Today, more than 15 independent business associations from Small Business Rising released a letter in support of the United States Department of Justice’s (DOJ) antitrust enforcement led by Assistant Attorney General (AAG) Jonathan Kanter. The letter is delivered in anticipation of the House Judiciary’s Subcommittee on the Administrative State, Regulatory Reform, and Antitrust oversight hearing where AAG Kanter will testify before the Subcommittee on the Antitrust Division’s mission and programs on Nov 14, 2023.
Small Business Rising represents more than 300,000 independent businesses from diverse industries across the United States. A letter excerpt is below, with the full letter here.
“As a coalition representing the interests of small and independent businesses across the country, we believe that the DOJ’s Antitrust Division work under AAG Kanter’s leadership has been crucial for fostering a fair and competitive marketplace and safeguarding the right of small and independent business to compete and serve the needs of their communities. We urge Congress to work collaboratively to ensure the DOJ’s Antitrust Division has the resources and support to pursue its mandate to promote economic competition through enforcing and providing guidance on antitrust laws and principles.
“America’s small businesses are the backbone of our local economies and communities — and, yet, every day we lose more independent businesses because of the abusive and anti-competitive tactics of monopolistic corporations. This is the top threat to our members. Antitrust enforcement has largely been ignored by federal enforcers until AAG Kanter’s appointment to the DOJ and Chair Lina Khan’s appointment to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). Under their leadership, both the DOJ and FTC led an unprecedented effort to strengthen the merger guidelines — representing a significant shift in policy to foster completion. Members of our coalition have long supported updating the merger guidelines, and once finalized the new guidelines take important steps toward establishing a new era in antitrust where mergers are not given a pass for their theoretical efficiencies, but rather scrutinized for the inherent threats to fairness, broad prosperity, and vibrant local economies.”
Signed by:
American Booksellers Association
American Independent Business Alliance
American Specialty Toy Retailing Association
Cambridge Local First
Independent Shopkeepers Association
Institute for Local Self-Reliance
Local First Arizona
Louisville Independent Business Alliance
Love Live Local Inc
Main Street Alliance
New Atlantic Independent Booksellers Association
North American Hardware and Paint Association
Provender Alliance
Running Industry Association
SMSBF
Workplace Solutions Association
About Small Business Rising
Small Business Rising, a coalition of more than 40 organizations representing more than 300,000 independent businesses, formed in 2021 to urge policymakers to rein in monopoly power and inject fairness into a system that has long left small businesses at a competitive disadvantage. The Hill described the coalition as "playing a pivotal role in high-profile debates over antitrust," and helping "sway lawmakers to advance legislation to break up the largest tech companies through the House Judiciary Committee.”
Together, members of the coalition and small business voices have calling for Congress to stop tech monopolies, like Amazon, from cornering the online market by breaking them up and regulating them, for states to pass robust antitrust laws, and for Federal regulators to use their enforcement authorities to block dominant corporations from engaging in abusive tactics. For media inquiries, please email media[at]smallbusinessrising[dot]net | SmallBusinessRising.net.
Header image source: Newsweek