More than a dozen independent business associations representing thousands of Main Street businesses have urged the U.S. Federal Trade Commission to revive Robinson-Patman Act enforcement. READ FULL LETTER.

“The undersigned organizations representing thousands of small businesses across our country write urging the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to use long-dormant regulatory powers to address predatory buying practices from dominant corporations by enforcing the Robinson-Patman Act (RPA). The responsibility to ensure fairness in our markets for both consumers and small businesses is vital for a functioning democracy. And we’re running out of time.

Washington, DC – Today, the New York State Assembly and Senate took important steps to level the playing field for small businesses by advancing the 21st Century Antitrust Act. The bill would usher in much needed reforms to the state’s existing antitrust laws and would place New York at the forefront of a movement to rein in corporate power and create a fair, open marketplace for independent businesses. 

10+ independent business organizations and small business advocates endorsed the bill, including:

More than 20 independent business associations wrote to United States financial regulators and the Department of Justice urging them to block the proposed merger between Capital One and Discover. Small Business Rising coalition partners have identified soaring credit card swipe fees as a key pain point for small businesses, with merchant swipe fees often ranking as the highest business expense after payroll. In addition to urging the Capital One and Discover merger to be blocked, coalition partners have advocated for Congress to pass the bipartisan, bicameral Credit Card Competition Act.    

The American Booksellers Association along with a dozen Small Business Rising coalition partners and hundreds of independent businesses, have declared March 20, 2024 as “SBA: Dump Amazon Day.” The Day of Action is to show opposition to the United States Small Business Administration's partnership with Amazon during its annual celebration of small businesses, National Small Business Week (NSBW), happening this year April 28 - May 4, 2024. 

Join independent businesses from across the country for a virtual town hall event to mark our progress and build momentum to rein in monopoly power and level the playing field for small, independent businesses. 

The below undersigned organizations from Small Business Rising — a coalition of small business membership associations representing more than 300,000 independent businesses — are writing to show our support for the bipartisan, bicameral 2023 Credit Card Competition Act (S.1838) and to underscore the urgency for Congress to pass this legislation. With the upcoming Senate Judiciary committee hearing, we urge you to heed the calls of the small business community for this lifeline, which would spur competition and curtail the outsized power of the big banks and dominant credit card companies.

Washington, DC — More than 20 partners of the Small Business Rising coalition—representing hundreds of thousands of small businesses nationwide—released a letter to the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) showing their disappointment with the agency’s past financial partnerships with monopolies—such as Amazon, Google, and Visa—for National Small Business Week (NSBW). The letter urges the agency to enlist partners who are aligned with its mission to help Americans start, grow, and build resilient businesses, not mega-corporations that use their power and dominance in the market to stifle competition from smaller competitors. 

We applaud the Federal Trade Commission for filing suit to end Amazon’s monopolization of the online shopping market. No other company poses as big a threat to independent businesses and the health and dynamism of the U.S. economy. Amazon derives its dominance through classic monopoly tactics, and with this lawsuit, the FTC seeks to break Amazon’s chokehold. 

Today small business leaders and advocates joined together for a virtual press event urging support for the Credit Card Competition Act — legislation aimed at injecting competition into the credit card processing industry and addressing the Visa/Mastercard duopoly, which has resulted in skyrocketing swipe fees for independent businesses.