Welcome to the September 1-5 edition of the Main Street Minute from your small-business-advocacy team in Sacramento, coming to you post-Labor Day on September 2.

The Legislature

Small-business owners of NFIB California’s Leadership Council blitzed the State Capitol last week (August 26) for an intense day of lobbying on the Main Street agenda.

“Legislators, state constitutional officers, and all their staffs know how important it is when small business owners take time away from their enterprises to come and speak with them,” said NFIB California State Director John Kabateck. “I want to thank our Leadership Council members who made the sacrifice for the greater good of California small businesses.”

A full story of the day’s events, with photos, can be read here.

The Clock Ticks

As of today (September 2), there are only 11 days left in the 2025 session of the California State Legislature.

As reported by CalMatters last Friday (August 29), “With nearly 700 bills in the Senate and Assembly suspense files, lawmakers in the appropriations committees are busy today weeding out in rapid-fire fashion legislative proposals that have new spending attached. Bills that make the cut today will still need the Legislature’s final approval by Sept. 12 to land on the governor’s desk.”

The above describes only suspense-file bills, not the ones working their way through the process naturally. Two that are working their natural ways through the process were ones frequently mentioned during member visits to lawmakers last week.

— Senate Bill 690 (Caballero), which NFIB is supporting, “is necessary to stop the thousands of shakedown letters and lawsuits against California businesses of all sizes for typical business activities, like website analytics or online advertising that are already governed by the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA),” according to this letter of support.

— Senate Bill 512 (Perez), which NFIB is opposing, “would authorize voters in certain districts to impose transportation-related retail transactions and use taxes through initiative measures,” according to this letter of opposition, “and in so doing, “undermines the two-thirds vote requirement for special taxes.”

Stay tuned to future Main Street Minutes for the fate of both those bills and others.

By the numbers

• 2,825 The number of bills in 2025
• 60 The number of bills NFIB is supporting, opposing, or monitoring
  — 30 The number of bills on NFIB’s list technically dead
  — 25 The number of bills on NFIB’s list still alive or awaiting suspense-file decisions
  — 2 The number of bills NFIB is monitoring
  — 2 The number of bills signed into law via the state budget
  — 1 The number of two-year bills.

Single-use Plastic 

As reported three years ago in a July 4-8, 2022, Main Street Minute, “Another proposal that will not be on the ballot is one taking aim at single-use plastics and other packaging waste. As part of an agreement, it was removed by the authors after Governor Newsom signed Senate Bill 54 into law, which the Los Angeles Times called ‘… the nation’s most far-reaching restrictions on single-use plastics and packaging.’”

NFIB opposed SB 54, making it part of its voting record on lawmakers that year. But, it made it through, and on October 7 of this year, the public-comment period on the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery (CalRecycle)’s proposed permanent regulations closes.

“California’s landmark packaging law is the most significant overhaul of California’s plastics and packaging recycling policy in history,” says CalRecycle in this news release. “It goes further than any other state on cutting single-use plastic at the source and represents a giant step toward a more circular economy that is essential to combat climate change. The law requires producers to ensure that by 2032:

• 100% of single-use packaging and single-use plastic food service ware sold in the state is recyclable or compostable;
• 65% of single-use plastic packaging and single-use food service ware is recycled; and
• 25% reduction, compared to 2023, in the sale or distribution of single-use plastic packaging and single-use food service ware.”

NFIB members affected by the new regulations can find more information by clicking the news release link above.

Calendar

— September 9: California turns 175 years old

— September 12, 2025-January 5, 2026: Interim recess of the 2025-2026 session of the California State Legislature

— October 15: Last day for governor to sign or veto bills passed before September 12.

National

— NFIB Webinar: Hiring and Retention Tips in a Tight Labor Market: How Small Businesses Can Compete for Talent. Presented by: Elizabeth Milito, VP Small Business Legal Center. Wed., Sept. 3, 2025, 12:00 PM ET. Register here.

Highlights from Federal Government Relations Principal Louis Bertolotti’s weekly report

— Federal Newswire reports on NFIB’s ad campaign thanking lawmakers for making the 20% Small Business Deduction permanent. NFIB President Brad Close said: “For years, NFIB’s members have spoken out about the importance of making the 20% Small Business Tax Deduction permanent.”

— NFIB Principal of Federal Government Relations Tyler Dever published an op-ed in Association Health Plans regarding the small business health insurance affordability crisis: “The overarching theme is clear: without Congressional action, small businesses will continue to face disproportionate pressure from rising health insurance costs, leading to lower offer rates, higher turnover, and diminished economic dynamism.”

— The NFIB Research Center released the July quarterly SBET report highlighting the construction, manufacturing, retail, and services industries. Research Center Executive Director Holly Wade said, “Small business optimism increased in all four industry sectors, with optimism being the highest in manufacturing primarily due to increased expectations for better business conditions in the next six months.

Next Main Street Minute: September 8. All Main Streets Minutes can be found on the NFIB website here. Pull down the California tab in the upper-right-hand corner.