NFIB’s monthly Small Business Economic Trends report (aka the Optimism Index) is the association’s most highly regarded and widely reported research product because it’s considered by policymakers from coast to coast as the nation’s bellwether measurement of the Main Street economy. 

NFIB Montana State Director Ronda Wiggers was asked by NBC Montana in Bozeman to comment on the March 2024 report and told the television affiliate, “I think the national numbers reflect a lot of what I’m also hearing from small businesses in Montana. One of their No. 1 concerns right now is inflation and the cost of their labor.” 

• Click here to read the NBC story. 

• Click here to read the news release NFIB put out the day of the report. 

• Click here to read a brief, one-page history of the SBET Optimism Index.