Nancy Pelosi carves her place in American history today as the first woman to become speaker of the House, the main event in a three-day celebration of faith, family, feminism and her blue-collar roots.

In her first full day on the job, the new chairwoman of the House Small Business Committee introduced two pieces of legislation she says should help the little entrepreneur.

The battle over immigration is resuming in a U.S. Congress that is now under Democratic control, yet despite that party's generally more sympathetic stance toward immigrants, many Hispanics view the legislative session with a mixture of hope and apprehension.

We have a big challenge ahead as we decide how to deal with the millions of unskilled workers who have entered the U.S. without documents. An equally important issue, one that will affect the long term competitiveness of the U.S., is the issue of skilled immigrants who came through the front door.

Exercising more and eating less are two of the most common New Year's resolutions that people make. But if you own a small business, the new year is also a good time to get your company in shape by starting -- and sticking to -- a few good habits.

Hispanics have long been more skeptical than the population at large over the U.S. presence in the war in Iraq, and a new survey from the Pew Hispanic Center finds they have grown more so, especially those born outside of the United States.

Atsumasa Tochisako's $2 million, 60-employee microfinance and remittance processing upstart, Washington [D.C.]-based Microfinance International (MFIC), wants to shake up the $268 billion worldwide remittance industry, traditionally dominated by Western Union (WU).

A new wave of Latin American leaders is changing the face of the region and its relations with the United States, multilateral institutions, international financial markets, and foreign investors.

Advertisers' efforts to reach Hispanic consumers are becoming more targeted, and language is a major factor. Advertisers spent more than $3.3 billion to market products to U.S. Hispanics in 2005, a 6.8 percent increase from 2004.

Get the entire 2006 Hispanic Business 500 Directory in Excel format.

Companies on the listing report an increase in overall billings from $1.05 billion in 2005 to $1.18 billion in 2006, an increase of 11.86 percent.

Companies on the listing report an increase in overall billings from $1.05 billion in 2005 to $1.18 billion in 2006, an increase of 11.86 percent.