The NFIB Research Center conducts surveys of small-business owner and operator populations on a wide variety of topics. Surveys are conducted from nationally representative and NFIB member samples by both mail and telephones. (The Center does NOT conduct e-mail surveys.) NFIB member surveys tend to focus on opinion; nationally representative surveys tend to focus on behaviors. The exception is Small Business Economic Trends, a member survey that focuses on behaviors and expectations. Theoretically, totals using national and NFIB member samples on matters of opinion are likely to be different; practically, they are not. See, Op, comparing the outcome of national and NFIB member samples on 41 different issues. The results are the same for all intents and purposes.

The NFIB Research Center does on occasion contract with individuals and/or organizations to conduct research on its behalf.

Simulations create simplified descriptions of reality. The simulation system the NFIB Research Center employs first calculates a baseline forecast intended to represent the path the economy would take assuming no major changes (“shocks”) occur. It then calculates forecasts for an alternative scenario in which some major change/shock occurs. For present purposes, these shocks take the form of public policy change. The difference between the forecast for the alternative and baseline scenarios is the impact of the policy change. Impacts measure include changes in employment, real output, prices, etc.

The Business Size Impact Module (BSIM) was developed for the NFIB Research Center by Regional Economic Models, Inc. (REMI) of Amherst, MA. The principal feature distinguishing BSIM from REMI’s multi-region structural economic forecasting and policy analysis model, is its ability to forecast the impact of policy changes on U.S. businesses differentiated by size of firm. No other model (of which we are aware) has this capability. The REMI model is the leading forecasting and policy analysis model in use and is employed by hundreds of governmental agencies, universities, consulting firms, nonprofits, and others.