Independent Electrical Contractors joined a broad coalition of national trade associations and small business organizations in calling on U.S. House leadership to advance legislation that would strengthen federal protections for small businesses navigating the regulatory process.
In a February 11 letter, IEC and dozens of industry groups urged passage of the Prove It Act of 2025 (H.R. 1163), legislation designed to reinforce the Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) and ensure that federal agencies fully evaluate how new rules affect small businesses.
The coalition emphasized that small businesses—many of which lack in-house legal and compliance resources—bear a disproportionate share of regulatory costs and paperwork burdens.
“Small businesses were forced to deal with a tsunami of new regulations coming from Washington, D.C., over four years under the Biden Administration,” according to the coalition letter. “In one four-year term, the Biden Administration finalized an unprecedented $1.8 trillion in new regulatory compliance costs and added 356 million in paperwork hours.”
Regulatory compliance costs and documentation requirements can make it harder for small contractors and family-owned firms to plan, invest, and grow.
Although the RFA was enacted in 1980 to require agencies to account for small-business impacts when issuing regulations, the coalition noted that agencies have too often failed to meet those obligations. Reviews by the Small Business Administration’s Office of Advocacy, the National Federation of Independent Business, and the House Small Business Committee identified numerous instances in which agencies did not adequately analyze economic effects on small entities or improperly certified that rules would not have significant impacts.
The Prove It Act would expand opportunities for small business input during rulemaking and strengthen enforcement mechanisms to ensure agencies comply with the intent of the RFA. The legislation has already advanced out of the House Judiciary Committee and the House Small Business Committee in the 119th Congress and previously passed the House of Representatives in 2024, reflecting growing bipartisan interest in improving regulatory accountability.
IEC’s participation in the coalition underscores the importance of regulatory transparency and cost analysis for the merit shop construction sector, where the vast majority of firms are small businesses competing in a highly regulated environment. By ensuring agencies fully consider the real-world impact of proposed rules, Congress can help reduce unnecessary compliance burdens while allowing contractors to focus on workforce development, project delivery, and infrastructure modernization.
IEC members can urge House members to pass the Prove It Act via this IEC grassroots action alert.