DE BLASIO ADMINISTRATION REACHES MILESTONE GOAL OF 9,000 CITY-CERTIFIED M/WBES

The number of City-certified M/WBEs has doubled since Mayor de Blasio created the Mayor’s Office of M/WBEs in 2016

  Mayor Bill de Blasio and Deputy Mayor for Strategic Policy Initiatives and Citywide M/WBE Director J. Phillip Thompson announced today that the City reached its goal of 9,000 City-certified Minority and Women-owned Business Enterprises (M/WBEs) by the end of June 2019. This represents a doubling of the certified pool in less than three years, achieving an ambitious goal set by Mayor de Blasio in 2016. The milestone achievement comes on the heels of state and city legislation that will further advance economic opportunity for City M/WBEs. 9000 City-certified M/WBEs also puts the administration on track to award 30 percent of the value of all City contracts to M/WBEs by 2021.

“If our economy isn’t inclusive, then it’s not working as it should,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio. “That’s why under my Administration we’ve increased M/WBE certification 145% and have awarded over $11 billion in contracts to a diverse workforce. But we’re not finished. We urge Governor Cuomo to sign the M/WBE bills to help us further build a fairer city where no one is left behind.”

“By investing in the acquisition and growth of City-certified minority and women-owned businesses, the de Blasio Administration is advancing the values of an inclusive economy in which all New Yorkers are provided with quality business and workforce opportunities,” said J. Phillip Thompson, Deputy Mayor for Strategic Policy Initiatives and Citywide M/WBE Director. “With 9,000 M/WBEs now city-certified, we urge the Governor to sign into a law a bill that would help address long-standing disparities and issues of access for certain communities.”

“This Administration will continue to work diligently to increase access, close the disparity gap, and deliver results for City M/WBEs,” said Jonnel Doris, Senior Advisor and Director of the Mayor’s Office of M/WBEs. “I am proud that we have more than doubled the number of City-certified M/WBE firms, reaching the Mayor’s goal to certify 9,000 firms. We will continue to implement new initiatives to lower barriers to entry, level the playing and increase opportunities for M/WBEs to successfully compete in our market.”

“Achieving Mayor de Blasio’s ambitious goal of certifying 9,000 M/WBEs is a direct result of our commitment to diversity and opening doors to opportunity for minority and women-owned businesses across NYC,” said Gregg Bishop, Commissioner of the NYC Department of Small Business Services. “As we hit this target, the door is still open. I encourage all minority and women-owned businesses to get certified and take advantage of all the supportive services that the City has to offer.”

Under Mayor Bill de Blasio, New York City has made an unprecedented commitment M/WBEs to address historic disparities in City contracting by providing them with increased opportunities to do business with the City.

Between the program’s inception in 1992 and this Administration coming into office in 2014, the City certified 3,670 M/WBEs. In the five years since Mayor de Blasio took office, the Administration has more than doubled the number certified, hitting its 2016 goal of 9,000 by July 2019.

Since July 2014, Local Law 1 contract awards to M/WBEs have increased from 9,163 contracts for a total value of $491 million, to 12,189 contracts worth nearly $1.1 billion in FY2018, representing an increase of 33% and 118%, respectively.

This March, the City announced a state legislative proposal to increase discretionary spending for purchases from M/WBEs from $150,000 to $1 million, with an anticipated impact of approximately 30-50 percent or $300-$500 million annually in awards to M/WBEs in that size range.

In May, the City announced an easier path to contracting with the City for minority and women-owned businesses through an improved online certification portal, called SBS Connect. The City also offers free services to help strengthen certified M/WBEs, including access to technical assistance, bonding, financing, teaming and mentorship.

In June, the State Legislature passed S6418A/A8407 sponsored by State Senator Kevin Parker and Assembly Member Rodneyse Bichotte, which would give the City of New York the authority to increase economic opportunities for Minority and Women-Owned Business Enterprises (M/WBEs). If signed into law, the City would be able to make discretionary awards to M/WBEs of up to $500,000. A higher discretionary threshold will increase M/WBEs’ access to more City projects that also are larger in scale. The bill would also allow the City to implement other key programs already available to M/WBEs at the State level such as a mentorship program and prequalified lists.

Firms interested in getting City-certified should visit sbsconnect.nyc.gov to complete the application.  For application assistance, visit one of the City's seven NYC Business Solutions Centers located in all five boroughs.

DE BLASIO ADMINISTRATION REACHES 5,000 CITY-CERTIFIED M/WBEs

5,000 City-certified minority and women-owned businesses puts the Administration ahead of schedule to certifying 9,000 M/WBEs by 2019

  Deputy Mayor for Strategic Policy Initiatives and Citywide M/WBE Director Richard Buery today announced that the City has reached 5,000 City-certified Minority and Women-owned Business Enterprises (M/WBEs), meaning the Administration is ahead of schedule of reaching 9,000 City-certified M/WBEs by 2019.

The 5,000th City-certified M/WBE is a Bronx-based transportation firm owned by Miguel Cabrera who was born in the Dominican Republic and immigrated to the U.S. in 2009. After receiving his legal residency, Cabrera worked as a taxi driver and was later inspired to open his own transportation company in 2015. His company, MC Transportation, specializes in delivery services, commercial and residential moving services and construction waste and debris removal. Deputy Mayor Buery and key Administration officials focused on the M/WBE effort presented Miguel with his M/WBE certificate a letter from Mayor Bill de Blasio at a NYC Business Solutions Center in the Bronx. In the letter, the Mayor thanked Cabrera for making contributions to the local economy and highlighted the importance of having all New Yorkers participate in New York City’s economy.

“This City works best when all people - regardless of race, religion or ethnicity - have the resources they need to reach their full potential,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio. “My Administration is committed to providing those resources to business owners like Miguel, beginning with City-certification, as a way to help grow and sustain their business. I thank Miguel for establishing a Bronx-based firm, hiring locally and reinvesting in the community and congratulate him on being the 5000th City-certified M/WBE firm.”

"We know that with certification comes opportunity. By getting certified by the City as an M/WBE, businesses can access mentoring programs, workshops, networking opportunities and other programs that can help their businesses grow and win contracts with City agencies," saidRichard Buery, Deputy Mayor for Strategic Policy Initiatives and Citywide M/WBE Director. "Today marks a critical milestone toward our goal of certifying 9,000 M/WBEs in the next three years. I would like to congratulate Miguel Cabrera, owner of Bronx-based MC Transportation, for being number 5,000!"

“I started my own business to become more independent and give back to my local community by hiring people from my neighborhood,” said Miguel Cabrera. “Working with the City and obtaining City certification can help grow and expand my business so that I can continue hiring locally. I look forward to using City business as a resource and visiting the Department of Small Business Services to learn how I can continue to manage a successful business. I also thank the de Blasio Administration for prioritizing minority and women-owned businesses.”

The de Blasio Administration encourages all M/WBEs interested in doing business with the City to apply for City-certification. City-certified M/WBEs have access to the latest contracting opportunities, are granted City resources that help them bid and successfully perform on City contracts, and are added to the M/WBE Online Directory where contractors and City agencies can proactively seek M/WBEs to do business with. M/WBEs interested in becoming City certified can visit nyc.gov/getcertified.

The Department of Small Business Services recently streamlined the applications for M/WBE certification and recertification to provide a more efficient path to getting certified while maintaining the integrity of the process. The new, user-friendly applications have 30 percent less paperwork and are simplified and sequenced to expedite the completion process. The City also created a separate simpler application for small businesses that are sole proprietors to make the application process more accessible and user-friendly. This will directly benefit women business owners across New York City since 90 percent of women-owned businesses across the United States are sole proprietors.

In September of 2016, when Mayor Bill de Blasio announced his certification goal, the Mayor also announced the goal of awarding 30 percent of the value of all City contracts to M/WBEs by 2021.

“City-certification is a resource that minority and women-owned businesses can utilize to help grow and sustain their business,” said Jonnel Doris, Senior Advisor and Director of the Mayor’s Office of M/WBEs. “I’m happy to see people like Miguel get certified and access all of the resources that come along with MWBE certification, and I congratulate him on being the 5,000th City-certified M/WBE. He embodies everything that makes this City great – the entrepreneurial spirit that this City welcomes from all walks of life to establish businesses and reinvest in local communities.”

“Minority and women-owned businesses play a vital role in our local economy, and I am proud to support Mayor de Blasio’s vision for investing in their success,” said Gregg Bishop, Commissioner of the Department of Small Business Services. “Today, we are excited to celebrate the 5,000th M/WBE that is certified with the City – and to do it here in the Bronx during City Hall In Your Borough. City contractors should reflect the rich talents and diversity of all of our people, and I’m glad that our agency is leading the way by getting more firms certified and connecting them with contracting opportunities.”

PROGRESS:

• In 2015, the Mayor de Blasio established his OneNYC goal of awarding $16 billion to M/WBEs by 2025. The Administration has thus far awarded $3.54 billion dollars to M/WBEs putting the Administration on track to meeting the goal.

• Since the beginning of the Administration, the City has seen a steady increase in the value of City contracts being awarded to M/WBEs. In FY 15, the utilization rate was 8 percent. That number later increased to over 14 percent in FY 16 and – in the first two quarters of FY17 – over $571 million was awarded to M/WBEs, representing an 18 percent utilization rate.

"Increasing M/WBE participation in the City’s procurement process has been a priority of my Administration from day one. I congratulate Mayor de Blasio and his Administration on reaching this important milestone. As we move forward, I will continue to work with stakeholders at all levels of government as well as the private sector to increase MWBE participation and strengthen this critical piece of our city's economy," said Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr.