| State economic development agency | Empire State Development (ESD) |
| State SBIR/STTR phase-zero match | No statewide match |
| Formal small-business set-aside program | Yes (DBE/MBE/WBE/VOSB) |
| Signature grant programs cataloged | 2 programs |
Empire State Development (ESD) is New York's lead economic-development agency, structured as a public-benefit corporation. ESD administers the Excelsior Jobs Program, the Empire State Apprenticeship Tax Credit, the Restore New York Communities Initiative, the NY Forward downtown revitalization grants, the NYS Innovation Hot Spots, and a large portfolio of regional and sector-specific programs through the Regional Economic Development Councils (REDCs). The annual Consolidated Funding Application (CFA) is the unified application channel for many of these programs.
Primary site: Empire State Development (ESD)
The state's lead jobs-creation incentive, providing refundable tax credits over 10 years to companies in strategic industries (high-tech, biotech, manufacturing, financial services, agriculture, distribution, music, software). Three credit components (jobs, investment, R&D).
The annual CFA is the unified application channel for ~30 ESD and partner-agency funding programs distributed through the ten REDCs. Single application opens roughly mid-year with a multi-month cycle.
NY operates one of the largest state MWBE programs (30% participation goal) plus a state-level SDVOB program (6% goal).
NY's Minority and Women-Owned Business Enterprise (MWBE) certification, with a statewide 30% participation goal on state contracts. Among the largest state MWBE programs by participation goal.
NY SDVOB certification with a 6% participation goal on state contracts. Certification is state-level; separate from federal VOSB/SDVOSB.
New York does not currently operate a statewide SBIR/STTR Phase 0 or Phase I match program. Eligible small businesses still apply directly to federal SBIR/STTR through the participating federal agencies (DoD, NIH, NSF, DOE, NASA, etc.) via SBIR.gov.
NY uses several portals depending on program: the CFA portal for REDC and unified-application programs, the NY Grants Gateway (now consolidating into SFS) for many state agency grants, and program-specific portals for procurement and certification. The CFA is the dominant unified channel for ESD-related programs.
Portal: NY Grants Gateway (legacy) + Statewide Financial System (SFS) + CFA portal
Federal grants reach businesses in New York through several pass-through channels: HUD CDBG-State dollars administered by Empire State Development (ESD) that sub-grant to localities for economic development; EDA public-works and economic-adjustment grants flowing through regional EDA offices; USDA Rural Development Business and Industry loan guarantees and Rural Business Development Grants for rural-county operations; and SBA programs (7(a), 504, Microloan, CDFI) accessed via local lenders. Business eligibility for each channel depends on entity size, location (rural vs urban), and use-of-funds.
CDBG state administrator: Empire State Development (ESD) (CDBG-state administrator)
EDA regional contact: US EDA regional office
State programs cover one half of the picture. Federal grants flow through 26 federal agencies via Grants.gov; the eligibility floor often overlaps with state programs. Use the GrantProbe Grant Finder to filter federal grants by entity type, sector, and award size, and read our federal grants for startups primer for the framework behind every match.
New York's economic development agency administers several grant and incentive programs for businesses, but most flagship programs require either an existing operation, a defined hiring commitment, or capital investment milestones. Pure pre-revenue startups should usually pair federal SBIR/STTR (where R&D-eligible) with state innovation match programs (if available) and CDFI lending. See the signature programs section above for the named New York programs and their eligibility thresholds.
No. New York does not currently operate a statewide SBIR/STTR Phase 0 or Phase I match program. Eligible small businesses apply directly to federal SBIR/STTR through participating agencies at SBIR.gov. Some New York regional or university-based innovation programs may provide application support; check the state economic development agency for current partnerships.
The Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program flows from HUD to New York's state agency (Empire State Development (ESD) (CDBG-state administrator)), which sub-grants to localities. Businesses do not apply directly to the state for CDBG dollars; they apply to participating cities or counties for economic development sub-awards (job creation, blight remediation, low-to-moderate-income workforce). Contact your local economic development office for current sub-awards.
New York uses NY Grants Gateway (legacy) + Statewide Financial System (SFS) + CFA portal. See the application portal section above for the portal URL and pattern. Most state-administered programs require pre-registration with a state vendor identification number before an application can be submitted.