The outgoing 118^th Congress must fund U.S. discretionary spending by December 20. Issues in play in that effort include extension of authority and funding for the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), delay of the Corporate Transparency Act’s (ACT’s) Beneficial Ownership Information (BOI) rule, and possibly technical corrections to SECURE retirement savings law.

In 2025-2026, Republicans will control the White House (Trump/President), the Senate (53 to 47), and the House (220 to 215). But despite winning the trifecta, GOP lawmakers will confront significant challenges next year. They include a spiraling deficit that will make enactment of GOP priorities difficult, and deep divisions between ultra-conservative and more centrist Republicans.

A Texas district court has issued a temporary nationwide injunction blocking enforcement of the Corporate Transparency Act’s (CTA) requirement (the Beneficial Ownership Information, or BOI rule) that forces U.S. businesses to report the names and identifying information of their beneficial owners. Legislation to delay the reporting requirement is pending before Congress.

Federal deficits projected to grow to almost $2 trillion next year have triggered creation, by President-Elect Trump, of a Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). DOGE’s goal is to cut federal spending by $2 trillion.

Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) on December 3 introduced a bill to increase the amount a Flexible Spending Arrangement (FSA) owner can contribute to his/her FSA for dependent care expenses. While it is unlikely this bill will be enacted this year, its introduction tees up the issue for the incoming 119^th Congress.

Billionaire hedge fund manager and investor Scott Bessent is President-Elect Trump’s choice to head the Treasury Department. He says tariffs will be his top priority.

Robert F Kennedy Jr. is President-Elect Trump’s choice to be Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). A vaccines skeptic, Kennedy’s nomination is controversial, at least at this stage of the process.

President-Elect Trump has chosen Kevin Hassett, an economist currently working as a fellow at the Hoover Institute at Stanford University, to head the National Economic Council (NEC). The NEC works closely with the Treasury Department as a hands-on policy-making team.

President Biden’s March 7 State of the Union (SOTU) speech teed up a raft of issues important to NAIFA members and their clients. These are issues that will shape the pre-November election campaigns and the Congressional agenda for both 2024 and 2025.

The Department of Labor’s (DOL’s) proposed rule raising the salary threshold for the exemption for white-collar workers from minimum wage and overtime rules has gone to the White House (the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, or OIRA) for final review. OIRA review is the last step prior to finalization of the proposed rule.

The Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee held a hearing on February 28 to examine how to increase retirement financial security through defined benefit (DB) plans, defined contribution (DC) plans, and Social Security. There was considerable focus on whether the Social Security wage base disproportionately taxes income that makes up the base of Social Security benefits. For example, one witness noted that when Social Security started, the wage base for lower income workers captured 2 percent of income whereas now it now captures 12.4 percent.

Business groups are fighting back against the Department of Labor’s (DOL’s) proposed rescission of the rules governing association health plans (AHPs). The groups say AHPs are a way to make affordable health insurance accessible to small businesses and self-employed individuals.

On February 28, Senate Republican Leader Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) announced he would step down as leader of the Senate Republicans in November. The longest-serving Senate leader in U.S. history, Sen. McConnell said he would continue as the Senate’s Republican leader for the rest of this year (at least until the chamber’s GOP Senators elect a new leader after the November general elections). He also said he would finish his Senate term—that is until the end of 2026.

On January 2, NAIFA submitted comments to the Department of Labor (DOL) on its proposed fiduciary-only rule. The comments pointed out the harm the proposal would do to middle class retirement investors and to financial professionals who already put clients’ interests first. NAIFA recommended that the proposal be withdrawn.

In Notice 2023-62, the IRS and Treasury clarified that many catch-up contributions for 2024-2025 will not have to be Roth contributions for taxpayers earning $145,00/year or more.

On September 8, the Department of Labor’s (DOL’s) Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) sent to the White House’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) on new fiduciary duty rules applicable to advisors on retirement savings. Details of what the agency is proposing are as yet unknown, but speculation suggests its focus is on insurance-related advice, and on rollovers from retirement plans to individual IRAs.

Lawmakers returned to Washington after a six-week August recess with just two weeks in which to provide funding for the entirety of the discretionary spending available to the federal government. Other must-pass legislation, also due by October 1, further complicates September. And the politics are extremely difficult for all of this must-do legislation. A number of issues of concern to NAIFA could be caught up in what looks like will be a brutal month (or four).

On September 11, NAIFA submitted comments on the tri-agency (Departments of Health & Human Services (HHS), Labor (DOL) and Treasury) proposed regulations on short-term limited duration (STLD) health insurance, and on fixed payment (indemnity) health insurance.

On August 30, the Department of Labor (DOL) released a new proposed regulation on the white-collar exception to the Fair Labor Standards Act’s (FLSA’s) overtime rules. Generally, DOL proposes that the salary threshold rise to $55,068/year (and suggests the number could go higher by the time the proposal is finalized), and that it be updated automatically every three years.

The U.S. Supreme Court (SCOTUS) has received scores of briefs on whether it is constitutionally permissible for the United States to tax unrealized income. The briefs are in connection with a case now pending before SCOTUS, Moore v United States, which raises the issue of whether unrealized income can be subject to current tax liability. The case has significant implications for cash value life insurance, and for long-held investments.