The Federal Corner is an initiative of the Florida Chamber under the Small Business Council and the Litigation & Regulatory Reform Center that tracks and engages in federal rules out of Washington, D.C., that may be problematic for Florida businesses.
The Federal Corner is intended to provide details of what is happening in Washington, D.C., that may impact your business. It’s important that if these federal provisions apply or potentially apply that you are aware so you can take advantage or take the proper steps accordingly.
The biggest issue currently at the federal level is the government shutdown due to Congress’s failure to extend current funding or pass a new spending plan. One of the sticking points to getting Democrat support is around healthcare and the expiration of Enhanced Premium Tax Credit (EPTC) at the end of this year. The sunset of EPTCs will significantly increase the cost of health insurance for the 4.1 million Floridians and 600,000 Florida businesses that rely on the healthcare marketplace to purchase health insurance. For example, a family of four earning $129,800 per year would see premiums increase by over $10,000, while a family of four earning half as much would see premiums increase by 197%.
For more information on what is happening at the federal level on labor and other regulatory issues, click the link below.
If you would like to engage in our federal legislative or regulatory advocacy efforts, please contact Florida Chamber Vice President of Government Affairs, Carolyn Johnson, at cjohnson@flchamber.com.
Treasury Announces Proposed Rule on “No Tax on Tips” (Rule Published, Comment Period Ended
October 22)
In September, the U.S. Treasury announced its rule on “No Tax on Tips,” a provision that was passed
under the One Big Beautiful Act. The rule includes 68 qualifying tipped occupations, and specifies that
these tips must be voluntarily paid and in cash or through other payment. Available through 2028, those
in eligible occupations can deduct up to $25,000 in tip income on their taxes and the deduction phases
out for those that make more than $150,000 ($300,000 for joint filers). The list of occupations includes
beverage and food service staff, entertainment, hospitality, transportation and wellness services. For
further information or to submit comments, click here.
U.S. Department of Labor Independent Contractor Rule (U.S. Department of Labor Suspended
Enforcement)
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has announced it intends to rescind the 2024 Independent
Contractor rule, citing 5 legal challenges. Earlier this Summer, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL)
announced that its Wage and Hour Division will stop enforcement of the 2024 independent contractor
rule and will instead apply the more business-friendly “longstanding principles” to determine
independent contractor classifications, which was the standard under the previous Trump
Administration. DOL has said their new rule will be “deregulatory in nature” and that they are still
considering how to proceed with a new rule.
Last year, the Biden Administration’s DOL independent contractor rule took effect, replacing the
approach of the first Trump Administration and reimplementing the Obama Administration’s “totality of
the circumstances” test, meaning that no single factor determines the worker’s status and all aspects of
the work relationship may be considered. The Florida Chamber believes this rule interfered in the
employer-employee relationship and resulted in many more workers being classified as employees as
opposed to independent contractors.
For businesses that rely on the independent contractor model, last year’s rule could have increased
costs due to the reclassification of some contractors as employees – leading to minimum wage,
overtime pay, and additional benefit obligations. The rule could have also led to increased compliance
costs and liability concerns due to the misclassification of workers. Multiple business groups filed suit against the DOL’s authority to issue this rule, and this litigation is still
playing out in court.
Occupation Safety and Health Administration Heat Rule (Pending; Florida Chamber Submitted
Comments)
In response to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) proposed rule on heat illness
and injury in the workplace, the Florida Chamber of Commerce and Florida Chamber Leadership Cabinet
submitted formal comments on behalf of Florida businesses. The major concerns include an estimated
$10 billion in increased compliance costs annually, the unintended consequences of a blanket one-size-fits-all approach as opposed to site-specific, business-led solutions, and the outsized impact on Florida’s
key economic sectors.
With the Government shutdown ending OSHA is expected to proceed with reviewing the docket
regarding the pending heat standard and it is unclear when the final rules will be published in the
Federal Register
While this rule was proposed under the Biden Administration, it is still expected that OSHA will issue a
scaled back heat safety rule. Several national business groups have called for the adoption of the
Nevada standard, which only requires a written plan. A virtual public hearing was held earlier this year
and the deadline for post-coming comments was October 30, 2025, meaning a new rule could be
imminent now that the government has re-opened. The Florida Chamber Safety Council will continue to
lead on heat safety in the workplace, providing free resources to businesses found on the heat stress
prevention platform.
U.S. Treasury Beneficial Ownership Information Reporting Rule (Interim Final Rule Issued to Narrow
Scope)
Following a series of conflicting court rulings on the legality of the Corporate Transparency Act’s
(CTA) beneficial ownership reporting requirements, the U.S. Treasury Department announced earlier
this year that it will not impose penalties or fines on U.S. reporting companies, while issuing an interim
final rule that imposes reporting requirements on “foreign reporting companies.” As a result, U.S. small
businesses will not face fines or penalties for failing to file their paperwork previously required by the
Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. If your business was formed under the law of a
foreign country, you can find more information on this rule here.
Occupational Safety and Health Administration Union Walk Around Rule (In Effect, Pending Ongoing
Litigation)
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) rule allowing workers to select a union
representative to accompany OSHA inspectors walking around employers’ workplaces – regardless of
whether the workplace is unionized or the representative selected by the workers is an employee of the
business being inspected – took effect last year on May 31, 2024. The rule changes the previous
requirement that the representative accompanying the OSHA inspector must be an employee and could
present significant challenges for employers.
The final rule is likely to increase union participation in the inspection process and could potentially be
problematic as representatives with unknown motives are now allowed to participate in inspections of
employers’ property. The rule also means sensitive information could potentially be shared with union
representatives, even in non-union workplaces, which could lead to increased union participation. There
have also been concerns raised that representatives may be more focused on finding violations rather
than working collaboratively to improve safety.
A coalition of business leaders have filed a lawsuit challenging the OSHA rule. The Trump administration
may review this rule and could potentially overturn the rule in the coming years.