NFIB

Change Is Good--But Some Things Must Not Change
01/ 23/ 2006
by Jack Faris

This is my last column for the magazine, as I am retiring from NFIB. On Feb. 15, Todd Stottlemyer will become just the fifth president in the 63-year history of NFIB. Todd is a seasoned executive who has a focus and a heart for entrepreneurship and free enterprise. (See page 18 for more about Todd Stottlemyer.)

As business owners, you know that change is inevitable. You adapt to change in the marketplace by being flexible, reacting quickly. There have been many changes at NFIB during the 14 years I have been CEO. We owe our success to NFIB members, who were willing to stand up and be counted. We have the greatest team of employees anywhere, but without your support, we could not be successful.

Lawmakers listen to you. When you speak out to keep government off your back and off your property, you do it with zeal and a belief that the free enterprise system must be preserved, guarded—and thanks to you, no organization can do that better than NFIB.

You have great passion about public policy, which is why elected officials in the states and in Washington, D.C., listen to NFIB more than other interest groups. You write letters to the editors of your local newspapers. You vote your federal and state Member Ballots, you send letters, e-mails and faxes to your elected officials, often telling them, in no uncertain terms, your positions on the issues.

With a commitment to political activism, you have indeed made politics your business. United behind a culture of free enterprise, our votes have helped to secure and maintain historic pro–small-business majorities in the U.S. Congress. Combining the power of our grassroots and NFIB’s political action committee, we have experienced overwhelming success with our endorsed candidates, culminating in 2004, when D.C. pundits recognized NFIB’s nationwide win/loss record as the best in the nation. And as the political battles of the future develop, NFIB members and staff are well positioned to defend our voice at the ballot box.

Here is something you might not have thought about: During the last 63 years, NFIB consistently has been in meetings most people in D.C. didn't even know were going on. Many of the victories we've shared have never been written or even talked about, because the problems were resolved in congressional committees.

Your NFIB is strong because we represent the broadest spectrum of small businesses in the country. We are a true reflection of what you believe.

Change is good. But some things must not change. There always will be a need for NFIB to stand up for small business, to make certain that this free-market economy, which has encouraged small-business owners to engage in commerce for some 230 years, will not be threatened. The only way we could lose our strength and influence is to become apathetic—to leave public policy to others. To do that would be to yield decisions about the future of American free enterprise to people who have never met a payroll.

God bless, and thanks again for your support.

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