Ranking Member Edward J. Markey announced on May 4 the start of National Small Business Week, which runs from May 3 to May 9, and congratulated America’s 36 million small businesses as well as Bryan Corso, owner of Corso Plumbing and Heating in Haverhill, Massachusetts, who was named one of the 2026 National Small Business Persons of the Year.
National Small Business Week recognizes the important role that entrepreneurs and small business owners play in local economies across the country. The week is intended to highlight their contributions to job creation and community development.
“In Massachusetts and across the country, small businesses like Corso Plumbing and Heating in Haverhill are the backbone of our communities—creating jobs, driving local economies, and enriching Main Streets. From the shopkeepers and makers who ignited a revolution to the inventors and immigrants who today are pursuing the American Dream, small businesses have shaped the first 250 years of our nation’s history. I am committed to ensuring our nation’s innovators and entrepreneurs, including the more than 730,000 small businesses in the Bay State, have the tools and support they need to compete, grow, and thrive for America’s next 250 years,” Markey said.
Markey also criticized recent policies from former President Donald Trump’s administration that he said have negatively affected small businesses nationwide. He cited increased costs for American small businesses due to tariffs, reduced access to affordable health care options for workers and families, higher electricity rates linked with policy decisions regarding Iran that impacted gas prices significantly. Markey pointed out that last month Trump’s Small Business Administration proposed a nearly ninety-four percent reduction in funding for counseling services such as Small Business Development Centers.
“One thing is clear: Trump’s reckless, anti-American small business policies are turning Main Streets into Pain Streets. From his cruel cuts to SBA’s counseling and training programs, which have helped small business owners achieve great things, to his terrible tariff taxes which have cost small businesses at least $166 billion; to his racist policy to deny loans to legal immigrants; Trump has revealed to us his Art of the Steal—stealing American jobs, American futures,and American Dreams. I will do everything I can fight back against Trump’s policiesand fight for America’s36 million smallbusinessesandthe communitiesthey serve,” Markey said.
The Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee supports informed decision-making on national fiscal priorities by offering Congress comprehensive policy options on federal budget components while contributing nonpartisan budgetary analysis through oversight of entities such asthe Congressional Budget Office according tothe official website.
