Ahead of August 1 Tariff Trade Deadline, Ranking Member Markey, Massachusetts Delegation Seek Information from Boston Fed on Impacts of Tariffs on Local Small Businesses

Summary

On July 29, 2025, Ranking Member Edward J. Markey led the entire Massachusetts congressional delegation, including Senator Elizabeth Warren, in writing to Susan M. Collins, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, about the impact of tariffs on small businesses. The letter says recent tariff actions announced by President Trump, 'including a proposed 10 percent across-the-board tariff,' are already causing hardship. The lawmakers ask for follow-up surveys, crosstabulations by industry, importer status and firm size, New England and Massachusetts-specific data, and data on whether tariff-related cost pressure has affected hiring, wages, investment, closures and consumer costs. The release adds that Markey introduced the Small Business Liberation Act on May 5 and that Republicans blocked it on the Senate floor on May 21.

Summary drafted by a model from the document's text below and checked by script against that text before publication. It is a navigation aid, not a reading of what the document proves. Where AI is used

Full text

Title: Ahead of August 1 Tariff Trade Deadline, Ranking Member Markey, Massachusetts Delegation Seek Information from Boston Fed on Impacts of Tariffs on Local Small Businesses
Date: 2025-07-29

Ahead of August 1 Tariff Trade Deadline, Ranking Member Markey, Massachusetts Delegation Seek Information from Boston Fed on Impacts of Tariffs on Local Small Businesses

July 29, 2025

Letter Text (PDF)

(Washington, July 29) - Ranking Member Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) today led the entire Massachusetts congressional delegation – Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), and Representatives Richard Neal (MA-01), Jim McGovern (MA-02), Lori Trahan (MA-03), Jake Auchincloss (MA-04), Katherine Clark (MA-05), Seth Moulton (MA-06), Ayanna Pressley (MA-07), Stephen Lynch (MA-08), and Bill Keating (MA-09) – in writing to Susan M. Collins, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, requesting additional information on the impact of tariffs on small businesses, including crosstabulations showing the expected and realized impacts of tariffs on small businesses broken down by industry, importer status, and firm size.

In the letter, the lawmakers write, “Recent tariff actions announced by President Trump, including a proposed 10 percent across-the-board tariff and higher, targeted rates on certain trading partners, are already causing hardship in our communities. Small firms across Massachusetts tell us they face rising input costs and price uncertainty, and they question how much of those costs they can pass on to customers without losing sales. National reporting indicates that U.S. businesses are bracing for broader supply chain disruption as these measures roll out. Federal Reserve Beige Book reporting similarly points to tariff-related price pressures emerging in several regions, including the Boston District.”

The lawmakers request the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston provide:

Follow-up surveys on the impacts of tariffs on small businesses;

Crosstabulations of the data by industry, importer status, and firm size;

A breakdown of New England and, if the sample allows, Massachusetts-specific data;

Data around whether tariff?related cost pressure has impacted hiring plans, hours, or wages;

Data around whether tariff-related cost pressure has impacted growth and investment plans for small businesses, including consideration or actions towards closure;

Data around whether tariff-related cost pressure has increased costs for consumers.

On May 5, Ranking Member Markey introduced the Small Business Liberation Act, legislation that would exempt small businesses from the broad, global tariffs imposed as a result of the national emergency declared on April 2 by President Trump. On May 21, Republicans blocked his legislation on the Senate floor.

###

Permalink: https://www.sbc.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/2025/7/ahead-of-august-1-tariff-trade-deadline-ranking-member-markey-massachusetts-delegation-seek-information-from-boston-fed-on-impacts-of-tariffs-on-local-small-businesses

File and source

File

2025-07-29_ahead-of-august-1-tariff-trade-deadline-ranking-member.txt

Size

3,171 bytes

SHA-256

71196e7aa08dfe959c259698690409bf68b1945f1e8ebc676cb439ba779593a5

Our copy

2025-07-29_ahead-of-august-1-tariff-trade-deadline-ranking-member.txt

Original

www.sbc.senate.gov