MLL US Chamber

WASHINGTON – United States Senator Mary L. Landrieu, D-La., Chair of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship today addressed the U.S. Chamber “Women in Business Forum: Opportunities and Risks in an Uncertain Economy”. The forum brought together community leaders, women business owners, Chamber members and trade association representatives.

“I am very proud that more and more women are not just working in businesses, they are leading businesses,” Sen. Landrieu said in her remarks. “In fact, they are leading the movement of entrepreneurship in this country as the fastest growing group of business owners today. Because of the role women are now playing in entrepreneurship, it is appropriate that women are also leading the government’s efforts to aid small businesses, particularly women-owned small businesses.

“There is often a sense in Washington that the problems affecting women have been solved, that the discrepancy in the success of women-owned firms can be explained by women’s desire to balance work and family or a lack of desire in running a large corporation. This may be the case for some women – and men – but certainly not all. While women-owned businesses are growing at extraordinary rates, women business owners, like all business owners, are struggling in the face of limited access to capital and credit, lack of access to federal contracts and limited funding for technical assistance and counseling programs.”

The complete text of Senator Landrieu’s prepared remarks can be viewed by clicking here.

To view photos from the event, please click here.