H.R. 1 Crosses the Finish Line
After months of negotiation in Congress, H.R. 1 was signed into law by President Trump on July 4. H.R. 1, officially titled the “One Big Beautiful Bill,” became law through the reconciliation process and represents a significant tax policy win for businesses, their owners, and employees. NAMA advocated extensively for the tax provisions within the bill: continuous direct advocacy, grassroots lobbying at the 2024 and 2025 NAMA Fly-Ins, collaborating with industry groups, and reinforcing support to urge alignment at every stage of the process.
The reconciliation megabill, containing over one thousand pages of comprehensive budget legislation, passed along party lines. Republicans control the majority in the House of Representatives, the Senate, and the oval office (a trifecta), enabling the bill to advance without a single Democrat vote.
The One Big Beautiful Bill signed into law looks much different than the first version which passed the House of Representatives, largely due to Republican party holdouts and the Senate’s Byrd rule. Ultimately, successful majority party member wrangling by both House and Senate leadership, the threat of a self-imposed July 4th deadline, and strong pressure from the Presidential administration pushed the Senate amended version of the One Big Beautiful Bill through both Chambers and to the President’s desk.
The new law contains several tax wins for convenience services, including all tax provisions advocated at the 2025 NAMA Fly-In. Here’s what made it in:
Industry Backed Tax Policies
- The 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) 20% Qualified Business Income (Section 199A) tax deduction, originally set to expire at the end of 2025, is now permanent for pass-through businesses, preserving capital available for small business reinvestment, operations, and expansion.
- The law permanently restores immediate expensing (Section 179) for domestic research and development (R&D) expenses. This provides businesses of all sizes with the flexibility to invest in equipment and infrastructure without spending tradeoffs that may limit operations and growth.
- H.R. 1 also reinstates first-year bonus depreciation until 2030, which provides the industry flexibility to reinvest in operations and growth without sacrificing other key business needs.
- The estate tax exemption has permanently increased to $15,000,000, providing relief for family-owned businesses looking to transfer business assets to the next generation. The exemption would have reverted to the inflation adjusted $5,000,000 level established prior to the TCJA at the end of the year.
- The individual tax rates established under TCJA, which are vital to increasing parity for small businesses with their corporate counterparts, have been made permanent.
Other Notable Provisions
- “No tax on overtime” also made it into the final bill with a sunset date of 2028. “No tax on overtime” is reflected as a maximum allowable $12,500 individual deduction or $25,000 for married filing jointly deduction which begins to phase out at an income level of $150,000 (single) or $300,000 (joint).
- Claiming this deduction requires filing prerequisites, including a valid Social Security Number.
- Though not a NAMA advocacy priority, the individual State and Local Tax (SALT) deduction for single filers and married couples increased to $40,000, phasing out for income levels over $500,000. However, this provision will sunset in 2030.
- One item of interest to NAMA members that was not included in the bill is an extension of the business meal and breakroom expense deduction set to expire at the end of this year. The 2017 TCJA decreased the available deduction from 100- to 50-percent and introduced a December 31, 2025, expiration date for the program to sunset entirely.
- H.R. 1 made substantial cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), including new work requirements for program participants and added cost share for states. This is a significant change to the program’s funding structure but will not impact convenience services operators applying to be SNAP authorized retailers.
Meanwhile, in the White House
On behalf of the administration, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced on Sunday the further delay of the highly anticipated reciprocal tariffs. The “Liberation Day” tariffs originally announced on April 2nd, were set to take effect on July 9th. The administration is now targeting an effective date of August 1st.
While August 1st is the new blanket tariff implementation date, other administration officials are signaling this deadline may be flexible for select trading partners. National Economic Council Director Kevin Hasset asserted that the final judgment call for whether an individual country may receive an extension beyond August 1 will ultimately be in the hands of the President.
NAMA and its industry partners continue to communicate the disproportionate impact wide-sweeping tariffs place on industries and businesses which utilize goods unable to be produced in sufficient quantities in the United States, including as coffee, cocoa, and machine equipment. We will share relevant updates with members as new information becomes available.