Small Businesses Applaud President Biden’s Executive Order Promoting Competition in the American Economy

July 9, 2021

On President Biden’s Executive Order on Promoting Competition in the American Economy, Main Street Alliance Executive Co-Directors Chanda Causer and Stephen Michael had this to say:

“President Biden's executive order today addresses key concerns on competition we hear from small business owners across the country. This important action moves us closer to real solutions to combat increased corporate consolidation and levels the playing field against monopolistic market practices.

In particular, the guardrails on Big Tech introduced today are incredibly important to small businesses competing on and with these giant platforms that also determine and control the avenues to reaching customers. Tech is not the only industry impacted by consolidation, and so small businesses applaud the over 70 initiatives that will impact industries long-suffering from corporate overreach, including health care, financial services, agriculture, and more. 

In addition to the focus on Big Tech, we are encouraged by initiatives to expose and limit monopoly control in healthcare and prescription drug pricing and small business lending - two critical issues for small business owners.

While this executive order demonstrates the Biden-Harris administration’s seriousness of tackling longstanding corporate concentration, there are limits to what an executive order can do. We also need Congress to be serious about addressing market power problems and committed to making the competition a priority. Legislators must take up the package of antitrust bills that recently moved through committee.

For policymakers interested in a robust, competitive small business economy, passing new anti-monopoly laws must be a key federal priority in 2021. Antitrust regulation is one place where we can look to build a more resilient and fair economy coming out of the pandemic.”

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You can also read the statement from our Coalition Partners at Small Business Rising