some 32 million family businesses across the country, according to research. These businesses contribute $7.7 trillion annually to U.S. gross domestic product.
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The need for fact-based reporting of issues important to family owned businesses and protecting a lifetime of savings has never been greater. Now more than ever, successful families and family owned businesses are under fire. That's why Family Enterprise USA is passionately working to increase the awareness of issues important to family owned businesses built on hard work, while continuing to strengthen our presence on Capitol Hill. The issues we fight for or against with Congress in Washington DC include high income tax rates, possible elimination of valuation discounts, increase in capital gains tax, enactment of a wealth tax, and the continued burden of the gift tax, estate tax and generation skipping tax.
Family Enterprise USA promotes generationally owned family business creation, growth, viability, and sustainability by advocating for family businesses and their lifetime of savings with Congress in Washington DC. Since 2007, Family Enterprise USA has represented and celebrated all sizes, professions and industries of family-owned enterprises and multi-generational employers. It is a bi-partisan 501.c3 organization. Family foundations can donate.