Small Business Improvement Act
The “Small Business Improvement Act” is designed to both assist small business in its dealings with state government and to provide some assistance to struggling downtown areas. The “Small Business Improvement Act” does this by clearing bureaucratic roadblocks in state government, allowing small business to access its fair share of state contracts, and offering other assistance to business owners. This Act would:
- Require that at least 15 percent of state contracts are with businesses employing 100 or fewer employees;
- Reduce payment time to small businesses on state contracts from 60 to 30 days, reflecting the standard used by the federal government;
- Establish the Governor’s Office of Regulatory Reform in statute and expand the Online Permit Assistance and Licensing (OPAL) program to cover all NYS departments, agencies, and authorities that require permits, registrations, and fees;
- Provide education grants to business owners and employees for courses necessary for the support and operation of a micro-enterprise business;
- Allow binding arbitration for state contract disputes, instead of requiring court action, if the contract was awarded as a result of a small business development related set aside;
- Create a demonstration 511 “one stop shop” service to handle questions from existing or new businesses in the state and direct those questions to the appropriate agencies;
- Direct the Empire State Development Corporation (ESDC) to conduct a comprehensive study on the effectiveness of existing ESDC programs with respect to small businesses; and
- Provide funding for programs that will help upgrade and renovate downtown and main street facades.
