Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York has joined with other senators to urge the administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration, Kelly Loeffler, to take action to protect the nation’s 34 million small businesses from the effects of Donald Trump’s trade war tariffs.
“The situation is dire,” the senators wrote in their letter asking for action by Loeffler. “From mom-and-pop restaurants unable to afford basic supplies like cooking oil to small manufacturers and high-tech startups struggling to afford the raw materials needed for innovation, small businesses across all sectors are facing the same crippling reality. As these costs rise, consumer confidence continues to plummet, and the economy stagnates.”
Schumer joined with Senators Ed Markey, Maria Cantwell, Jeanne Shaheen, Cory Booker, Chris Coons, Mazie Hirono, Jacky Rosen, John Hickenlooper and Adam B. Schiff in writing to Loeffler.
The senators cited a survey by Small Business for America’s Future that found that 71% of small businesses will need to increase prices to survive.
“With consumer confidence at its lowest since the pandemic, many owners know their customers cannot afford higher prices,” the senators wrote. “The tariffs, therefore, are not only increasing costs, but also are undermining the very demand from customers that small businesses rely on.”
The senators said the smallest businesses lost 100,000 jobs in March and a majority of small businesses are facing a decline in revenue, which has not happened since the Covid pandemic. They pointed to a Tax Foundation projection that suggests Trump’s tariffs will reduce U.S. Gross Domestic Product by 0.7%, and that estimate does not even account for the retaliatory tariffs that will follow. The senators said small exporters, which account for 97% U.S. exporting firms will be particularly hard-hit as they are far less equipped to absorb new costs.
“Small businesses, which operate on razor-thin margins, are uniquely vulnerable to the cost increases caused by President Trump’s tariffs,” the senators said. “Many small business owners face a dire choice: either raise prices, risking losing customers, or absorb the cost increases, potentially laying off workers or closing their doors entirely.”
The senators pointed out that the Trump Administration has chosen to prioritize cuts to programs that help small businesses such as the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund and the Manufacturing Extension Partnership. They said the cuts limit access to capital and new markets, as well as other vital support.
“Failure to act will not only jeopardize the livelihoods of small business owners but may also lead to long-term financial hardship for the 60 million workers employed by small business,” the senators said. “As a representative of millions of entrepreneurs who are on the brink of disaster and the voice of small businesses in the administration, you have an obligation to fight for their survival.”
