Bronx Small Businesses Meet with New York Lawmakers to Discuss One Fair Price Act

BRONX, N.Y. (Oct. 21, 2026) — Bronx small business leaders last week met with Assemblymembers Emérita Torres and Landon C. Dais, along with representatives of Assemblymember George Alvarez’s office, to discuss concerns about New York’s One Fair Price Act and its potential impact on small business discounts and promotions. 

Hosted by the Connected Commerce Council (3C) and the Bronx Chamber of Commerce, the roundtable brought together local entrepreneurs and policymakers to discuss how small businesses use digital tools to attract customers, increase sales, and compete with larger companies.

Business owners shared firsthand examples of how they use automated discounts, loyalty programs, and customer information to grow their businesses. Participants discussed abandoned-cart reminders, targeted email promotions, and other tools that help small businesses connect with customers without requiring significant marketing budgets.

“I appreciate Assemblymembers Torres and Dais taking the time to hear directly from small businesses,” said Desmond West, founder of pinStripe IT. “I regularly adjust my pricing to make IT services more affordable for startups and small businesses in the Bronx and other parts of the New York Metro area. That flexibility is important to helping other local businesses get off the ground. Larger organizations have the funds to figure out loopholes in the law, whereas small businesses like mine simply want to do things responsibly. As technology makes these pricing decisions easier to automate, we don’t want well-intended regulations to make it harder for small businesses to serve their communities.”

The One Fair Price Act is intended to prevent businesses from using personal data to set individualized prices. While the legislation includes protections for certain discounts and loyalty programs, 3C has raised concerns that some legitimate, data-informed promotions could fall outside those exceptions. Small businesses also questioned how the bill’s disclosure and eligibility requirements would apply to automated discounts and other promotional tools.

Assemblymember Torres, who sponsored the legislation, discussed its consumer-protection goals and explained how the bill is intended to preserve legitimate discounts. She also heard directly from participating businesses about their promotional practices and indicated that she would take their feedback into consideration as discussions about the legislation continue.

“Digital tools make it possible for small businesses like mine to connect with customers and offer discounts that encourage them to come back,” said Tasliym Abdul-Hamid, founder of King Energy Only. “I’ve seen firsthand how a simple promotional offer can turn a first-time customer into a recurring subscriber. As both a Bronx resident and a small business owner, I understand the importance of protecting consumers from unfair pricing. We need to make sure those protections don’t unintentionally limit the discounts that help businesses like mine grow.”

With the legislation awaiting action by Governor Kathy Hochul, 3C is calling for additional clarification and amendments that protect legitimate small business discounts while maintaining safeguards against harmful surveillance pricing.

“I commend these small businesses for sharing their perspectives on this important issue,” said 3C Executive Director Rob Retzlaff. “As New York considers new pricing protections, it’s important that policymakers understand how these tools work in practice and ensure that legitimate discounts remain accessible to small businesses.”