_ADVOCACY

In February, the National Association for the Self-Employed announced its support of two pieces of legislation introduced in the Senate and one in the House. The first, a bipartisan bill, the Comprehensive Resources for Entrepreneurs in the Arts to Transform the Economy Act (CREATE) Act, designed to “support small businesses in creative industries by increasing access to federal resources to help them grow.” The measure was introduced by U.S. Senators Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) and John Cornyn (R-Texas).

The U.S. Congress is working on a full plate of legislative activity before the end of the year, including two major pieces of the Administration’s Build Back Better agenda introduced earlier this year. As part of that legislative package, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, often referred to as the bipartisan infrastructure bill focuses primarily on “hard infrastructure” such as roads, bridges and physical infrastructure. This bill passed through Congress on Friday, November 5th and President Biden has signed this major government investment into our nation’s infrastructure into law.

The U.S. Congress is currently back in session with a full plate of legislative activity to act on before the end of the year. Two key pieces currently being debated in Congress are regarding the Build Back Better agenda introduced earlier this year by the White House. As part of that legislative package, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, often referred to as the bipartisan infrastructure bill, focuses primarily on “hard infrastructure” such as roads, bridges and physical infrastructure.

This Fall, Congress will have to simultaneously move three major pieces of legislation: infrastructure, budget reconciliation process and an increase to the debt ceiling, laying the ground work for an incredibly jam packed fall in the policy space.

On August 10, the U.S. Senate passed, 67-32 vote, including 17 Republicans, a significant investment in the country’s infrastructure (hard and soft); passed with broad bipartisan support, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Deal now heads to the U.S. House. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act includes, over $500 billion in new spending, including:

The Small Business Administration (SBA) is set to launch the Community Navigator Program later in June, the program is targeted towards minority-owned businesses and small businesses who found themselves unable to access the other programs offered by the SBA to support businesses during the Covid-19 pandemic. The Community Navigator Pilot Program that will strengthen outreach to underserved businesses by partnering with organizations with deep roots in their communities.

Following the passage of the American Rescue Plan and the Presiden’s proposal for infrastructure, American Jobs Plan, the Administration announced its American Families Plan, which they argue is “an investment in our kids, our families, and our economic future.”

PPP Self-Employed Application Changes & NASE Supports SBA Event to Inform Self-Employed Business Owners On March 3, 2021, the Small Business Administration announced changes to the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) for self-employed individuals. The changes include:

Biden Administration Advances Ambitious $1.9 Trillion Covid Relief Package ​The Biden Administration has announced an expansive relief package covering every aspect of the American economy in an effort to continue to fight the Covid pandemic. The package includes a continued emphasis on small business relief. Small Business Highlights include:

As the U.S. waits for widespread distribution of COVID-19 vaccines now being administered in sporadic ways across the globe, America’s small business community continues to be ravaged by the economic impact of this pandemic. Nearly all economic indicators point towards a long, slow recovery through 2021 as millions of small businesses hang in the balance.

In a last minute deal, Congressional leaders in the Senate and House reached a $900 billion Covid relief bill. The bill which came after months of fractured negotiations that saw House and Senate leaders produce multiple pieces of legislation at vastly different price tags. The key components of the bill are as follows:

Note: The NASE does not endorse political candidates Former Vice President Joe Biden is on track to be declared the winner of the 2020 presidential campaign, unseating President Trump following a bitter campaign during a global health pandemic.

The House, Senate and White House, are all battling in a legislative standoff, with Speaker Pelosi and Secretary Mnuchin attempting to navigate a challenging environment to advance a $2T relief package primarily aimed at supporting small businesses, the unemployed, and local and state municipalities.

Small Business Community Calls for Congressional Action The National Association for the Self-Employed (NASE) along with its fellow leading small business associations, through the Small Business Roundtable, are calling on Congressional leaders to take immediate action in support of America’s 30 million small businesses.

On Saturday, August 8, President Trump signed for executive orders in an effort to provide economic relief during the COVID-19 pandemic. Congress was unable to come to an agreement prior to the August recess; however, House and Senate leaders have said they will call back members if a deal materializes during the recess.

In a letter to congressional leaders, the National Association for the Self-Employed (NASE) submitted several policy objectives that should be included in the next phase of relief legislation that the Congress looks to consider in the month of July.

In June, Congress approved a bi-partisan bill to provide greater flexibility to the Paycheck Protection Program, introduced by Representatives Phillips (D-MN) and Roy (R-TX), the changes address issues that the NASE has advocated for reforming.

On Tuesday, May 12, the House Democratic Leadership introduced the HEROES (Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions) Act, a sweeping $3 Trillion relief package that touches every aspect of those suffering through the current crisis. The proposed legislation is inclusive of numerous Democrat priorities, many of which are considered non-starters for Senate Republicans. However, we anticipate some of these proposals will eventually find themselves in the final package of legislation that the House and Senate will pass in the weeks ahead.

In advance of President Donald J. Trump’s State of the Union Address tomorrow before a joint session of Congress, Keith Hall, President and Chief Executive Officer of the National Association for the Self-Employed (NASE) published an op-ed in The Hillnewspaper outlining, “Seven Ways Trump and Congress Can Boost Small Business.”

Prior to Congress adjourning for 2019, the House and Senate passed a government spending bill that included the SECURE Act, also known as the “Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act of 2019,”which has been supported by the NASE.

Yesterday, the U.S. Senate passed a spending bill, expected to be signed into law by President Trump, which includes the SECURE Act, also known as the “Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act of 2019.” Keith Hall, President and CEO the National Association for the Self-Employed (NASE), the nation’s leading advocate and resource for the self-employed and micro-businesses, applauded both the House and Senate for acting on the bipartisan measure representing the biggest change to America’s retirement system in over a decade.

In two separate studies, Paychex’s Small Business Employment Watch and US Chamber of Commerce and MetLife’s Small Business Index, small business growth and optimism continue to grow and remain steady, largely impart to the tight labor market.

As House Democrats open impeachment investigation into President Donald Trump, the sentiment on Capitol Hill has turned sour. While the oversight powers rest with Congress, there is a growing fear that the impeachment activities will delay or outright stall any legislative activity through the end of 2019 and 2020. This includes funding the federal government, addressing prescription drug pricing, and passing the United States Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).

In August, after careful evaluation, the National Association for the Self-Employed endorsed H.R. 4069, the Modern Worker Empowerment Act, introduced by Congresswoman Elise Stefanik (R-NY) and co-sponsored by Reps. Bradley Byrne (R-Al), Phil Roe (R-TN) and Ron Wright (R-TX).

The National Association for the Self-Employed (NASE) enthusiastically supports H.R. 3880, “Tax Fairness for the Self-Employed Act” introduced by Congressman Antonio Delgado (D-NY) and Congressman John Joyce, M.D. (R-PA). The legislation would allow the 34 million self-employed individuals to deduct their health care premiums as a business deduction, saving self-employed individuals an average of $750 a year.

On Monday, June 24, President Trump signed an executive order directing his Administration to take additional steps to improve upon price and transparency in health care.

Finally, after nearly six years of active advocacy efforts, the Trump Administration announced on June 14, 2019, new rule on how Health Reimbursement Arrangements (HRA) can be leveraged by small employers. The rule undoes an Obama administration action that severely limited how businesses could utilize HRAs.

In recognition of National Small Business Week — a week dedicated to recognizing and honoring the outstanding entrepreneurs and small business owners located across all 50 states and U.S. territories — which was Sunday, May 5th through Saturday, May 11th, the National Association for the Self-Employed (NASE), the nation’s leading advocate and resource for the self-employed and micro-business community, “applauded the entrepreneurial spirit of our nation’s small businesses who help strengthen our nation’s economy every day.”

On Wednesday, March 27, NASE President and CEO, Keith Hall, provided testimony to the House Small Business Committee on the opportunities and challenges the self-employed face as it relates to retirement security.

On Wednesday, March 6, Democratic leaders in the Senate and House introduced “Save the Internet” legislation that reverse the “Pai Rule”, which to some allowed restrictive behavior, including blocking and throttling of the internet. The legislation also empowers the FCC to look at potentially harmful practices of ISPs (practices that could be unjust or discriminatory).

President Donald Trump delivered his third State of the Union address, which had been postponed due to the government shutdown. While the address provided lofty rhetoric on key priorities for the Trump Administration, the NASE calls on the Administration and Congress to focus on America’s small business community, following the devastating government shutdown that paralyzed small businesses by creating unnecessary uncertainty, many were left confused about IRS refunds and tax obligations, unable to get loan assistance, and were on the frontlines of a lack of sales from regular customers unable to support them.

After a record-setting government shutdown that affected America’s small business community, including millions of self-employed and micro-businesses, the National Association for the Self-Employed (NASE) is encouraging entrepreneurs to start preparing now for filing this year’s tax returns.

In the waning days of 2018, the National Association for the Self-Employed submitted comments in support of rules around health reimbursement arrangements (HRAs) that are being proposed by the U.S. Departments of the Treasury, Labor, and Health and Human Services.

As the partial government shutdown enters its 24th day – now officially the longest government shutdown in history – small businesses across the country are feeling the effects of the shutdown resulting in unnecessary uncertainty at the start of a new fiscal year. Keith Hall, president and CEO of the National Association for the Self-Employed (NASE), the nation’s leading advocate and resource for the self-employed and micro-business community, called on Congress and the White House to work together to end the shutdown on behalf of America’s small business community.

As a founding member of the Small Business Roundtable (SBR), a coalition of small business organizations charged with advocating and promoting sound small business policy, we joined with other organizations to conduct a post midterm election poll that found small business owners are concerned about the impact the 116th Congress will have on issues important to them. The poll commissioned by SBR was comprised of 445 small business owners from across the country in the days immediately following the midterm elections.

On October 12, 2017, President Trump issued Executive order 13813, “Promoting Healthcare Choice and Competition Across the United States,” to direct the U.S. Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services (HHS), and the Treasury to develop rules to expand association health plans (AHPs), short-term limited duration insurance, and health reimbursement arrangements (HRAs). This proposed rule pertains to HRAs only.

This month is National Women’s Small Business Month and we are proud to celebrate and honor the nearly 11 million woman-owned businesses in the U.S., which is 38 percent of all businesses, supporting nearly nine million jobs and generating annual revenues of $1.6 trillion. Women business owners are a force of nature!

On August 31, President Trump, directed the Departments of Labor and Treasury to explore ways in which they can advance several changes to retirement programs to expand their impact and use by millions of Americans. As note in this Forbes.com article, the EO focuses on three initiatives:

In a letter to President Trump, NASE along with hundreds of small business organizations, called on the Administration to issue an Executive Order authorizing the next White House Conference on Small Business (WHCSB) which has not been held since 1995.

On June 22, the Supreme Court ruled on South Dakota v. Wayfair overturning a previous ruling which made much of the internet a tax-free zone.

In advance of the 2020 Census, the National Association for the Self-Employed has joined the newly formed Census Business Coalition (CBC) and NASE Vice President of Government Relations and Public Affairs, Katie Vlietstra, will serve as senior advisor to the coalition.

The Small Business Roundtable includes six associations representing self-employed workers, women, and entrepreneurs from black and Asian/Pacific Islander communities. As small business concerns are threatened to become lost amid other Congressional and White House priorities, six associations have united to better promote the role of their members in the American economy.

As President Trump and congressional Republicans travel around the country touting the impact of the tax reform package enacted last year, the National Association for the Self-Employed (NASE), the nation’s leading advocate and resource for the self-employed and micro-businesses, today released a new, national member survey gauging the impact the tax reform law is having on small business owners days after making their first 2018 quarterly tax estimate payments.

NASE is proud to announce that we have joined the Small Business Roundtable. NASE has joined forces with the nation’s leading small business and entrepreneurship organizations to form the Small Business Roundtable (SBR), a coalition dedicated to advancing policy, securing access, and promoting inclusion to benefit the 30 million small businesses at the heart of the American economy.

NASE was privileged to testify before the House Small Business Committee hearing on Occupational Hazards: How Excessive Licensing Hurts Small Business. The hearing provided a wonderful opportunity for Mr. Hall to provide insight from NASE members on the impact occupational licensing has on the millions of self-employed and micro-business owners across the country.

President Trump gave his first State of the Union address on Tuesday, January 30, celebrating his one year in office and successful passage of a key campaign promise, comprehensive tax reform.

In a letter to the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, the NASE provided comments in response to the Presidential Executive Order Promoting Healthcare Choice and Competition Across the United States issued by President Trump on October 12, 2017. Section 4 of the Executive Order specifically addresses increasing availability of and access to the use of Health Reimbursement Arrangements (HRAs) for employers and their employees.

As SelfInformed goes to print, the Senate is busy debating the tax reform legislation with the House previously approving their sweeping tax reform legislation. The NASE continues to advocate for a simplified tax code that promotes parity amongst all businesses, regardless of size.

Long championed by the NASE, Health Reimbursement Arrangements (HRAs) have become a significant tool for the self-employed and micro-business owner to use to offer a unique, innovative health care benefit.

Keith Hall, President and CEO of the National Association for the Self-Employed (NASE), the nation's leading advocate and resource for the self-employed and micro-businesses, issued the following statement in reaction to today’s release of the House GOP tax proposal:

The NASE enthusiastically supports new legislation proposed by the leaders of the House Small Business Committee leadership earlier in September. H.R. 3717, Small Business Owners’ Tax Simplification Act of 2017, legislation was drafted in close consultation with the NASE, and we are incredibly appreciative of the inclusion of many key priorities we advocated for being included in the final legislation.

The NASE has publicly announced its support for H.R. 2823, “Affordable Retirement Advice for Savers Act.” Introduced in the House by Chairman Roskam (R-IL) and Dr. Roe (R-TN) the legislation puts the interests of the American small business community ahead of federal red tape by overturning the burdensome fiduciary rule. The fiduciary rule is a one size fits all regulation and places a significant financial burden on small business. The NASE feels strongly that burdensome regulation will stifle innovation and growth in the small business sector and superfluous rules like these are simply a barrier to economic growth.

On July 27, House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI), Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, National Economic Council Director Gary Cohn, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch (R-UT), and House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady (R-TX) outlined their bold plan for comprehensive tax reform. In close coordination with the Trump Administration, the House and Senate leaders, announced the key areas of focus in the legislation:

Late in June, Senate Republicans introduced their long awaited legislation to repeal/replace the Affordable Care Act. However, unlike the House version, which passed the House, the Senate bill was met with immediate skepticism from within the Senate Republican caucus. Members of the Conservative and Moderate wing, immediately called for continued negotiations—with very different and in many cases, conflicting demands. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell had to scrap an anticipated pre-July 4th vote on the legislation as he has been unable to secure 50 Republican votes to move the measure forward.

Earlier this Spring, President Trump announced his broad plans for tax reform and his desire to see these reforms introduced as legislation as quickly as possible. The plan includes six key components:

Every Presidential Administration takes some time to get their feet firmly planted and while we are cautious to put much stalk into the arbitrary 100 day assessment of President Trump, it is a good benchmark to evaluate the tone and philosophy of an Administration.

On Thursday, March 23, Republican Leadership pulled the American Health Care Act (AHCA) from being considered by the House of Representatives, citing that they did not have the support of the Republican Caucus, specifically, the influential Freedom Caucus who continued to withhold their support even after numerous concessions had been granted.

On Tuesday, February 28, President Trump was invited to speak to a Joint Session of Congress, roughly 40 days after his inauguration, President Trump spoke boldly about his vision for America and also highlighting successes by his Administration. Those successful initiatives highlighted in his speech, include:

On Monday, March 6, 2017, the Republican controlled House released the American Health Care Act ("AHCA"), the long awaited replacement bill for the Affordable Care Act ("ACA"). We have created a comparison chart on some of the key provisions of the ACA and how they fair in the AHCA.

President Trump wasted no time and issued five executive orders within the first three days of his presidency. All of the executive orders fulfilled promises he made on the campaign trail.

The language which was identical to previous legislation approved by the House of Representatives was inserted into the 21st Century Cares Act, a sweeping piece of legislation that funded important health programs and includes significant resources to the Beau Biden “moonshot” project- with a goal of curing cancer. The tack on of our legislation is a testament to the hard work done by the NASE, congressional champions and staff, and our coalition partners to emphasize how important HRAs are to the small business community.

The 115th Congress will not look so different from the 114th, the Republicans still hold the majority in the Senate and House, however, in what many perceived as a shocking election, the Republicans now also hold the White House, President-elect Donald Trump, will have a path and the support to enact many of his campaign promises.

As President-Elect Donald Trump and Congressional Republicans meet to outline an agenda for the first 100 days of a new administration, The National Association for the Self-Employed (NASE), the nation’s leading advocate and resource for self-employed and micro-businesses, is urging swift action on a range of small business issues ranging from health care to regulatory evaluation and tax reform.

For all accounts 2016 has turned into a once in a lifetime election that has thrown wide open not just which party will lead the White House, but what party will control the Senate and House. The safe assumption for many political observers in the midst of the primary calendar is that the House would remain safe in Republican hands and that the Republican majority in the Senate while possibly being chipped away ever so slightly, would remain in Republican control and that the fight for the White House would be the main event on November 8, 2016. It is safe to say that any pre-conceived notions or assumptions have been tossed out the window in what has become an eyebrow raising political cycle.

The NASE supports a simplified tax code which is always better for the long-term survival of small businesses. Secretary Clinton’s focus on both a standard business deduction and access to health care are two essential tools for the small business community. Offering health care benefits to employees is on point: in fact, we support this in conjunction with the flexibility of Health Reimbursement Arrangements in order to ensure small business stability and health of both their employees and businesses.

It is official, the Republican nominee for President is Donald J. Trump and the Democratic nominee for President is Secretary Hillary R. Clinton. The political parties met at their respective conventions in July to formally nominate their party’s candidate.

The National Association for the Self-Employed voiced its strong support for the Overtime Reform and Enhancement Act, a bill that will update the overtime rules while allowing universities, non-profits, and businesses the necessary time to be able to plan and comply with the new rule.

The NASE has announced its support of S. 2707/H.R. 4773, “Protecting Workplace Advancement and Opportunity Act.” Introduced by Senators Scott (R-SC) and Alexander (R-TN) and Representatives Walberg (R-MI) and Kline (R-MN), would block the current proposed Department of Labor overtime regulation from taking effect and require the Department to perform a deeper analysis of the impact changes to overtime regulations will have on small businesses, nonprofits, regional economies, local governments, Medicare and Medicaid dependent health care providers, and academic institutions, as well as employee flexibility and career advancement before proceeding with a rule.

NASE Joins Coalition Ahead Of DOL Announcement On New Overtime Regulations. The NASE has joined the Partnership to Protect Workplace Opportunity in advance of the Department of Labor’s proposed new overtime regulations, expected to be released before Memorial Day.

The new survey finds that an overwhelming majority of those who responded – 69 percent – have not receive any tax guidance from the shared economy platform they are working with. In fact, the data underscores the importance of educating shared-economy entrepreneurs about the fact that they, too, are operating a self-employed, small business.

The joy of working for the NASE is that I get to be your advocate in Washington, D.C. and across many State capitols, however, the most effective advocate for the issues that are most important to you, the self-employed business owner, is YOU!

On behalf of the undersigned organizations representing millions of American workers and their families, we express our gratitude to you for your efforts to provide Congressional oversight over the Obama Administration's state grant program to address the misclassification of workers. Last year, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) granted $10 million to 23 states to implement or improve worker misclassification programs. The Consolidated and Further Appropriations Act, 2015, Public Law No. 113-235, authorized this grant funding for "activities to address the misclassification of workers." While many states have existing programs designed to reduce worker misclassification, this is the second year that the DOL has awarded grants dedicated to worker misclassification.

In November the Administration launched the MyRA retirement tool encouraging individuals to establish retirement accounts, however, President Obama has now focused his attention on small employers (with less than 100 employees) who currently do not offer a retirement plan to their employees.

On Tuesday, January 12, 2016, President Obama delivered his final State of the Union address to the country. What is usually a laundry list of “to do” items for the Congress, the President realizing that his final 12 months in office will be lame duck, elected to use his speech to discuss his progress as President over the past seven years and reassure the country that things are headed in the right direction.

As President Barack Obama delivers his final State of the Union Address, the National Association for the Self-Employed (NASE), the nation’s leading advocate and resource for the self-employed and micro-business community, applauds him for making the small business community an important part of his address tonight: two small business owners are guests in the First Lady’s box, Mark Davis of Washington, D.C. and Ronna Rice of Greeley, CO.

On Wednesday, November 4, 2015, the U.S. Department of Treasury announced the launch of MyRA, a retirement savings tools for American workers who don’t have access to a retirement plan (401k, pension, etc) through work or haven’t taken advantage of retirement plan previously.

In a stunning turn of events, Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) announced on Friday, September 23, 2015 he would resign from the speakership and Congress by mid-October, setting the stage for the election of a new Speaker amongst a fractured and dysfunctional Republican party.

Under a proposed rule issued by the Department of Labor, millions of exempted employees would become eligible for overtime and would raise workers’ wages by $1.2 billion in a plan outlined by Secretary Perez. The salary threshold for an employee to be eligible for overtime would be raised to about $970 week/$50,440 annually and the threshold for highly compensated employees would move from $100,000 to $122,148.

The National Association for the Self-Employed (NASE) representing the 22 million owners of American’s small businesses, recently received testimonials from our members as to how their businesses would be impacted if Congress and the Administration fail to address the many issues tied to the fiscal cliff.

In an interview with Bloomberg News, NASE Director of Government Affairs, Katie Vlietstra expressed support and enthusiasm for the recent announcement by the Small Business Administration and Department of Labor expanding the Self-Employment Assistance program.

NASE President and CEO Kristie Arslan appeared on Sunday's "Your Business" on MSNBC to discuss the 2012 election and lay-out the self-employed agenda for 2013: tax reform and implementation of the affordable care act!

In just days, self-employed Americans will see their tax liability dramatically increase if the Obama Administration and Congress fail to reach a common sense solution to the expiration of individual income tax rates and a host of additional tax deductions.

NASE Member Council members Charlie Arnold and Ben Seidel were highlighted in a CNBC article discussing the impact of the fiscal cliff on the self-employed.

In a blog posting on Huffington Post, President & CEO Kristie Arslan outlines five immediate pro-active steps Congress can take to ensuring America's self-employed, America's smallest business, are successful enterprises.

In an Op-Ed in Silicon Beat, ODesk CEO, Gary Swart, highlights the NASE as a group who is "striving for the much-needed resources needed for the self-employed—such as access to health insurance, tax guidance and community support—as well as fighting for the rights of freelancers through legislative advocacy."

The National Association for the Self-Employed is asking members to contact President Obama and their elected officials and demand action on the fiscal cliff.

On Thursday, the National Association for the Self-Employed sent letters to President Obama, Majority Leader Reid, Republican Leader McConnell, Speaker Boehner, and Democratic Leader Pelosi, highlighting the severe impact of the looming tax increases if congress fails to act in a timely, bi-partisan fashion.

Please join the NASE government affairs team for an in-depth analysis of the 2012 election results and the legislative priorities for the 113th congress.

President Obama won re-election last night, Democrats held the U.S. Senate, and the Republicans remain in control in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Pew Research Center released a new poll showing the Presidential race even, 47%- 47%, however, the poll gives a slight turnout edge to Governor Romney, but oddly the poll participants still believe the President Obama will win re-election, 49%.

In a Yahoo! Small Business article today, four small businesses owners were profiled and asked questions relating to the upcoming November election and what issues are of most concern, health care costs, regulation, and continued challenges of maintaining a business during a recession.

Lead by JPMorgan Chase CEO, Jamie Dimon, 15 of the country's largest businesses pressed President Obama and Congressional leaders to act on the "fiscal cliff" (expiration of all '01, '03, '10 tax cuts) before December 31, 2012.

The fourth and fifth ACA educational webinars will be made available early next week, in the meantime you can review the slidedecks.

The Washington Post has an article outlining the candidates positions on issues important to the self-employed community, including: taxes, health care, regulation, immigration, government contracting, SBA, and exporting.

Last night's debate was heated, contentious, and if it had taken place in a boxing ring, it would have been decided by decision

This evening, President Obama and Governor Romney will meet for the second of three Presidential debates.

Last night's Vice-Presidential debate was predictable, both VP candidates taking a much more aggressive attack towards the other campaign, however, for VP Biden, this incredibly important to help swing momentum back towards the Obama-Biden ticket.

Coming off of last week's Presidential debate, expectations are high for Congressman Paul Ryan to keep the momentum going for the Romney/Ryan ticket, while Vice-President Biden is tasked with stopping the surging Romney campaign with a strong debate performance.

NASE along with key partners within the self-employed and small business community released new research on the micro-business community and their impact on the economy and its recovery.

The Pew Research Center released a new post-debate presidential poll showing what the Obama campaign feared, Governor Romney taking a lead over President Obama following the Governor's strong debate performance.

In the last two weeks, President Obama's average lead in national polls has been erased and for the first time in nearly a month, Governor Romney holds a slight advantage over President Obama.

NASE continued its health care reform webinar series on Wednesday, solely focused on the affordability provisions included in the ACA, including premium assistance credits and small business credits.

Prior to Wednesday's debate, the NASE submitted candidate questionnaires to the campaigns of President Obama and Governor Romney.

Politics is a sport and therefore, folks love to claim "winners" and "losers" for debates.

Next Wednesday, President Obama and Governor Romney will have their first of three debates. The Vice-Presidential candidates, will also have an opportunity to meet and discuss issues once.

Starting in 2014, the self-employed will be able to purchase health insurance through a state or federally based exchange market.

On Sunday's 60 Minutes, Scott Pelley sat down, separately, with both President Obama and Governor Romney, for in-depth interviews.

On Wednesday, September 19, 2012, the NASE Advocacy team hosted the first in a five-part webinar series on the Affordable Care Act and its impact on the self-employed.

New polling out of Wisconsin, Virginia, and Massachusetts shows all three Democratic Senate candidates either taking a small or dramatic lead over their respective Republican challengers.

A Pew Research Center national poll has Obama leading Romney by 8+ pts, the poll weighed significantly towards registered voters.

Today, the National Association for the Self-Employed (NASE) respectfully submits this official statement for the record on today’s hearing Implementation of Health Insurance Exchanges and Related Provisions.

In today's Washington Post, political analysts Chris Cillizza and Aaron Blake argue just like most polls showing a tight race, the electoral college is also narrow thing, throwing a slight lead to incumbent, President Obama.

In today's print edition, Politico identified nine battleground states for the 2012 Presidential campaign:.

Tax Comparison: 2012 v. 2013 and Romney v. Obama

Newest polling data tracking the general election: Romney v. Obama. The RCP average shows Obama leading by 2+.

Democrats nominated President Obama for a second-term on Thursday, Sept. 6, 2012 in Charlotte, North Carolina. You can read and listen to his entire speech here:

On the opening day of the Democratic Convention, party officials released the 2012 platform outlining key principles for governing and the vision for America moving forward.

On August 30, 2012, Governor Mitt Romney accepted the Republican nomination for President. You can read and listen to his entire speech here

Republicans released their 2012 party platform in Tampa, the platform outlines the guiding principles for the Republican party. The platform addresses issues of importance to the small business community with an emphasis on entrepreneurship, but makes no mention of the self-employed specifically:

On Tuesday, August 15, 2012, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services held a health care law implementation forum, below are three things to know:

This afternoon, the National Association for the Self-Employed formally requested a hearing on H.R. 6102, America's Small Business Tax Relief Act of 2012, by the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Tax and Select Revenue.

The NASE in conjunction with its #TheSelfEmployedMatter Twitter campaign is encouraging its members to contact their U.S. Senators and urge them to support S. 2050 and their Member of Congress and urge them to co-sponsor H.R. 6102.

The NASE strongly supports legislation introduced by Rep. Gerlach and Rep. Kind that makes permanent eight key tax provisions for the self-employed and small business community, including the health insurance deduction for the self-employed.

The NASE issued the below letter to the U.S. Senate regarding the amendment process for S. 2237, the Small Business Jobs and Tax Relief Act and the continued debate regarding the President's proposal to extend tax cuts for individuals making $250,000 or less.

In the wake of the Supreme Court’s final ruling on the Affordable Care Act, the self-employed and micro-businesses are concerned as to the impact the law will have on their health care budgets when the law goes into full effect in 2014. Nearly 900 self-employed and micro-business owners responded to the survey released within hours of the Supreme Court ruling. With the law moving forward into the implementation stage, the self-employed are, once again, looking for more information from the federal government regarding issues of affordability and cost of care.

On Thursday, June 28, 2012, the Supreme Court issued its ruling upholding the Affordable Care Act (AC). Please read the NASE Fact Sheet to learn more about our advocacy efforts and how we are working to ensure the implementation of the Act is fair and equitable for the self-employed.

The National Association for the Self-Employed argued Congress to act on legislation to change rules pertaining to Flexible Savings Accounts and Health Savings Accounts.

In support of National Small Business Week, the NASE, calls on the Senate to address continued challenges faced by budding entrepreneurs and established businesses in their quest for access to capital. The NASE supports S. 2231, The Credit Union Member Business Lending Bill, among other initiatives to stimulate the lending market specifically for the self-employed/small business community.

In celebration of National Small Business Week (NSBW), NASE will co-host a White House conference call briefing on the activities planned around the country in honor of NSBW.

NASE submitted the below statement for the record in an effort to ensure that the House Ways and Means Committee move forward on tax reform that encompasses the self-employed community, specifically, the individual income tax rate, health insurance premium deduction, and the start-up deduction.

The nation’s smallest businesses are still feeling negative effects of the economy, including cash flow issues for business and family, according to a new survey by the National Association for the Self-Employed (NASE). Three-quarters of the self-employed and micro-businesses owners say their company provides the main source of income in their household.

“The National Association for the Self-Employed (NASE) applauds the overwhelmingly bi-partisan approval of The Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act” this afternoon,” stated NASE President and CEO Kristie Arslan, “We hope that the United State Senate will address this important package of bills swiftly and continue to support small businesses.”

On Tuesday, March 6th, the NASE submitted a statement for the record in support of the Senate Banking committee hearing on capital formation. Specifically, the NASE encouraged the Senate to address crowdfunding legislation that is currently awaiting action.

Yesterday, the National Association for the Self-Employed along with several other major small business groups urged Majority Leader Reid and Minority Leader McConnell to advance legislation related to crowdfunding.

In a letter sent to the Senate Banking Committee on Monday, NASE along with 30 other organizations, urged the Senate to ensure that the CFPB is in accordance with the Snowe-Pryor provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act that ensure small businesses are not unjustly burdened with costly regulation.

NASE submitted a statement for the record on yesterday's, February 1st, House Small Business Committee hearing on "The Path to Job Creation: The State of American Small Businesses."

In a letter to Director Richard Cordray, NASE along with 48 small business organizations in expressing concerns related to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's implementation of small business provisions in the Dodd-Frank Act.

In a letter to Administrator Karen Mills, NASE congratulates her newly designated cabinet level status and applauds President Obama's decision to elevate the Small Business Administration to cabinet level status during this time of reorganization and consolidation.

President Barack Obama signed into law legislation that will allow the self-employed to deduct their health insurance costs as a business expense for payroll tax purposes.

The National Association for the Self-Employed applauds the U.S. House of Representatives for its quick action regarding approval of the Small Business Jobs and Credit Act.

To take a look at the provisions included in the legislation, please take a look at the following bill summary...

As the House returns to take up the Small Business Jobs Act this week, Kristie Arslan, Executive Director of the Legislative Offices of the National Association for the Self-Employed (NASE), released the following statement urging quick action...

The National Association for the Self-Employed (NASE) applauds the Senate in their passage today of the Small Business Jobs and Credit Act of 2010 (H.R. 5297).

The effort to ensure a safer, more consumer-friendly Wall Street moved one step closer to success with the passage Thursday night of the Restoring American Financial Security Act in the Senate.

Companies with fewer than 10 employees – micro-businesses – are asking Congress to keep in mind that a big part of being able to create jobs and grow their companies depends largely on their ability to pay for health coverage.

The Consumer Financial Protection Agency Act of 2009 (H.R. 3126), which includes the creation of a new federal agency central to President Obama’s financial regulatory reform initiative, was approved by the House Financial Services Committee recently.

The NASE’s National Tax Advisor testified before the House Committee on Small Business about how allowing tax incentives to expire would cause a direct and unintended tax increase on the small business sector that many are relying on to continue the economic recovery.

The United States Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship recently held a roundtable to discuss the impact of various health reform proposals on small businesses. Kristie Arslan, Executive Director of the Legislative Office for the National Association for the Self-Employed (NASE), participated in the roundtable along with Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and other small business owners and advocates.

The Small Business Jump Start Act of 2009 (S. 1402) will increase the small business start-up expenses deduction from $5,000 to $10,000 and increase the threshold for the deduction phase-out from $50,000 to $60,000.

The NASE reminds legislators that health care reform efforts must not forget the self-employed.

The nation’s entrepreneurs are ready for major changes to the American health care system, but are asking the federal government to implement various proposals to help them cope with the costs. Nearly 2,000 micro-businesses, including members of the National Association for the Self-Employed, took part in this national online survey of their opinions on current health care reform proposals.

President Barack Obama recently met with the National Association for the Self-Employed (NASE) and the National Small Business Award winners to discuss how the Administration's economic recovery efforts will benefit entrepreneurs.

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) reports that one-fifth of those carrying credit card debt pay an interest rate above 20 percent.

The Obama Administration recently announced its plans to step up the search for non compliant taxpayers as one method for offsetting a massive budget designed to help shore up economic losses for the nation.

Business owners who work out of an office in their homes could save an additional $1,500 on their taxes next year. Legislation introduced by Congressman Kurt Schrader (D-OR)

Recently introduced federal legislation would level the playing field for 21 million self-employed Americans by ending a significant double-digit disparity in taxes...

On July 4, 2025, President Trump signed into law the One Big Beautiful Bill Act [reconciliation package]. The bill includes hundreds of provisions, including extended and expanded tax cuts, and deep cuts to Medicaid, food benefits and other social welfare programs. The bill is also projected to add more than $3 trillion to the national debt over the next decade. Over the course of the last week, Republicans made several last minute changes to the bill, including stripping out controversial provisions (such as a 10 year moratorium on state-level AI regulations and a sell-off of public lands in 11 western states). The package includes significant additional funding to the Department of Homeland Security for immigration enforcement, and to the Department of Defense.

Congress will return next week and will immediately pivot to moving a CR through the House and Senate.