N.Y.C. Charter § 13-e: Section 13-e. Office of street vendor enforcement.

There shall be an office of street vendor enforcement, which shall consist of enforcement agents who are specially trained in local laws and rules related to vending on the streets and sidewalks of the city of New York. The office of street vendor enforcement shall be fully operational on or before September 1, 2021 and shall commence enforcement activities on or before such date. Such enforcement activities shall, at a minimum, include a sufficient number of street patrols to inspect or examine the vending activities of at least 80 percent of applicable permittees or licensees on an annual basis. For the purposes of this section, the term "applicable permittees or licensees" means persons issued full-term or temporary permits pursuant to section 17-307 of the administrative code, or persons issued licenses to vend pursuant to sections 17-307 or 17-307.1 of the administrative code, or licenses issued pursuant to section 20-456 of the administrative code. The mayor may establish such office in the executive office of the mayor, within any other office in the executive office of the mayor, or within any department, the head of which is appointed by the mayor. Such office shall have the power and duty to:

a. enforce all local laws and rules related to vending on the streets and sidewalks and in parks of the city of New York, other than such local laws and rules related to food safety, including, but not limited to: section 16-118, subchapter 2 of chapter 3 of title 17, section 18-146, subchapter 27 of chapter 2 of title 20 and chapter 1 of title 24 of the administrative code; article 89 of the health code; and any rules of the city of New York implementing such laws;

b. focus its enforcement efforts on areas including, but not limited to, areas adjacent to retailers that dedicate substantial floor area to the sale of fresh fruits and vegetables, areas that are restricted to vending by sections 17-315 and 20-465 of the administrative code, and any other areas identified by the department of transportation as a global corridor or a regional corridor and featuring a high level of complaints about vendor activity, if any;

c. collaborate with the department of small business services to provide training, outreach and education to all street vendors on entrepreneurship and compliance with all applicable local laws and regulations, as well as solicit feedback from the street vendor community;

d. receive all complaints related to street vending on the streets and sidewalks of the city of New York from the 311 service center or from any other means; and

e. engage in such other activities related to enforcement of laws related to vending on the streets and sidewalks and in parks of the city of New York, or related to improving compliance with such laws, as may be designated by the mayor. For the purposes of this section, a “global corridor” and a “regional corridor” are each one of the five street categories referenced in the department of transportation’s NYC streets plan established pursuant to section 19-199.1 of the administrative code.

(L.L. 2021/018, 2/28/2021, eff. 2/28/2021; Am. L.L. 2024/117, 12/3/2024, eff. 12/3/2024; Am. L.L. 2026/054, 1/29/2026, eff. 1/29/2026)