NYC to help ailing 'mom & pop' businesses

NEW YORK, Nov. 1 (UPI) -- New York City's "mom and pop" business owners are facing a crisis as bank loans dry up and customer spending evaporates, officials say.

The city's 220,000 small business are, next to Wall Street, its biggest tax revenue producer, and City Hall is supporting a proposed $700 million U.S. small business stimulus package being floated in Congress, the New York Daily News reported Saturday.

The administration of Mayor Michael Bloomberg Saturday was set to announce a new initiative meant to help struggling small businesses. Part of the effort is to support legislation from U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., calling for increased funding for federal loan guarantees and an expansion of the U.S. Small Business Administration.

In just the past year, the Daily News reported, spooked bankers have slashed the number of federally backed loans they're willing to hand out to New York's small businesses by 40 percent.

The Manhattan Chamber of Commerce says a survey it conducted of its members found nearly one-third who responded have fewer customers, while 17 percent said clients aren't paying on time.