Report: Amazon’s Next Frontier: Your City’s Purchasing

Date: 10 Jul 2018 | posted in: Retail | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

A national contract opens the way for Amazon to take over billions of dollars in local government spending. In this report, we examine the contract and find serious concerns — including that it leaves local governments at risk of being ripped off, and sets Amazon up to expand its monopoly power. … Read More

As Amazon Moves to Capture Local Government Spending, Here’s What You Can Do

Date: 10 Jul 2018 | posted in: Retail | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

A recent contract opens the way for billions of dollars in local government spending to shift to Amazon. The good news is that, for concerned citizens and public officials, Amazon’s push into the public sector offers a way to take action at the local level and start a concrete conversation about Amazon’s power and what we should do about it. In this fact sheet, we outline three strategies to use to take action.… Read More

8 Policy Strategies Cities Can Use to Support Local Businesses

Date: 28 Aug 2017 | posted in: Retail | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

Independent businesses are among the best engines that cities have for advancing economic opportunity. But they’re disappearing in many places. This isn’t, in large part, because these businesses aren’t competitive. It’s because misguided public policy and concentrated market power are working against them. In this policy brief, we present 8 ways that cities can level the playing field and ensure that local businesses have the opportunity to start, grow, and thrive.… Read More

Procurement Can Be a Powerful Tool for Local Economies, but Takes More Than a Policy Change to Work

Date: 27 Aug 2015 | posted in: Retail | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

The decision of which firm will get the food service contract at the City Hall cafeteria doesn’t always make it into the news, but local governments spend a lot of money. In towns, counties, and states everywhere, there are roads to be paved, lawyers to be hired, and office supplies to be purchased, and the rules set up to govern those contracts—procurement policies—hold significant potential for governments to grow their local economies.… Read More

Six Small Business Issues at Stake in this Election

Date: 22 Oct 2012 | posted in: Retail | 3 Facebooktwitterredditmail

Here’s a look at six small business issues at stake in next month’s federal and state elections, including bank reform, corporate tax advantages, getting corporate money out of politics, capping credit card fees, and creating preferences for local businesses in government purchasing. … Read More

Favoring Local Businesses in Government Purchasing has Economic Benefits, Study Finds

Date: 5 Feb 2008 | posted in: Retail | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

A new study commissioned by Local First Arizona reports that a purchasing contract with an independent local supplier recirculates three times as much money in the local economy as the same contract with a national firm. Local First Arizona is using the study to galvanize support for a legislative measure that would keep more of the public dollars spent on state contracts in Arizona. … Read More