Cicilline Praises White House, CVS Partnership to Strengthen America's Small Businesses

Press Release

During a meeting at the White House, President Obama today teamed up with 26 businesses, including Woonsocket based CVS Caremark to launch SupplierPay, a new partnership with the private sector to strengthen small businesses by increasing their working capital so they can grow their businesses and hire more workers. After the meeting, U.S. Congressman David N. Cicilline (D-RI) issued the following statement:

"I applaud President Obama and CVS on partnering together to help strengthen small businesses in Rhode Island and across the nation. We need to get capital in the hands of Rhode Island small businesses, the proven job creators and backbone of our economy. The SupplierPay initiative will help small business owners better access capital, grow their operations and create jobs. This is a smart approach that will boost our economy and I am proud CVS, headquartered in my home district, is leading the way in this important effort."

SupplierPay builds on the success of the Federal Government's QuickPay initiative, which President Obama launched in 2011. QuickPay requires federal agencies to expedite payments to small business contractors with the goal of paying within 15 days. As a result of QuickPay, we have already seen well over $1 billion in cost savings for small businesses since 2011, leading to greater investment and job creation. SupplierPay is the private sector's equivalent, where companies have committed to pay small suppliers faster or help them get access to lower cost capital.

In March, Cicilline received the Small Business Investor Alliance's "Champion of Small Business Investing' award, which recognizes individuals who have worked to promote American small businesses and the investors who support them. Throughout his two terms in Congress, Cicilline has focused heavily on revitalizing manufacturing and providing new ways for small businesses to expand. Cicilline introduced the Make It In America Manufacturing Act -- legislation to help small and medium-sized manufacturers retool their facilities and retrain workers with the skills they need to compete for 21st century manufacturing jobs. Cicilline also recently introduced the 21st Century Buy American Act, which would modernize outdated buy American provisions and help level the playing field for American manufacturers to allow them to compete against foreign manufacturers.

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