ICYMI: Business Leaders Call on Congress to Take Immediate Action in Passing Biden's Recovery Plan to Save America's Economy

Today, over 160 business leaders called on the United States Congress to pass the American Recovery Plan and provide for the communities that have been hit hard and desperately need support from the federal government.

The letter states: "The American Rescue Plan provides a framework for coordinated public-private efforts to overcome COVID-19 and to move forward with a new era of inclusive growth. The country's business community is prepared to work with you to achieve these critical objectives."

Today's letter from business leaders follows a survey from CNBC that showed 63% of small business owners support President Biden's American Rescue Plan, and numerous polls showing bipartisan support for the American Rescue Plan, including a CBS poll showed 83% of Americans support for the plan, and a recent Quinnipiac poll showed that 68% of Americans also approve of the plan. This latest letter also follows the endorsement of more than 400 more bipartisan mayors across the nation.

This letter echoes the concerns of a long list of economists and economic organizations urging the benefits of immediate relief including Brookings, Moody's Analytics, and the Chief Economist of the International Monetary Fund. And a Reuters survey of dozens of economists found that over 90% believed that it would "boost the economy significantly."

View the full list of signatories here.

Dear Majority Leader Schumer, Speaker Pelosi, Minority Leader McConnell and Minority Leader McCarthy:

We write to urge immediate and large-scale federal legislation to address the health and economic crises brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. More than a year after the first coronavirus case was reported in the United States, our nation is still struggling to combat the spread and reverse its economic fallout.

Previous federal relief measures have been essential, but more must be done to put the country on a trajectory for a strong, durable recovery. Congress should act swiftly and on a bipartisan basis to authorize a stimulus and relief package along the lines of the Biden-Harris administration's proposed American Rescue Plan.

Strengthening the public health response to coronavirus is the first step toward economic restoration. The American Rescue Plan mobilizes a national vaccination program, delivers economic relief to struggling families, and supports communities that were most damaged by the pandemic.

More than 10 million fewer Americans are working today than when the pandemic began, small businesses across the country are facing bankruptcy, and schools are struggling to reopen. The most vulnerable Americans — including women, people of color and low wage workers — are experiencing the worst of the pandemic, with unprecedented job loss, childcare burdens and food insecurity. States and cities have been crushed by pandemic-related expenses and revenue losses.

The American Rescue Plan provides a framework for coordinated public-private efforts to overcome COVID-19 and to move forward with a new era of inclusive growth. The country's business community is prepared to work with you to achieve these critical objectives.