Testimony: Street Vendor Justice Will Strengthen NYC’s Economy Through Equitable, Inclusive Growth

Testimony: Street Vendor Justice Will Strengthen NYC's Economy Through Equitable, Inclusive Growth

Debipriya Chatterjee

Testimony delievered before the New York City Council Committee on Consumer and Worker Protection

Thank you to Chairperson Menin and to all the members of the Committee for the opportunity to testify today. My name is Debipriya Chatterjee, and I am a senior economist with the Community Service Society of New York (CSS), a long-time nonprofit dedicated to improving the lives of low-income New Yorkers through research, advocacy, and direct services. CSS has been involved with Street Vendor Justice coalition since 2021 and today I would like to voice our support for Intros 431 and 408.

For over two centuries, each new wave of immigrants arriving in our city turned to street vending as a means of finding an economic foothold. Today, street vendors continue to be a vital part of our economy. A study by the non-partisan Institute for Justice found that street vendors contribute $71 million in local, state, and federal taxes. We estimate that the city is home to 23,000 street vendor small businesses, collectively contributing $192 million in wages, $292.7 million in goods and services, and $71.2 million in taxes to our city. And yet, despite their contributions, street vendors continue to be harassed and marginalized by the administration.

It is imperative that the Council pass Intro 431 to take the first meaningful step toward formalizing street vending and integrating it into the city's mainstream economy. Currently, 75 percent of mobile food vendors and 37 percent of general vendors operate without business licenses-not due to disregard for the law, but because of arbitrary caps that have frozen licenses for decades. With official waitlists closed, many street vendors are forced to turn to underground markets or operate without a license, leaving them vulnerable to exploitation. Permits and licenses cost only a few hundred dollars in administrative fees, but vendors typically have to pay $6,000 to $8,000 thousand dollars on the black market to rent a permit. Many vendors accrue considerable debt to make this payment, often resorting to informal and predatory lenders to borrow the money and are forced to live in a state of chronic financial precarity, especially when their annual earnings are estimated to be around $30,000.

These vendors clearly meet real economic demand. By failing to recognize and regulate them, the city, state, and federal governments not only miss out on sales tax revenue, but also neglect to ensure fair and safe working conditions, including enforcement of operating and siting rules, and oversight of the quality of food and merchandise offered. According to the Independent Budget Office, the net fiscal benefit of ensuring vendors can access licenses is $59 million-revenue the city could urgently use in this challenging budget environment.

Intro 431 would expand access to business licenses while ensuring regulatory compliance of all mobile food and merchandise, creating a more orderly, regulated street vending system while providing economic opportunities for our city's smallest businesses.

Meanwhile, Intro 408 would establish a Division of Street Vendor Assistance within the Department of Small Business Services to provide street vendors with training, education, and outreach to support business compliance and growth. While more than five agencies conduct street vendor enforcement, no city agency is tasked with vendor education or support.

Passing these two bills would do more than strengthen the street vending industry-it would uphold the city's values of equity, economic opportunity, and community. Because the majority of street vendors are immigrants, they are currently at a higher risk of being targeted by federal immigration enforcement. City policy should support our economy while uplifting our residents and the City Council must enact policies to protect New Yorkers.

Street vendor justice is also a gender justice issue. Nearly half of all street vendors are women, yet women are far less likely than men to hold business licenses. Among mobile food vendors, only 27 percent of permit holders are women, and among licensed general vendors, only 14 percent are women. Expanding access to vendor business licenses would open critical economic pathways for women entrepreneurs.

Street vendors are our city's smallest businesses. They reflect the great diversity of our communities and are a true embodiment of the entrepreneurial spirit of our city. Innovating, creating, and investing in our local economies, vendors show up every day to support their families and serve their neighbors. Instead of criminalizing their efforts, the City must cut unnecessary red tape and create a healthy regulatory environment that allows these essential workers to thrive.

Thank you for this opportunity. Please reach out to me at dchatterjee@cssny.org if you have any questions.

Issues Covered

Workforce

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