The NFIB Fights That Hit Your Wallet

NFIB, the largest small-business lobbying group in the country, just published its 2026 legislative priorities. The list has ten items. Think of it like a restaurant’s specials board. The kitchen posts eight dishes, but only three actually come out tonight. Most advocacy wish lists work the same way. Congress will ignore some, water down others, and maybe pass a few.

But some specials do come out. Last year, NFIB pushed hard to make the 20% Small Business Deduction permanent. It worked. Adam Temple, NFIB’s Senior Vice President for Advocacy, put it bluntly: “2025 was an eventful year for small businesses, highlighted by the permanent extension of the 20% Small Business Deduction, which stopped a massive tax hike on more than 33 million small business owners nationwide.” The Treasury Department also exempted American small businesses from a $77 billion beneficial ownership reporting rule. Those are real results, not just talking points.

Still, NFIB is a lobby, not a neutral observer. Its job is to push for its members’ interests. That doesn’t mean the priorities are wrong. It means you should read them as proposals, not guarantees. None of these are law yet. The 119th Congress is early in its session, and most bills die in committee.

This article filters NFIB’s list by what could actually change your costs and what’s just noise. If you’ve been feeling the gap between rising optimism numbers and flat sales, the policy side of that story starts here. You don’t have time to track every bill. So let’s sort the ones that matter from the ones that don’t.

Your Health Insurance Bill Is Their Top Priority

For over 40 years, rising health care costs have been the number-one problem reported by small business owners in NFIB surveys. Not taxes. Not regulations. Health insurance. Four decades of the same answer.

NFIB’s 2026 agenda pushes two specific ideas to change this. The first is expanding access to pre-tax HRAs. An HRA (health reimbursement arrangement) is simple: instead of buying a group plan, your company gives each employee a tax-free allowance to buy their own insurance on the individual market. The money comes from the business, but the employee picks the plan. Right now, HRAs exist but have limits on who can use them and how much they can cover. NFIB wants those limits loosened so more small businesses can skip the group plan entirely.

The second idea is Association Health Plans, or AHPs. These let small businesses in the same industry or region band together and negotiate rates as a group, the way a large employer would. A 12-person accounting firm alone has zero bargaining power with an insurer. But 200 small accounting firms pooled together start to look like a mid-size company, and insurers price accordingly.

Right now, a 15-person company buying group coverage might pay $8,000 to $12,000 per employee per year, depending on the state and plan tier. If AHPs pass, that same company could join a larger risk pool and potentially see lower premiums. If HRA rules expand, the company could ditch the group plan altogether, give each employee a fixed monthly allowance, and let them shop for what fits their family. Both approaches shift the math.

But there’s a real trade-off buried in the proposal. NFIB also wants to eliminate Essential Health Benefits mandates. These are the federal rules that require all plans to cover things like maternity care, mental health treatment, and prescription drugs. Dropping those mandates would let insurers sell cheaper, thinner plans. Premiums go down because coverage goes down.

The Swipe Fee Fight Isn’t as Simple as It Sounds

Every time a customer pays with a credit card, you pay a swipe fee. Visa and Mastercard set those fees, and NFIB wants Congress to force more competition into the routing system so other networks can compete for your transactions. In theory, more competition means lower fees.

Not everyone agrees. The Electronic Payments Coalition has pushed back, arguing that routing mandates don’t always translate into savings for small merchants. Their point is that the payment ecosystem is complicated, and forcing network changes could reduce fraud protections or shift costs in ways that don’t net out as savings for a five-person shop.

Pull out your last credit card processing statement. Find the line that says “interchange” or “network fees.” That number is what this entire debate is about.

You’re Exempt From BOI Filing. For Now.

BOI stands for beneficial ownership information. In plain terms, it’s the government wanting to know who really owns your LLC or corporation. Congress passed the Corporate Transparency Act in 2021 to fight money laundering. By 2024, small businesses were supposed to start filing reports with FinCEN, a branch of the Treasury Department.

NFIB now wants Congress to make that exemption permanent through legislation. The reason matters: a Treasury exemption can be reversed by a future administration without a vote. A law requires Congress to undo it. If you’re relying on the current exemption and it lapses, you’d need to file detailed ownership reports or face penalties.

This one is worth a calendar note, not a panic. But check your status at FinCEN before assuming you’re permanently off the hook.

Two Proposals, Two Different Business Types

NFIB wants Congress to build on the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (the same legislation that made the 20% deduction permanent) by expanding tax relief further. But which expansion matters to you depends entirely on how your business is structured.

• If you run a pass-through entity like an LLC taxed as an S Corp or a sole proprietorship, the 20% Small Business Deduction is your lane. NFIB wants to expand it. You already benefit from the permanent extension, and any expansion would increase the share of income you can shelter.
• If you run a small C corporation, NFIB wants to bring back graduated tax rates. Before 2017, the first $50,000 of C-corp income was taxed at 15%. Today it’s a flat 21% regardless of how much you earn. Reinstating graduated rates would give smaller C-corps a meaningful cut.
• If you’re not sure which category you fall into, this breakdown of LLCs, S Corps, and C Corps will help you figure it out in a few minutes.

The OBBBA also restored 100% bonus depreciation for asset purchases. If you’re buying equipment or vehicles, the cutoff dates for qualifying matter more than any new proposal right now. Don’t wait for 2026 legislation when a 2025 win is already on the table.

Then there’s the sleeper on NFIB’s list: right-to-repair. For example, imagine you run a landscaping company with a dozen commercial mowers. One throws a software error code. You can’t fix it yourself or take it to your local mechanic because the manufacturer locks the diagnostic software behind a dealer-only wall. You’re stuck paying dealer rates and dealer timelines.

Right-to-repair legislation would require manufacturers to share diagnostic tools and repair data with independent shops and owners. NFIB has added this to its federal priorities because for businesses that rely on vehicles, tractors, or heavy equipment, repair monopolies are a real cost drain. Some states have already passed versions of this for certain equipment categories, but a federal standard would cover more ground.

Do These Labor Bills Apply to You?

NFIB opposes two pieces of labor legislation: the Warehouse Workers Protection Act and the Protecting the Right to Organize Act (PRO Act). Both sound broad. They’re not.

The Warehouse Workers Protection Act would require businesses with warehouse or distribution operations to disclose production quotas and meet specific ergonomic standards. If you run a fulfillment center, a distribution warehouse, or any operation where workers are measured by pick rates or package counts, this bill targets your business directly. If you run a consulting firm, a restaurant, or a marketing agency, it doesn’t touch you.

The PRO Act would change how union organizing works at private businesses, making it easier for workers to form unions and harder for employers to push back. If you have employees in states with active union activity, this could change the cost and structure of your labor relationships. If you’re a solo founder with two contractors, it’s background noise. Match the bill to your business before spending any attention on it.

Five Things to Do Before Congress Decides

1. Find your health insurance renewal date and put it in your calendar with a 90-day reminder. If AHPs or expanded HRAs pass, you want to shop alternatives at renewal, not scramble mid-cycle.
2. Pull your credit card processing contract and search for auto-renewal clauses. If swipe fee competition increases, you’ll want to renegotiate or switch, and a locked-in contract prevents that. Most contracts auto-renew annually.
3. Check your BOI filing status at FinCEN before your next quarterly review. The exemption is real today, but it’s not permanent law. Know where you stand so you’re not surprised.
4. If your business is a C corporation, mention the graduated rate proposal to your CPA at your next scheduled check-in. Ask them to flag it and model what a 15% rate on your first $50,000 would mean compared to the flat 21% you’re paying now.
5. If you own fleet vehicles, commercial equipment, or machinery that requires dealer-only service, start saving repair invoices in a folder. If right-to-repair passes, you’ll want hard numbers on what you’ve been overpaying to make the switch to independent shops worthwhile.