Press Release Archives - 541-96 Seminar on Lending to Women and Minorities

Archives of the Mayor's Press Office

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: October 22, 1996

Release #541-96

Contact: Colleen Roche (212) 788-2958 or Nydia Negron (212) 788-9364

MAYOR GIULIANI ADDRESSES SEMINAR ON "LENDING TO WOMEN AND MINORITIES"; REITERATES CITY'S COMMITMENT TO ASSIST SMALL BUSINESSES

Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani today addressed a seminar on "Lending to Women and Minorities" sponsored by Banco Popular, Bloomberg Financial Services and Crains New York. The Mayor spoke about the City's commitment to fostering a pro-business environment in order to allow small and mid-sized businesses to stabilize and grow. He acknowledged the vital importance of small businesses to the local economy and the City's job and tax base.

"Giving all New Yorkers equal access to the capital that builds American dreams is of critical importance to our City's economy," said Mayor Giuliani. "That's why seminars like this one are vital to ensuring that women and minority communities have access to the capital they need and are provided equal opportunities for success."

The Mayor noted that nearly half of our City's private sector job base is in smaller businesses, and that as much as 75% of future job growth is also going to come from those businesses.

In his remarks to an audience of over 250 women and minorities who gathered in Manhattan, the Mayor pointed out that the Department of Business Services--under the leadership of Deputy Mayor Rudy Washington and Commissioner Earl Andrews, Jr.--is focusing on reaching out into the communities, working with women and minority entrepreneurs and helping cut the red tape in doing business in the City.

"We want to work with you to help alleviate some of the problems of doing business in New York City and we also want to provide tax relief," said the Mayor.

Highlighting his administration's initiatives to encourage small business development, the Mayor spoke about the elimination of the commercial rent tax in The Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island and Manhattan north of 96th Street. He also pointed to the reduction of the hotel occupancy tax.

"Reducing the hotel occupancy tax by about a third, we were able to help stimulate back-to-back record years for New York City tourism," added Mayor Giuliani. "By reducing crime and returning a sense of law and order to our streets and increasing job growth, we have made New York a safer, more decent city in which to live, work, visit and shop."