As Congress today completed its approval of the Trump Administration’s tax and spending megabill, reaction to the law’s policies split cleanly between opposition by small business interests and adoration by large enterprise corporations.
Criticism of the bill came swiftly from the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA), which said its members would get no benefit from the “One Big Beautiful Bill” act’s move eliminating taxes on overtime pay. That’s because truckers are excluded from overtime protections under the “outdated” Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, OOIDA President Todd Spencer said in a release. “It’s time for Congress to fix a nearly century-old oversight by passing the bipartisan GOT Truckers Act and ensure truckers are eligible for both overtime pay and the tax relief extended to other blue collar workers,” Spencer said.
Harsher words came from the Main Street Alliance, a trade group representing over 30,000 small business owners nationwide. Calling the bill a “wealth grab,” the group said it is opposed to forecasts that under terms in the bill, 17 million Americans will lose their health insurance; the cost of health insurance premiums will rise; 2 million people will lose food assistance; rural hospitals will close; and the majority of tax cuts will go to wealthy Americans and large corporations.
However, praise for the new policy package came from the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors (NAW), the Alliance for Chemical Distribution (ACD), and the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM).
“While this bill passed on a party-line vote, manufacturers all across America, in red states and blue states, swing districts and safe districts, look forward to putting people to work, more factories into motion, more innovation into the market, more products onto our shelves and more prosperity into our communities,” NAM President and CEO Jay Timmons said in a release. “This Congress and this administration understand that a stronger manufacturing sector means a stronger America. We will continue to work with our nation’s leaders to realize and celebrate the benefits of a comprehensive manufacturing strategy that includes not only further tax reforms but also trade, energy, workforce development and modernized regulations.”
