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Department of Small Business Services
The Department of Small Business Services connects New Yorkers to jobs and helps small businesses start, operate, and grow, organizing its work around careers, businesses, and neighborhoods. It runs the city's Workforce1 Career Centers and NYC Business Solutions Centers, and also issues waterfront construction permits under its NYC Charter authority.
What's working
- How many financial awards to businesses (facilitated or disbursed) are there?: 563 awards — decreasing as pandemic-era relief grants wound down
- How many businesses receiving financial awards (facilitated or disbursed) cases are there?: 488 businesses — decreasing as pandemic-era relief grants wound down
- How many businesses opened with assistance from SBS are there?: 153 sbs — increasing steadily; the FY26 figure is partial and likely to be revised up
- and 3 more below
What's getting worse
Nothing stands out as a clear problem right now.
Critical indicators
With a numeric target
How many m/WBEs were certified?
11,489 m/wbesBeats target by 689 m/wbes
How many m/WBEs were certified?
11,489 m/wbesBeats target by 689 m/wbes
* Year to date — this fiscal year isn't complete, so it's not compared against prior years in the target/trend status above.
View as table
| Fiscal year | Actual | Target |
|---|---|---|
| FY22 | 10,768 m/wbes | 10,700 m/wbes |
| FY23 | 10,799 m/wbes | 10,800 m/wbes |
| FY24 | 11,115 m/wbes | 10,800 m/wbes |
| FY25 | 11,382 m/wbes | 10,800 m/wbes |
| FY26 (YTD) | 11,489 m/wbes | 10,800 m/wbes |
11,489 m/wbes in FY26 — met the City's own target for this indicator (689 m/wbes above the 10,800 m/wbes target), and it has trended toward improvement over the past 3 years of reported data.
Why this is tracked
New York City created its M/WBE certification program through Local Law 129 in 2005 to help minority- and women-owned businesses compete for and win city contracts, and to make city agencies more aware of these firms as viable vendors. In 2013, Local Law 1 strengthened the program by setting specific citywide contracting participation goals, based on a disparity study commissioned by the City Council that documented the gap these businesses faced. SBS jointly administers the certification program with the Mayor's Office of Contract Services.
NYC Business - Minority and Women-owned Business Enterprise Certification Program
How many financial awards to businesses (facilitated or disbursed) are there?
563 awards — decreasing as pandemic-era relief grants wound downBeats target by 113 awards
How many financial awards to businesses (facilitated or disbursed) are there?
563 awards — decreasing as pandemic-era relief grants wound downBeats target by 113 awards
* Year to date — this fiscal year isn't complete, so it's not compared against prior years in the target/trend status above.
View as table
| Fiscal year | Actual | Target |
|---|---|---|
| FY22 | 10,942 awards | 740 awards |
| FY23 | 1,312 awards | 740 awards |
| FY24 | 669 awards | 740 awards |
| FY25 | 563 awards | 450 awards |
| FY26 (YTD) | Not available | 450 awards |
The FY22 spike to 10,942 financial awards was driven by pandemic relief programs, including a $100 million NYC COVID Resilience Grant that alone served about 10,000 small businesses. SBS's own reporting says award counts fell to "pre-pandemic levels" once those emergency grant and loan programs concluded, and the further decline after FY24 reflects reduced low-interest lending capital as federal recovery funds expired.
Researched July 16, 2026 — NYC Department of Small Business Services, Fiscal 2023 Mayor's Management Report, NYC Department of Small Business Services, Fiscal 2025 Mayor's Management Report
Why this is tracked
The Department of Small Business Services provides free courses, legal assistance, financing connections, and help navigating government requirements to small business owners across the five boroughs through its NYC Business Solutions centers. The goal is to lower the practical barriers, paperwork, permitting, access to capital, that can otherwise keep entrepreneurs from starting a business or force existing ones to close, particularly in neighborhoods with less access to traditional business support.
NYC SBS - Businesses, NYPL - NYC SBS Small Business Services
How many businesses receiving financial awards (facilitated or disbursed) cases are there?
488 businesses — decreasing as pandemic-era relief grants wound downBeats target by 88 businesses
How many businesses receiving financial awards (facilitated or disbursed) cases are there?
488 businesses — decreasing as pandemic-era relief grants wound downBeats target by 88 businesses
* Year to date — this fiscal year isn't complete, so it's not compared against prior years in the target/trend status above.
View as table
| Fiscal year | Actual | Target |
|---|---|---|
| FY22 | 10,627 businesses | 570 businesses |
| FY23 | 1,232 businesses | 570 businesses |
| FY24 | 610 businesses | 570 businesses |
| FY25 | 488 businesses | 400 businesses |
| FY26 (YTD) | Not available | 400 businesses |
The FY22 peak of 10,627 businesses receiving financial awards was driven by pandemic-era relief, including a $100 million NYC COVID Resilience Grant that alone served about 10,000 small businesses. SBS's own reporting says award recipients fell to "pre-pandemic levels" once those emergency grant and loan programs concluded, with a further decline after FY24 tied to reduced low-interest lending capital as federal recovery funds expired.
Researched July 16, 2026 — NYC Department of Small Business Services, Fiscal 2023 Mayor's Management Report, NYC Department of Small Business Services, Fiscal 2025 Mayor's Management Report
Why this is tracked
The Department of Small Business Services provides free courses, legal assistance, financing connections, and help navigating government requirements to small business owners across the five boroughs through its NYC Business Solutions centers. The goal is to lower the practical barriers, paperwork, permitting, access to capital, that can otherwise keep entrepreneurs from starting a business or force existing ones to close, particularly in neighborhoods with less access to traditional business support.
NYC SBS - Businesses, NYPL - NYC SBS Small Business Services
How many m/WBEs awarded City contracts are there?
1,844 contractsBeats target by 621 contracts
How many m/WBEs awarded City contracts are there?
1,844 contractsBeats target by 621 contracts
* Year to date — this fiscal year isn't complete, so it's not compared against prior years in the target/trend status above.
View as table
| Fiscal year | Actual | Target |
|---|---|---|
| FY22 | 1,605 contracts | 1,223 contracts |
| FY23 | 1,903 contracts | 1,223 contracts |
| FY24 | 1,809 contracts | 1,223 contracts |
| FY25 | 1,844 contracts | 1,223 contracts |
| FY26 (YTD) | Not available | 1,223 contracts |
1,844 contracts in FY25 — met the City's own target for this indicator (621 contracts above the 1,223 contracts target), and it has trended toward improvement over the past 3 years of reported data.
Why this is tracked
New York City created its M/WBE certification program through Local Law 129 in 2005 to help minority- and women-owned businesses compete for and win city contracts, and to make city agencies more aware of these firms as viable vendors. In 2013, Local Law 1 strengthened the program by setting specific citywide contracting participation goals, based on a disparity study commissioned by the City Council that documented the gap these businesses faced. SBS jointly administers the certification program with the Mayor's Office of Contract Services.
NYC Business - Minority and Women-owned Business Enterprise Certification Program
How much m/WBEs awarded City contracts after receiving procurement and capacity building assistance is there?
1,383 businessesBeats target by 492 businesses
How much m/WBEs awarded City contracts after receiving procurement and capacity building assistance is there?
1,383 businessesBeats target by 492 businesses
* Year to date — this fiscal year isn't complete, so it's not compared against prior years in the target/trend status above.
View as table
| Fiscal year | Actual | Target |
|---|---|---|
| FY22 | 1,182 businesses | 891 businesses |
| FY23 | 1,390 businesses | 891 businesses |
| FY24 | 1,334 businesses | 891 businesses |
| FY25 | 1,383 businesses | 891 businesses |
| FY26 (YTD) | Not available | 891 businesses |
1,383 businesses in FY25 — met the City's own target for this indicator (492 businesses above the 891 businesses target), and it has trended toward improvement over the past 3 years of reported data.
Why this is tracked
New York City created its M/WBE certification program through Local Law 129 in 2005 to help minority- and women-owned businesses compete for and win city contracts, and to make city agencies more aware of these firms as viable vendors. In 2013, Local Law 1 strengthened the program by setting specific citywide contracting participation goals, based on a disparity study commissioned by the City Council that documented the gap these businesses faced. SBS jointly administers the certification program with the Mayor's Office of Contract Services.
NYC Business - Minority and Women-owned Business Enterprise Certification Program
Without a numeric target
How many businesses opened with assistance from SBS are there?
153 sbs — increasing steadily; the FY26 figure is partial and likely to be revised up
How many businesses opened with assistance from SBS are there?
153 sbs — increasing steadily; the FY26 figure is partial and likely to be revised up
* Year to date — this fiscal year isn't complete, so it's not compared against prior years in the target/trend status above. The dashed marker projects a full-year estimate at the current year-to-date pace.
View as table
| Fiscal year | Actual |
|---|---|
| FY22 | 164 sbs |
| FY23 | 184 sbs |
| FY24 | 218 sbs |
| FY25 | 232 sbs |
| FY26 (YTD) | 153 sbs |
| FY26 (projected) | ~204 sbs |
This indicator grew steadily from 164 in FY22 to 232 in FY25. The FY26 figure is a preliminary, partial-year count, and SBS's own reporting shows these in-year figures are typically revised upward substantially as the year progresses -- for example, the agency's initial four-month count for FY25 was later revised from 63 up to 97 -- so the apparent FY26 dip likely partly reflects incomplete reporting rather than a full-year decline.
Researched July 16, 2026 — NYC Department of Small Business Services, Preliminary Fiscal 2026 Mayor's Management Report
Why this is tracked
The Department of Small Business Services provides free courses, legal assistance, financing connections, and help navigating government requirements to small business owners across the five boroughs through its NYC Business Solutions centers. The goal is to lower the practical barriers, paperwork, permitting, access to capital, that can otherwise keep entrepreneurs from starting a business or force existing ones to close, particularly in neighborhoods with less access to traditional business support.
NYC SBS - Businesses, NYPL - NYC SBS Small Business Services