Regional Resources

Westchester County Resources

• Westchester County Office of Economic Development’s main mission is quickly connecting business owners and their representatives with the information, financial and human resources their organizations need to start, expand, stay or come to Westchester County – New York’s Intellectual Capital.
• The Westchester County Association Inc. is a business-based membership organization committed to addressing public policy issues with respect to business advocacy and economic development on behalf of the region’s corporate and not-for-profit organizations. 
• Business Council of Westchester is a business membership organization committed to helping businesses market, learn, advocate, and grow.
• Westchester Library System in conjunction with the Westchester Government Office of the County Executive, collaborates with 38 libraries in Westchester County to provide access to resources and services and to enhance and support library service for the more than 940,000 residents.
• Westchester Export Assistance Center covering the Hudson Valley, Capital Region and North Country, is a part of the U.S. Commercial Service of the U.S. Department of Commerce, a federal government agency dedicated to helping small-to-medium sized New York companies develop international markets.

New York State Resources

• NY Empire State Development Corporation directs a wide array of programs and initiatives to support small business growth and help entrepreneurs maximize their opportunities for success. The Entrepreneurial Assistance Program (EAP), in which WEDC participates, establishes centers in local communities to provide instruction, training, technical assistance and support services to individuals who have recently started their own business or are interested in starting a business. The program’s 24 EAP centers are strategically located throughout the State.
• New York State Small Business Development Center (SBDC) delivers high quality business counseling and training to New Yorkers who want to start a business or improve the performance of an existing business.  The Rockland SBDC serves Putnam, Rockland, and Westchester Counties.  Contact Louis Scamardella in Westchester County at lscamard@sunyrockland.edu.  In Rockland and Putnam Counties contact (845)356-6065.  In the Bronx contact Clarence Stanley at clarence.stanley@lehman.cuny.edu. 
  

National Resources

• US Small Business Administration (SBA) – this site provides a vast amount of information about starting and growing a business including many on-line tutorials
• SBA Office of Women’s Business Ownership runs the Women's Business Center (WBC) program in which WEDC participates.  Through the management and technical assistance provided by the WBCs, entrepreneurs, especially women who are economically or socially disadvantaged, are offered comprehensive training and counseling on a vast array of topics in many languages to help them start and grow their own businesses.
• Association for Enterprise Opportunity (AEO) is a national membership organization and voice of microenterprise development in the United States. 
• Internal Revenue Service (IRS) – this Web site provides a wealth of information for small businesses and the self-employed
• National Association for the Self-Employed was founded in 1981 to provide day-to-day support, including direct access to experts, benefits, and consolidated buying power that traditionally had been available only to large corporations.
• Women Impacting Public Policy is a national bipartisan public policy organization.

General Business

• IBM SME Toolkit - general business information for entrepreneurs
•  The Entrepreneur's Help Page - resources and information relating to starting a business. Includes many articles on multiple topics of interest to small business
• MoneyWi$e - (partnership of Consumer Action and Capital One) – basic business information

 Accounting and Legal Information

• IRS - Tax information for businesses- including starting, operating and closing a business, employer id numbers
• IRS Tax Center - Useful links to small business information on IRS Web site
• SBA Small Business Planner - Handles Legal Concerns
• New York State Division of Corporations - for information about legal business entities
• Pro Bono Partnership - provides nonprofit organizations with free, expert business legal advice

     To protect intellectual property

• Patent and Trademark Office - Basic facts about trademarks
• Patent and Trademark Office - Basic facts about patents
• Copyright Office - Copyright office basics

Minority and/or Woman Owned Business (M/WBO or M/WBE)
Certification and Procurement

Westchester County and NY State 

• Westchester County Office of Economic Development - Register as an M/WOB 
• New York State Empire Development CorporationDivision of Minority and Women-Owned Business Development- Register with NY State as an M/WBE
• New York State Contract Reporter - an on-line publication that provides access to the most current bid opportunities from State agencies, public authorities and public benefit corporations 
• New York State Office of General Services (OGS) – awards state contracts
• Directory of Frequently Purchased Commodities and Services by NYS Agencies
• New York State Unified Certification Program (NYUSCP) – combined business directories of the NY Dept. of Transportation, MTA, Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority, and Port Authority of NY/NJ
• Dormitory Authority State of New York (DASNY) - DASNY’s Opportunity Programs Group (OPG) supports two areas for MWBEs: Construction Contracting and Commodity Compliance
• NY & NJ Minority Supplier Development Council, Inc. identifies minority suppliers, certifies bona-fide minority business enterprises, and facilitates procurement opportunities between Corporate America and Council-certified minority suppliers.
• NYC Business Solutions - provides extensive on-line resources for starting and growing a business
  

Federal 

• Procurement Technical Assistance Centers Contact Liz Kallen, Program Manager, at (845) 735-7040 or lizk@redc.org.
• Federal Government Central Contractor Registration
• Women-Owned Small Business Federal Contract Program
• SBA's On-line Courses for Federal Contracting- general info, not specifically MWBE
  

 Additional M/WBE and Procurement Resources   

• New York City - Minority and Women-owned Business Enterprise Certification Program
•  Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC) – certification for private corporations
• National Women's Business Council - a bi-partisan federal advisory council that promotes initiatives, policies, and programs designed to support women's business enterprises
• Procurement Technical Assistance Center (housed in Rockland County) - for assistance with completing M/WBE applications
• Hudson Valley Municipal Purchasing Group - a group of municipal agencies located in New York's Hudson Valley Region that joined forces in March 2002 to create this Regional Bid Notification System to notify businesses of bid and contract opportunities.

 
SBA Resource Partners

 

Westchester SCORE  - in- person mentoring
NYS Small Business Development Center-advice in areas including export assistance,funding, licensing & regulations

Resources Recommended by WEDC Instructors, Clients and Supporters

• Ellen Parlapiano's Favorite Business Resources
• Edison Guzman's (A&E Advertising and HVBiz.com) Powerpoint presentation and audio recording of his February 9, 2012 workshop on attracting customers using the internet