NFIB has had several victories so far during this 2022 legislative session. Lawmakers are currently in recess after failing to get their work done during their 60-day window. While there is still more work to be done, NFIB has been successful so far in getting several key small business initiatives passed. Here are our victories so far:

Worker Safety Board:

The Virginia Department of Labor and Industry’s Worker Safety Board removed unnecessary COVID-19 workplace restrictions, after evaluating the current COVID-19 infections in Virginia. The board decided that the COVID-19 virus no longer poses a grave danger to Virginians.

Small businesses experienced intense stress as their businesses were ordered to close or operate in an extremely limited capacity.  Two years later, small businesses are still facing difficulties in hiring people, confronting rising inflation and disruptions in their supply chains.

Health Care Mandate:

The House and Senate passed legislation that would prevent small business owners from another costly and time-consuming government mandated program.

 Here in Virginia, lawmakers have been debating about the role that government should play when it comes to family leave insurance and small business owners. SB 15 amends Virginia’s insurance code to allow the Bureau of Insurance to regulate the sale of group insurance family leave plans to employers.

The legislation allows employers to voluntarily purchase private insurance family leave plans that provide income replacement to employees for the birth or adoption of a child, placement of a child for foster care, care of a family members with a serious health condition, or a family member who is in the service and on active duty or been notified of an impending call.

“This bill is unique and the first of its kind in the country. It’s a great example of how lawmakers can work across the aisle to get something done for small business owners that makes sense,” said Julia Hammond, NFIB State Director in Virginia.

Tax Relief:

Gov. Glenn Youngkin signed HB 971 into law, a bill fully conforms Virginia’s tax code to the American Rescue Plan Act, including the Restaurant Revitalization Fund, allowing for full deductibility of expenses paid with Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) for tax years beginning Jan. 1, 2021. The legislation includes language allowing fiscal year filers to take advantage of the $100,000 deduction for forgiven PPP loans and Rebuild Virginia grants received in calendar year 2020.

This move would help thousands of struggling small businesses across the state that have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the latest NFIB survey, nearly half of small business owners reported supply chain issues have a significant impact, 23% are experiencing significant staffing shortages and another 64% have increased their average selling prices.