YOUNGNow you can listen to Fox News articles!
As he prepares to take office, President-elect Donald Trump has expressed a strong desire to return to pre-crisis levels of economic growth and “America's golden age.” After four years of being told the economy was better than it hit our wallets, this is a welcome change.
To achieve this goal, the new administration will need the private sector – something that the Biden era not only ignored, but its regulatory agenda contradicted the concerns of many industries. The franchise sector, which I represent and includes 800,000 small businesses that support 9 million workers, is ready to begin work as a tool in the Trump administration.
Franchising played a starring role in the 2024 election, surpassing Trump's post-Fryer Pennsylvania McDonald's. Although franchising is often associated with food, the majority (more than six out of ten) are in another industry, from hotels, salons, gyms, animal care and many others.
EXPERTS SOUND THE ALARM ON THE 'DEFINITE SHIFT' WORKING IN CORPORATE AMERICA
Even after several punitive attacks on franchising from the Biden administration, the franchise sector is estimated to have grown 4% this year compared to 2.7% for the broader economy.
President-elect Donald Trump works the drive-thru line during a campaign photo when he visits a McDonald's restaurant in Feasterville-Trevose, Pennsylvania on October 20, 2024. Even that brief moment of fast food is a powerful reminder of value. franchisees. the American economy. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)
With the change of philosophy in the corporate government, the opportunities for the spirits of franchising to be used are ripe. Here are three things the Trump administration can do to boost its economic growth:
1. Make Trump's employer partnership legal
There is no federal priority for franchising clarifying the employer's joint position. The whole model is based on independence between the (new) franchisor and its individual franchisees. The former provides the concept, design and brand for the latter, who are free to do their own business, in exchange for a negotiated fee and to meet the standards of the type that customers expect, whether in Palm Beach or Parsippany.
In 2023, Biden's National Labor Relations Board tried to bring back 2020. Trump's combined employer budget and removing independence between franchisors and franchisees. As the name suggests, the aim was to put the franchisor on the hook for the employees of the franchisee to increase the legal responsibility and the comfort of the union.
Fortunately, a Trump-appointed federal judge in Texas threw out Biden's fraud, but after four changes to the law in the past decade, franchising requires permanent conditions for joint ventures that meet the definition. of Trump. Business owners can't plan when the regulatory climate is constantly changing with the White House occupant. They need certainty.
2. Reauthorizing Trump's tax cuts
In 2017, Congress passed the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), commonly known as the. Trump's tax cuts. Unlike opponents' proposals for “tax cuts for the rich,” these policies became a way of life for small business owners, helping to propel the economy to new heights before the COVID-19 pandemic. . However without implementation, they are all set to expire at the end of 2025.
Another very important part of Trump's tax cuts is Section 199A, which allows for a 20% deduction of income for pass-through businesses. Since most franchise businesses are structured as pass-throughs, 199A levels the playing field between small businesses and large businesses, which already enjoy tax breaks.
To eliminate last-minute “fiscal conditions” such as the latest controversy over federal budgets, the approval of tax cuts should be prioritized at the beginning of the new year. That action would not only allow small business owners the certainty they need, but would also send a clear message that the days of putting off important action until the last minute are over.
3. On the right the FTC ship
Before Biden nominated Lina Khan to lead the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in 2021, most Americans had never heard of the agency, and for good reason. Established a century ago to ensure a competitive business environment and protect consumers, the FTC under Khan became an aggressive agency that went beyond its mandate.
Federal Trade Commission Chairman Lina Khan has been widely criticized by the business community for her aggressive approach. FILE: Khan testifies before the House Judiciary Committee in the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill on July 13, 2023, in Washington, DC. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
Instead of representing consumers, Khan opposed businessmen. He started many debts and research, forcing the industry to spend valuable time and resources protecting government officials rather than growing their businesses.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE FOX NEWS COMMENTS
In 2023, Khan launched a general Franchise Information Request designed to generate negative feedback, and extended its duration to the summer of 2024, when he did not get the desired result.
Trump named Andrew Ferguson as his replacement for Khan, not long ago. Now, there are promising signs that the tide is turning. The much-anticipated “useless fee” rule announced by the FTC was narrower in scope than the original.
Business owners can't plan when the regulatory climate is constantly changing with the White House occupant. They need certainty.
Achieving the “golden age of America” will not be easy, but that should not discourage us.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
America did not envy the world by demanding less money. We ignored President John F. Kennedy's call to walk on the moon in the 1960s or President Ronald Reagan's mission to “tear down this wall” in the 1980s by being small.
Achieving that 4% economic growth figure will require everyone to be moving in the same direction. The franchise community is ready and willing to do our part.