National Small Business Week, 2013

Proclamation 8994 of June 14, 2013

National Small Business Week, 2013

By the President of the United States of America

A Proclamation

In America, we believe that anyone willing to work hard
and take risks can get their good idea off the ground
and into the marketplace. It is a notion that has made
our Nation bold and bright, and the best place to do
business for generations--from small-town storefronts
to pioneering startups that keep our country on the
cutting edge. This week, we celebrate America's
entrepreneurial spirit, and we recommit to helping our
small businesses get ahead.

My Administration has been a proud partner in that
important work from day one. We have cut taxes for
small businesses 18 times, broadened their access to
capital, and provided billions in loans so they can
grow and hire. We have helped companies break into new
markets abroad and export their products all over the
world. Every step of the way, we have focused on making
Government work better for business through initiatives
like Startup America and BusinessUSA--groundbreaking
programs that connect entrepreneurs to resources that
can spur their success.

Together, we can build on that progress. At a time when
abusive patent litigation is stifling economic growth
and putting companies of all sizes at risk, my
Administration is taking action to protect innovators
and keep our patent system strong. To create more
opportunities for small businesses to compete and win
in the global marketplace, we are moving forward on a
Trans-Pacific Partnership that will boost our exports
and level the playing field for American workers. We
are implementing the Affordable Care Act so small
businesses can make quality, affordable health
insurance available to all their employees. And in the
months ahead, we will continue pushing for tax reform
that supports small businesses and keeps them at the
forefront of our economic recovery.

America's small businesses reflect the best of who we
are as a Nation--daring and innovative, courageous and
hopeful, always working hard and looking ahead for that
next great idea. They are our economy's engine and our
biggest source of new jobs. So this week, as
entrepreneurs across our country keep striving to turn
their dreams into reality, let us keep investing in
them and doing everything we can to help our small
businesses succeed.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the
United States of America, by virtue of the authority
vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the
United States, do hereby proclaim June 16 through June
22, 2013, as National Small Business Week. I call upon
all Americans to recognize the contributions of small
businesses to the competitiveness of the American
economy with appropriate programs and activities.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
fourteenth day of June, in the year of our Lord two
thousand thirteen, and of the Independence of the
United States of America the two hundred and thirty-
seventh.