New York Mayor Mamdani cuts red tape for small businesses

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani this week unveiled a package of 50 policy changes aimed at reducing the financial burden of fines, fees, and regulations on mom-and-pop shops across the five boroughs. At a press conference in the Bronx, Mamdani listed several of the simplified rules. Bodega owners will no longer need a separate license to sell the same products outside the store—such as fruit and flowers—as inside. Restaurants will no longer need a “superfluous” frozen dessert permit to sell ice cream on top of the permit already required to sell food. Barber shops will only have to renew their permit every three years instead of annually. Street fair vendor permit fees will be reduced, restaurant inspections will be sped up, and equipment registration fees will be eliminated for a year.

A corresponding executive order signed by Mamdani on Monday will also expand the NYC Best program, which assigns each of the city's 180,000 small businesses—employing an estimated 1 million people—a case worker to help navigate the city's bureaucracy.

“I’m over the moon,” said Dawn Kelly, owner of Nourish Cafe in Jamaica, Queens. She launched her business in 2016 with the help of NYC Best, and her case worker “held my hand from the idea to cutting the ribbon.” Kelly, who also serves on the city's Small Business Advisory Commission, had relayed to the mayor's office that a required food-handling certificate course was offered at only one location citywide, forcing staff to travel from outer Queens to the Upper West Side. At the press conference, Deputy Mayor for Economic Justice Julie Su called out Kelly by name when announcing the course will now be offered at multiple locations. “These people are serious. They really care about small businesses,” Kelly said.

The reforms come during a tough period for small businesses. A recent city study found that while 3,540 businesses opened in the second quarter of 2025, another 8,400 similar-sized businesses closed—the lowest rate of new business formation in five years.

Although Mamdani, a Democratic Socialist, has faced harsh criticism from the right, even some opponents have praised the changes. The libertarian magazine Reason noted that while Mamdani is no libertarian icon, “if Mamdani’s critics are principled, they will welcome these pro-small business reforms.”

JW Mason, an associate professor of economics at John Jay College, said the reforms are “completely consistent with a democratic socialist approach to governance.” He added: “Governments that call themselves pro-business don’t particularly serve the interests of these smaller businesses… In some sense, a lot of what being a socialist mayor means is making government simply work better.”

Selina Ullrich, co-owner of High Beam Coffee Roastery in Brooklyn, welcomed the mayor's initiative: “It seems like he wants to accomplish things versus just talking about accomplishing things.”

Kelly, a former fan of centrist former Mayor Eric Adams, now considers herself a Mamdani supporter. When asked about his socialism, she said: “I don’t really care about those labels nowadays. I like that he stands for making sure nobody seems to feel marginalized… If that’s what socialism is, I’m all for it.”