The greatest gift is your commitment to small business! Cheers to another great year and year to come!
Seasons Greetings from NSBA!
As we reach the end of 2022 and look forward to an exciting and productive new year, I want to thank you for being a part of the big steps NSBA took for small business this year.
NSBA spent 2022 working hard to ensure a seat for small business at the policymaking table every chance we got. Our staff and volunteer leadership have worked on the issues that matter most to small businesses everywhere. Despite 2022’s strong partisan headwinds, NSBA is proud of the work we’ve done for small business and stands ready to take on a refreshed slate of priorities in the coming year.
Thanks to our longstanding legacy of nonpartisan work as America’s oldest advocate for small business, NSBA was able to call on its extensive network of lawmakers, regulators, elected officials, and, of course, our membership, to achieve a number of extraordinary wins, including:
A 3-year reauthorization of Small Business Research Innovation (SBIR)/Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs. These critical programs create opportunities for small-businesses—the most innovative sector of our economy—to participate in our most important federal research and development programs. SBIR has been enormously successful in delivering necessary federal research while bolstering the small business community. Following a highly contentious process in the Senate, lawmakers’ last-minute efforts to extend the program finally came to fruition just days prior to the Sept. 30 expiration deadline. NSBA and its Small Business Technology Council (SBTC) Executive Chairman Jere Glover particularly applaud Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.), and Reps. Nydia Velazquez (D-NY) and Blaine Leutkemeyer (R-Mo.) for their leadership and willingness to compromise to ensure the stability and long-term success of this program, and we look forward to continuing to push for permanency of this important program.
Standing up against the Corporate Transparency Act. The Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) was signed into law Dec. 2020 and is set to go into effect in a matter of months. This law will require ONLY small businesses with fewer than 20 employees to disclose detailed, personal information of beneficial owners to the Department of Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). While we support the goal of stemming money laundering, this law is not just bad policy, it is unconstitutional, which is why we’ve filed suit in federal court to challenge big banks’ efforts to pass their responsibility to small business. With nearly five dozen influential organizations publicly supporting the suit, some of the best constitutional lawyers in the country on our team, and an arsenal of information on why this law is bad policy, we are confident the federal judiciary, Congress, and entire country will see that the CTA in its current form is not the way.
A return to in-person engagement on Capitol Hill and beyond. These crucial interactions help build the relationships between small-business owners and elected officials, elevating critical small-business policy. After more than two years of virtual work, NSBA was thrilled to be able to come together face-to-face for our annual Washington Presentation fly in, where nearly 200 small-business owners came to Washington, D.C., to meet with colleagues and Congress. The countless conversations had between NSBA members and their Members of Congress were invaluable to advancing our priorities in Congress and beyond.
Recognizing outstanding small-business leaders. In conjunction with the Washington Presentation, NSBA honored five small-business leaders as finalists for the 2022 Lewis Shattuck Small Business Advocate of the Year Award, naming ML Mackey of Beacon Interactive Systems in Waltham, Mass., our overall all winner. We are looking forward to continuing our in-person programming early next year with the Small Business Congress Feb. 7-8 and improving our virtual interactions in the meantime!
Strengthening the NSBA network. NSBA had a record year for partnership and member growth. By linking up with companies like Dell, GoTo, and Stax--to name just a few--NSBA was able to expand its outreach and offerings to members and potential new small-business owners to join our cause. NSBA proudly welcomed more than 200 new advocates to our NSBA Leadership Council, which continues to engage dynamic small business leaders from across the nation.
Looking ahead, NSBA is tracking several regulatory changes expected to take effect beginning in 2023, including pending changes to the Department of Labor’s independent contractor standard, as well as the National Labor Relations Board’s prospective changes to the joint-employer standard. We submitted strong comments on these agencies’ respective proposed rule changes underscoring how their effects will impose undue costs on small businesses.
Have you joined an NSBA issue committee yet? For more information on how you can get into the nitty gritty of the policies that dictate how your small business operates, reach out to Ian Elsenbach any time at ielsenbach@nsba.biz.
NSBA is not only making a stand with policymakers inside the D.C. Beltway, our message is being heard far-and-wide. NSBA’s achievements and expertise have been cited by high profile media outlets across the country, including Newsweek, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Washington Post, Associated Press, USA Today, Bloomberg, CNN, CNBC, MSNBC, and the CBS Evening News. Thanks to the extraordinary commitments of our membership and entire small-business community, NSBA is making news of the day everywhere you turn.
We also continue to produce highly-cited reports and surveys including: the Business Planning & Digital Utilization Survey, taking an accounting of small-business owners’ anticipation of the future; our Economic Report – providing insights into the state of small business; our Exporting Survey - illuminating the challenges of exporting in today’s world; and our Politics of Small Business Survey - generating a glimpse into small-business owners’ positioning on policy and party dynamics. Data shared by our members participating in these surveys is an essential part of NSBA’s value and place among the advocacy landscape in Washington.
We also rolled out a new website for NSBA.biz. It’s streamlined, sleek and will make it much easier to find the information you’re looking for. We will continue to up our game where content is concerned – our goal is to get you the information you need as quickly and easily as possible.
NSBA has had some internal changes this year, too. As sad as we were to see Jody Milanese retire from our ranks after nearly two decades of work supporting our government affairs and lobbying, NSBA was thrilled to be able to welcome Ian, our new manager of membership services, and Chana Elgin, manager of digital and legislative content, as we ramp up our means of engagement with Congress, NSBA members, and more.
We’d love to have you jump in on the action! First up in 2023, is NSBA’s biennial Small Business Congress, hosted this coming Feb. 7-8 in the heart of downtown D.C. at the Hotel Washington, mere steps from the White House. If you haven’t attended before, now is your chance to register to raise your hand and voice for the small-business policies affecting and most important to you. SBC is not only an excellent networking and educational opportunity, but it’s where we form our highly anticipated and sought-after issue briefs, used by everyone from Congress to local community leaders.
Busy as we are, and busy as we know you are as a small-business owner, there is still much to do, but we’re looking forward to tackling these issues together – the best gift we could ever hope for! If you haven’t seen us online, refresh your browser, and join our initiative to raise our profiles across social platforms, like Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
As we wrap-up 2022, I would like to send best wishes to you and your family, and your employees and their families, for a safe and happy holiday season from NSBA staff and leadership.
Happy Holidays,
Todd McCracken
President