Doing Business Accountability

Local Law 34 of 2007 (LL 34) is a campaign finance reform law that limits municipal campaign contributions from principal officers, owners and senior managers of entities considered to be doing business with the City.

The Law mandates the creation of a Doing Business Database to allow the City to enforce the law. This law helps to avoid the actuality or appearance of a link between government decisions and huge campaign contributions. The Doing Business Database also includes the names of organizations that own 10% or more of the entity, in addition to the persons who are officers, owners or senior managers.

The chart below displays the Doing Business contribution limits versus the regular contribution limits for persons not doing business with the City (one for those participating in the CFB matching program and a higher limit for donations to candidates that are not participating).

Office	Not Doing Business Donation Limit (candidate is participant in program)	Not Doing Business Donation Limit (candidate is not a participant in program)	Doing Business Donation Limit
Mayor, Public Advocate, Comptroller	$2,100	$3,700	$400
Borough President	$1,600	$2,650	$320
City Council	$1,050	$1,600	$250

Please see the Campaign Finance Board website for more information on campaign donation, spending limits and public matching funds. https://www.nyccfb.info/candidate-services/limits-thresholds/2025/

Transactions covered by LL 34 include most contracts, concessions, franchises and grants greater than $5,000, as well as most economic development agreements, real property transactions, land use actions and pension investment contracts. LL 34 also covers lobbyists.

An entity is considered to be 'doing business' with the City when the contract, franchise, concession, grant, discretionary award or economic development agreement that is being proposed on, applied or have already been awarded are covered by LL 34.

Entities only get on the public database if they aggregate over $100,000 in goods and services business or $500,000 in construction, or are awarded an economic development agreement, real property transaction, land use action or pension investment contract of any value.

The public database is populated with information gathered from entities through PASSPort or via a Doing Business Data Form (DBDF).

The DBDF is sent to the entity by the City Agency and then, when completed, should be sent back to that agency. The Doing Business Q&A provides further information on Local Law 34.

The Doing Business Database provides the public, campaigns, and the City's Campaign Finance Board with information on entities and individuals that do business with the City of New York.

Doing Business Accountability Forms

Agencies that use PASSPort to source their contracts can rely upon PASSPort to require the appropriate Local Law 34 certifications. For contracts not sourced through PASSPort (small purchase method, for example) and for entities that propose on or are awarded any of the non-procurement transactions covered under Local Law 34 (real property actions, economic development agreements, land use actions, frachises and concessions), the entity must complete an agency-supplied Doing Business Data Form before their proposals can be considered or awards made.

Entities generally complete Doing Business Data Forms at the time of proposal and award. A special Update Form must be completed by an entity when an individual who is or was affiliated with that entity requests to be removed from the Doing Business Database, or when an entity wants to update its information at a time other than proposal or award.

Information shown in the Database is provided by the entities themselves. If you believe that an entity or individual should not be listed in the Database because the entity does not participate in transactions covered by LL 34, or the individual does not hold one of the positions noted above, please complete a Removal Request Form.

For more information, visit our database page.