My name is Maria Galison. I have a 30-year-old educational toy company. Eeboo.com. I manufacture beautiful, sustainably sourced educational toys and gifts for children of all learning levels, including social and emotional activities, early literacy games and open ended creative play. I produce product in a number of countries with about 50% currently made in China. I have 20 employees throughout the United States as well as 100 independent sales representatives that sell my products to over 4,000 small retailers on main streets across America.

In the course of my unassailably wholesome products’ journey, they touch the lives of hundreds of American workers. From the dock workers who load them off the ships, the truck drivers that take them to my warehouse, the tens of warehouse workers who store, pick and pack, the UPS and FedEx, drivers, who deliver the products to the stores on Main Street, and finally to the family-owned businesses in all of our towns. For each dollar I spend at my safe, clean, and reliable factory, I spend multiples more on labor, services, and sales in the United States. I cannot afford to bring my goods in now. I will not be able to ship my Christmas goods that are on order. Some of these goods left my factory when I understood the tariff to be 20% and now it’s 145%. I cannot afford to get them from the port.

I have 20 employees who rely on their jobs at Eeboo that I cannot maintain if I cannot sell goods at 4th Quarter. But it isn’t just us — it is a long string of livelihoods that will be affected. My warehouse will fire people. My stores will fire people (or close down entirely). We are dangling at the precipice of having to close down ourselves. This couldn’t possibly have been the motivation of this administration, but the consequences are real. Don't just take my word for it— ask anyone in the chain. 145% will and has already destroyed American jobs and guarantees that millions of American lives will be harmed. Small businesses make up 40% of our economy, and we deserve to be addressed by this administration. The Small Business Association doesn’t even have a statement. 

We need a carve out! We need an exemption or we will die!!!