(Bloomberg/Spencer Soper) — In 2022, Jake Clay started an Amazon delivery firm in Odessa, Texas, after hearing about the company-sponsored program from a friend. He sank $75,000 into the business and earned more than $200,000 in the first year. An Air Force veteran, Clay, 50, felt like he’d joined an elite unit.

The feeling didn’t last. Before long, rising insurance and other costs began eating into his profit. One of Clay’s drivers was badly bitten by a dog and went on workers compensation for a year, while his annual vehicle insurance rates soared fivefold to almost $500,000. Clay mulled laying off all his managers and running the business on his own, figuring he would clear about $75,000. In the end, he decided it wasn’t worth it. He quit last month.

“I earned significantly less as I

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