Tax Day Is Coming — What Your Small Businesses Need to Know Now

Dear Chanda,

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Tax Day is right around the corner — and small businesses should be taking full advantage of every credit and deduction available to them.

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This week, we're breaking down the employer tax incentives your members need to know before they file, spotlighting a new sign-on opportunity to strengthen small business protections in the regulatory process, and making the case for structural reforms that bring down costs where it matters most. Plus, don't miss a busy week of events ahead.

TAX GUIDES

Your Cheat Sheet to Employer Tax Credits & Deductions

Employer Incentives for Workforce Support and Benefits

The big picture: The U.S. Chamber of Commerce published an updated guide employers can tap for the 2025 tax year — many of which got a boost from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) signed in July 2025.

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Why it matters: Businesses — especially small ones — are leaving money on the table. These incentives reward employers for doing things they may already want to do: offering child care, hiring veterans, providing paid leave, and setting up retirement plans.

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Upgrades to watch for 2026:

• Child care credit jumps from 25% → 40% of expenses (50% for small biz), with the cap rising from $150K → $400K ($500K for small biz).
• Paid family leave credit made permanent, with a new premium-based calculation method and looser eligibility rules.
• Educational assistance programs (up to $5,250/yr tax-free for tuition & student loans) made permanent and indexed to inflation.

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The bottom line: Between OBBBA's permanent expansions and existing credits, employers have a deep toolkit to offset the cost of investing in their workforce — but some key credits have lapsed, so timing matters.

NEW SIGN-ON OPPORTUNITY

Coalition Letter in Support of the Prove it Act of 2025

Sign-On Deadline: Monday, March 30, 2026

What's happening: The U.S. Chamber is rallying a coalition to urge House leadership to pass the Prove It Act of 2025 (H.R. 1163) — a bill to close loopholes in the 46-year-old Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) that let federal agencies dodge accountability on small business impacts.

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Why it matters: The RFA was supposed to force regulators to minimize burdens on small businesses. In practice, agencies have found ways to hide costs and ignore feedback from Main Street. This bill would make them prove their work.

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What the bill does:

• More transparency — Agencies must fully disclose and justify their analyses of how rules impact small businesses.
• Earlier input — Small businesses get a seat at the table sooner in the rulemaking process, with clearer compliance pathways.
• Prove it or lose it — Agencies must back up their claims when they say a rule won't significantly affect small businesses.

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Act now: All state, regional, and metro chambers of commerce are encouraged to sign onto the letter, which calls on the House to move "expeditiously" to consider and pass the bill.

ECONOMY

A Blueprint for Affordability Solutions

Expanding supply and reducing costs is the key to affordability.

The big picture: The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is highlighting a simple formula for tackling affordability: boost supply and cut government-imposed costs — not subsidies or price controls.

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Why it matters: Americans are squeezed on groceries, housing, healthcare, energy, and insurance. We argue that interventions like subsidies and price caps treat symptoms, not causes — and often make things worse.

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The solutions:

• Food: Expand farm worker visas, drop tariffs on food and fertilizer, and reform trucking litigation to cut shipping costs.
• Auto insurance: Curb frivolous lawsuits and reduce tariffs on auto parts.
• Electricity: Speed up permitting for new generation and maintain an all-of-the-above energy strategy.
• Housing: Fix zoning/permitting, boost immigration for construction workers, and remove tariffs on lumber and building materials.
• Healthcare: Expand visa pathways for nurses and doctors, reform medical liability, and provide regulatory clarity for AI in healthcare.

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The bottom line: The Chamber's message to Washington — stop reaching for quick fixes and start making structural reforms that let markets bring prices down.