Kathleen Sforza’s Testimony – Committee on Small Business

Oversight – The Mayor’s Recovery Agenda

January 22, 2021

Thank you for allowing me to speak today.

When it comes to how New York City treats small business, N. Y. C. will soon be an acronym for Nann Y City!

Why? Overregulation and taxes on small businesses do not encourage entrepreneurship. They discourage it!

Government bureaucracy scares people. Government bureaucracy hits the STOP button every step of the way.

Business owners do not know the rules of the game. Why? Overregulation by government agencies causes rule changes. Business owners can never truly know if they are doing the right thing. I owned Town & Country Gifts, on Staten Island, for 25 years from 1987-2013. I was a business owner who feared every time I got a visit from one of the government agencies. The first thing I thought was, what did I do wrong? It would take a massive amount of education to keep up with the rules and regulations of every city, state, and federal agency. I have family and friends who work in the restaurant business. A visit from the Department of Health can end in an unfair grade.

Sanitation is quick to ticket a store owner for improperly disposing of their garbage or not sweeping18″ from the curb.

This pandemic has shown the small business community just what the government thinks of them. DISPOSABLE! Big box stores all open, but small businesses that can control their crowds need to be closed. Where is the logic? Where is the science?

Unfortunately, years of government regulations cause innovative entrepreneurs to throw their hands up in the air and give up! Let’s change from Government the Great Discourager to Government the Encourager!

Post-Pandemic Recovery will need to involve cash grants, without all the red tape, to assist small businesses with back rent and utility bills. No fining! We need to open this city and build it back!

Thank you for your time and consideration.

Kindest Regards,

Kathleen Sforza

Candidate for City Council, District 50, Staten Island

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