Here’s what you missed during Philly’s influential tri-state Black Chamber tour to prepare for 2026

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Despite a year marked by political shifts, inflation and new tariffs, Black-owned businesses still have pathways to opportunities for contracting with the state, county and city-level municipalities, according to the African American Chamber of Commerce for Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware.

Philadelphia is bracing for a wave of global attention in 2026 as the city prepares to welcome a surge of visitors for the country’s semiquincentennial. Even as the small business tax exemption expires, the total business tax burden has been reduced by Mayor Cherelle Parker’s administration and approved by Philadelphia City Council, chamber leaders told WHYY News.

To connect with local businesses, the tri-state African American Chamber of Commerce began its multicity tour in Harrisburg and included stops in Camden, Wilmington and Philadelphia.

It’s been about six months since President Donald Trump signed executive orders to deprioritize and legally challenge all diversity, equity and inclusion efforts by the federal government, contractors, nonprofits and private companies. His administration has also been in a monthslong trade war across the globe that has resulted in higher tariffs for businesses that import goods manufactured outside of America.

This economic situation is more difficult for some Black professionals to continue their plans, whether they were a federal government contractor, subcontractor, laid-off federal employee or if they ran a business that imports finished products from overseas, chamber officials said.

At the same time, local municipalities have continued to prioritize small businesses and historically disadvantaged business contracting, so the strategy is to lean into what’s possible, said chamber CEO Regina Hairston and board member James Sanders in a joint interview with WHYY News. Both serve on Parker’s business roundtables as advisors.

“The tour was for our organization an opportunity to reach across the region and bring the African American Chamber of Commerce for [Pennsylvania], New Jersey [and] Delaware to the members in their respective regions to really listen, understand what some of the issues and challenges are, but also put key stakeholders in front of them to provide access to the resources, networks, access to capital, procurement opportunities and policy,” Sanders said.

For example, Dr. Erica Patterson is the deputy secretary for Diversity, Inclusion and Small Business Opportunities in Pennsylvania and she shared during the tour how the state is working to lower the barrier of entry for historically disadvantaged businesses.

“One of them is helping folks in the supply chain get paid faster and the other is to get certified quicker,” Sanders said. “Years ago, it took weeks, months. Now they stated that they can get it done in two days.”

Across Pennsylvania there are 67 counties, each with procurement needs, and in the larger communities like Allegheny and Montgomery counties as well as Philadelphia, there are initiatives to diversify their contracting pool, Sanders said.

Hairston said that even in nearby Maryland, Gov. Wes Moore has been spearheading an effort to ensure more contracting opportunities at the state level for Black-owned businesses.

“Even though you see the negative policies coming out of the federal government [states] can change that,” Hairston said. “Even though there’s defunding of Black businesses, [Maryland] put in the budget where they’re supporting it. They’ve given out a record number [of contracts]. That’s where your local government becomes super important and having that relationship where as a chamber we’re constantly meeting with our elected officials to let them know what the priorities are for building business. That’s exactly the policies we’re seeing coming out of Harrisburg as well.”

Hairston said she’s bullish on the progress by Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and Lt. Gov. Austin Davis.

“We know that in order for the economy of the region to grow, everyone has to be participating and that means Black businesses,” she said.

But the vast majority of those companies are operated by sole proprietors and don’t have any employees, she said. So the chamber is standing up a “back office” for its members, she said, which would include accountants, attorneys, human resources and marketing to help businesses succeed in a more challenging economic and legal environment, whether that’s about paying the city’s business income and receipts taxes for the first time or vying for a government contract, she said.

“We’re using this outsourcing strategy of growth so that they can grow and, once they grow, they’ll be able to hire internally,” she said. “What I’ve heard from our members [is that] they are optimistic, and hopeful.”

Beyond that, the organization looks to help Black-owned businesses merge or acquire each other to create a bigger company that could qualify for government contracts to meet the needs of a municipality.

“We lean into that availability [of diverse businesses] study to ensure that there are available businesses to select from,” Sanders said.

And that includes businesses interested in contracting with the city of Philadelphia to support the 2026 events or strategizing around some of the designated celebration sites, Hairston said.

“Everyone will have to utilize one of the garages around Center City and Lemon Hill, there’s an access point for all entrepreneurs where there will be an onslaught of traffic,” she said. “There will be no cars allowed to park at Lincoln Financial Field.”