Minority- and women-owned firms to receive help in winning government contracts

New York is partnering with small-business assistance centers to help firms that are owned by women and members of minority groups to compete for government contracts, Gov. Kathy Hochul announced.

Statewide, 22 Small Business Development Centers and 23 Entrepreneurship Assistance Centers — including four on Long Island — will aid business owners in seeking certification as minority- and women-owned business enterprises, or MWBEs.

The free assistance is part of an initiative, called Sail-Thru Summer, which runs through Aug. 30, Hochul said.

“We’re not just opening doors — we're actively empowering minority and women-owned businesses to play a larger role in our state's economic growth and success,” she said.

The initiative comes after Empire State Development, which oversees MWBE certification as the state’s primary business-aid agency, cleared a backlog of applications. The agency did so thanks to an additional $11 million in the 2022-23 state budget.

Applicants now can receive a decision in a minimum of 90 days.

There were 9,726 MWBE-certified firms in New York as of March 31, 2023, including 1,237 on Long Island. Among the local firms, 502 were owned by members of minority groups, 514 were owned by women and 221 were owned by minority women, according to ESD.

“By partnering with EACs and SBDCs, we're providing hands-on support to applicants, potentially shortening the certification timeline, and ultimately expanding opportunities for our diverse business community,” said Hope Knight, the agency’s CEO and president.

Nearly $3 billion in state contracts were awarded to MWBEs in the fiscal year ended March 31, 2023, or more than 32% of all contracts. That’s the highest MWBE utilization rate in the country, according to Jason M. Clark, head of ESD's minority and women's business development division.

The local EACs participating in the new program are based at Hofstra University and Suffolk County Community College. The Hofstra center may be reached at bdc@hofstra.edu or 516-463-5285 while the SCCC center may be reached at epcenter@sunysuffolk.edu or 631-851-6214.

The local SBDCs participating in the new program are located at Farmingdale State College and Stony Brook University. The Farmingdale center may be reached at sbdc@farmingdale.edu or 934-420-2765 while the Stony Brook center may be reached at sbdc@stonybrook.edu or 631-632-9070.