Committee on Small Business meeting
May 6, 2026, 10:00 AM
Jointly with the Committee on Immigration.
The Committee on Small Business held a joint oversight hearing on the economic impacts of federal immigration policy changes on New York City small businesses. No legislation was voted on.
What was discussed
- Joint committees convene and swear in the administration witnesses The Committee on Small Business, chaired by Shanel Thomas-Henry, convened jointly with the Committee on Immigration, chaired by Elsie Encarnación, for an oversight hearing on the economic impacts of federal immigration policy changes, and Committee Counsel administered the oath to the administration
- Chair Thomas-Henry opens on immigrant small businesses under federal pressure Chair Shanel Thomas-Henry opened by noting immigrants own nearly half of the city's businesses and that ICE activity and federal policy—including the exclusion of green-card holders from SBA loans—have cut foot traffic and worker attendance in immigrant commercial corridors.
- Co-Chair Encarnación opens on immigrant workers and the climate of fear Co-Chair Elsie Encarnación said nearly 40% of New Yorkers are foreign-born and that aggressive immigration enforcement, including courthouse and 'collateral' arrests, has created a climate of fear with real economic consequences as work authorizations are stripped.
- SBS testifies on outreach to immigrant businesses and FIFA World Cup opportunities Haris Khan of the Department of Small Business Services testified that more than half of the city's 180,000 small businesses are immigrant-owned, described SBS's multilingual outreach, the new Office of Street Vendor Services, revamped city loan products replacing lost SBA access, and a FIFA World
- How is SBS helping immigrant commercial corridors, and what are the biggest hardships? Haris Khan told Chair Shanel Thomas-Henry that since January businesses report fewer customers and worker absenteeism driven by fear, that SBS is doubling down on outreach and FIFA marketing opportunities, and that it is hard to isolate immigration from other pressures like rent, tariffs and
- How are SBS and MOIA collaborating, and are they adequately staffed? Lorena Lucero told Co-Chair Elsie Encarnación that MOIA (about 60 staff) embeds immigration support in SBS's work through language access, joint outreach and know-your-rights materials, and that both offices are on the interagency task force; Encarnación pressed that limited staffing lets businesses
- Will outer-borough businesses actually benefit from the World Cup, and how is success measured? Haris Khan told Council Member Frank Morano that free fan zones and marketing programs are being spread across all boroughs, but conceded when pressed that SBS measures reach through outreach events and storefront occupancy rather than sales or revenue, so hardship can be masked.
- Are the one-stop business portal and language access reaching indigenous-language and Staten Island owners? Haris Khan told Majority Whip Kamillah Hanks that the NYC business portal is available in 11 languages with human-reviewed translations, that the citywide Language Line covers other languages, and that North Shore owners can use the nearby Staten Island Business Solutions Center; Lorena Lucero said
- What financing and workforce help exists after the SBA loan exclusion and IRS-ICE data deal? Haris Khan told Council Member Yusef Salaam that the SBA exclusion creates a financing gap in the tens of millions for the city and that SBS uses its Funds Finder tool and business solution centers to find alternative lending; Lorena Lucero cited potential multibillion-dollar national tax losses
- Could bodega panic buttons and better business communication help immigrant owners? Haris Khan told Council Member Gale A. Brewer that an EDC panic-button program reached over 300 bodegas and triggers NYPD response, and that SBS offers digital-marketing webinars and a hotline; Lorena Lucero described ethnic-media roundtables to reach owners without websites.
- Is fear pushing workers into the informal economy, and how is the city tracking the impact? Answering Council Member Selvena N. Brooks-Powers's questions read by Chair Shanel Thomas-Henry, Haris Khan and Lorena Lucero said fear pervades all levels of the economy including street vending, that storefront occupancy is stable but does not capture 'suffering in silence,' and that businesses
- How did SBS and MOIA respond to the Canal Street raid and street-vendor needs? Lorena Lucero and Haris Khan told Chair Shanel Thomas-Henry that they coordinated with the Street Vendor Project and community leaders after the Canal Street raid, and Khan described the new Office of Street Vendor Services—led by Executive Director Carina Kaufman-Gutierrez—and its focus on
- Should the Immigrant Business Initiative guide be revived, and how should impacts be measured? Haris Khan told Co-Chair Elsie Encarnación that the de Blasio-era Immigrant Business Initiative was a privately funded pilot now superseded by SBS's citywide outreach team and hotline, and resisted reviving the printed guide; Encarnación pushed to co-develop better metrics for what is actually
- What is the Office of Street Vendor Services budget, and will Local Law 75 be repealed? Haris Khan told Council Member Alexa Avilés that the street-vendor office has no dedicated budget yet but three core functions, and Lorena Lucero described MOIA's Haitian Response Initiative and federal advocacy through Cities for Action; the members and witnesses discussed repealing Local Law 75's
- Manhattan Borough President details downstream costs of federal immigration policy Manhattan Borough President Brad Hoylman-Sigal testified that federal changes to housing, SNAP and tax administration shift major costs to the city—citing a HUD mixed-status housing rule that could displace 11,000 New Yorkers—and urged an impact audit, multilingual outreach, expanded legal services
- Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce reports survey data on enforcement's toll Mark Caserta of the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce testified that a door-to-door survey found about 30% of Brooklyn businesses affected by immigration enforcement or fear—79% in Sunset Park—and called for repeal of Local Law 75's roll-gate mandate.
- Mixteca describes fear and asylum-fee burdens in Sunset Park Van Xelo of Mixteca testified that federal changes and heavy ICE presence in Sunset Park have emptied commercial corridors and hurt street vendors, and called for continued protection, work access, and affordable legal services.
- Queens Economic Development Corporation shares Jackson Heights and Corona survey results Ben Guttmann of the Queens Economic Development Corporation testified that 79% of surveyed Jackson Heights and Corona businesses reported declining sales, and that his group shut Corona Plaza Market three times over ICE fears.
- La Colmena describes fear's economic toll on Staten Island workers and owners Arlette Cepeda of La Colmena on Staten Island testified that fear keeps immigrant families home, cutting customers and workers for small businesses on thin margins, and urged continued investment in protections and resources.
- Street vendor Rosario Troncoso asks the Council to fund know-your-rights outreach Rosario Troncoso, a Street Vendor Project board member, testified through an interpreter about ICE raids on Canal Street and asked the Council to fund the project's multilingual know-your-rights education and the Street Vendor Reform package.
Agenda
1 item
- T2026-1545 Oversight - Economic Impacts of Federal Immigration Policy Changes. Hearing Held by Committee