Street vendors across New York City say they fear being targeted by immigration enforcement after Mayor Eric Adams vetoed a bill that would have removed criminal misdemeanor penalties for selling food without a cart permit, a new Documented report revealed.
The measure, known as Introduction 47-B, would have replaced misdemeanor penalties with civil fines, a change vendors say could have prevented such violations from appearing in immigration records. In vetoing the measure, Mayor Adams argued that it would strip the city of “an important enforcement tool” to regulate street vending violations under the city’s administrative code.
Advocates warn that the continued use of criminal summonses puts the overwhelmingly immigrant vendor workforce — 96% of them are foreign-born — at greater risk of deportation. New York City requires a vending unit permit, but with a waitlist exceeding 10,000, it can take decades to obtain one. Many work without a permit in the meantime, risking criminal tickets…