Legislative issues that could affect your small business in 2019

The 2019 legislative session is underway here in Tennessee. What bills are on the horizon that might affect your small business? 

We will take a look at state and national-level legislation that could have consequences for your small business in 2019.

National

On the national level, experts don’t believe there will be a lot of progress made on issues relating specifically to small business. With a divided Congress, many things on the agenda for either party will probably face difficulty making it all the way through both houses.

However, some of the issues that may come up in 2019 that could affect your small business are:

  • Health care: Even if changes are unlikely to pass, lawmakers could reintroduce bills that allow individuals, like sole proprietors, band together to buy insurance in association health plans.
  • Taxes: Though tax code simplification is supported on both sides of the aisle,  and would ease the burden on small business owners, hopes aren’t high that simplification will be accomplished this year
  • Overtime: New regulations for increasing who is eligible for overtime are expected to be released by the Labor Department in 2019. These rules should be a compromise between new regulations proposed under the Obama administration and no increase at all.
  • Paid leave: Democrats may introduce legislation that requires paid family leave, but it probably won’t pass through the Senate.

Tennessee

There are plenty of bills up for consideration that could affect small businesses, either directly or indirectly. Here are some of the themes that are emerging in the bills that have been proposed this legislative session:

  • Employer/employee affairs: Bills have been introduced that would: prohibit employers from screening applicants for compensation history during the hiring process; provide 4 hours of leave each year for parental involvement in schools; prohibit employers from accessing sealed or expunged criminal records during the hiring process; and prohibit employers from using a credit check during the hiring process.
  • Taxes: Proposals that phase out or reduce the professional privilege tax are being considered this legislative session. These changes would reduce the tax burden on small business owners in industries like accountants, real estate brokers, dentists, chiropractors and more. See a full list of affected professions here.
  • Higher education: Access to a talented workforce is important for small business owners. Bills have been proposed that would allow certain incarcerated people to pursue degrees offered by a community college or technical school so they could have a credential when reentering the workforce.

The advocacy team at the Nashville Chamber is working to make sure your best interests as a small business owner are being promoted to lawmakers. You can find our legislative priorities for 2019 here. We develop these priorities with the help of member businesses through our annual policy survey.

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