HITTING THE HIGH NOTES: REELIN’ IN THIS YEAR’S SUCCESS IN FEDERAL AFFAIRS

As we quickly approach the midway point of 2024, the government affairs team thought it apt to provide an update on how exactly the year is panning out.

Congress is divided as ever; as of April 10th, the 118th congress has only passed 12 laws, bringing their total for this legislative session to 46 laws. This puts the 118th congress on track to be the least productive congress in modern history. Congressional productivity has not been so low since before the Second World War.

What is the cause of this lackluster work? Congressional turmoil.

Congress has had to contend with considerable delays, party-in-fighting, and distractions, not to mention a razor-thin majority in either chamber.  With the added stress of a presidential election year, it is the perfect recipe for congressional gridlock.

The ripple effect of ousting Speaker Kevin McCarthy is still reverberating through congress. Six months later we can still see evidence of contentious party-in-fighting. Take the recent tax bill as an example, Republicans led the negotiation, received all their objectives and the bill was still delayed in the Senate due to disagreements amongst party leaders. As I type this article, it is not clear whether Speaker Johnson will remain in his position.

THE SILVER LINING

How has NAPEO done navigating such turbulence? Incredibly well.

We entered 2024 knowing that the odds of any legislation, let alone major bills, were quite low. Furthermore, Congress and the White House are up for partisan grabs in this upcoming election.

Knowing this, we are using this year to build relationships with members of Congress. Working with our outside lobbying firm, Mehlman Consulting, we have participated in more than 40 congressional meetings with members and their staff this year.

NAPEO President & CEO Casey Clark attends a fundraiser in California with Rep. Beth Van Duyne (center) (R-TX) with his wife, Liz.

We are reaching into new offices as well as deepening our relationships with key members of powerful committees such as Ways & Means, Small Business, and Education and Workforce. We have focused on meeting with members on both sides of the aisle who care about our industry and are in positions to help us grow and strengthen PEOs.

In the first half of this year, we have increased the visibility of our industry and educated members of congress on the important role PEOs play in helping the small business community. So far this year, we have participated in 40 Congressional meetings representing members from 21 different states. Twenty-four of these meetings were with the member of Congress, the other 16 were with influential and key staff members. We are positioning ourselves to be a go-to resource for these offices.

NAPEO President & CEO Casey Clark and Bill Maness, CEO of Syndeo, attend a fundraiser for Rep. Ron Estes (center) (R-KS) as part of the Chairman Series led by House Ways & Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith (R-MO).

As we look to the latter half of the calendar, we foresee more opportunities for PEOs to stay top of mind. We plan to continue to beat the drum, building upon our work to increase our reputation and relationships with key stakeholders in congress. Moreover, we plan to continue our full court press engagement with members of congress working from our board approved federal priorities.

This is a year where we invest in relationship building for the bigger efforts that follow, most notably a re-write of the tax code in 2025-26. We are playing the long game, educating Congress on the important role we play in growing small businesses and providing benefits to their employees. When the time comes to move our agenda, the key people who determine legislative priorities will know what we do, know what we want, and be prepared to accept and move our priorities.