Number of LI's Hispanic-owned firms rising

The number of Long Island companies owned by Hispanics is growing fast, according to a state report.

State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli found there were 23,374 Hispanic businesses in Nassau and Suffolk counties in 2007, the most recent available data. That represents an increase of almost 44 percent from 2002, and is more than four times faster than the overall increase in region firms.

Hispanic companies, as a group, also rang up sales of nearly $3.1 billion in 2007, or 58 percent higher than the 2002 figure. Such a growth rate was more than twice that for all firms.

Suffolk posted the biggest gains in both the number of businesses and sales increase: 60 percent or higher. Each county has more than 11,000 Hispanic firms, which account for 7 percent of the total in each of the counties.

"The Hispanic business community is a force to be reckoned with and an important source of new jobs," said DiNapoli, a former assemblyman from Great Neck. "We have to make sure these businesses are given every opportunity to grow."

The Long Island data mirrors statewide trends showing Hispanic entrepreneurs primarily starting service businesses, particularly in health care, personal and social services and transportation and warehousing. Many are tiny, employing only the owners.

Separately, the 2010 Census, released last month, found Hispanics now constitute 15.5 percent of the Island's population. The number of Hispanics jumped 56.2 percent between 2000 and 2010.

New York City is home to 143,000 Hispanic-owned companies, or 74 percent of the statewide total.