Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
This bill amends Section 14(c) of the National Labor Relations Act to require the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), when it sets any dollar thresholds for declining jurisdiction over classes or categories of employers, to raise those thresholds for calendar year 2026 to ten times the pre-enactment dollar threshold and thereafter adjust thresholds annually by a Personal Consumption Expenditure (PCE) Per Capita Index relative to 2026.
The Director of the Bureau of Economic Analysis must publish a Personal Consumption Expenditure Per Capita Index beginning in 2027 that the NLRB will use to update thresholds.
The changes apply to NLRB jurisdiction decisions made on or after the later of January 1, 2026, and the date of enactment.
On content alone, the proposal is narrow, administratively clear, and does not create new spending, which helps its prospects. However, it alters the balance of labor enforcement in a way that is politically salient to organized labor and worker advocates, raising opposition likelihood. Passage is plausible in a favorable legislative environment or as part of a broader package, but the standalone chance is modest absent bipartisan accommodation.
Relative to its intended legislative type, this bill clearly states and codifies a major substantive change to NLRB jurisdiction with a specific numeric and indexing mechanism, and it assigns the BEA responsibility to publish the indexing series. The drafting is precise on the formula and statutory amendment points but sparse on implementation logistics, fiscal acknowledgement, and protections for boundary cases.
Whether raising thresholds (tenfold in 2026) protects small businesses or undermines worker protections and access to federal remedies.
Whether raising thresholds (tenfold in 2026) protects small businesses or undermines worker protections and access to federal remedies.
A mainstream progressive view would see the bill as a significant roll-back of federal labor enforcement for many smaller disputes by sharply increasing the dollar thresholds that allow the NLRB to decline jurisdiction.
They would worry the change limits workers’ practical access to federal remedies for unfair labor practices and collective-bargaining disputes, especially for low-wage workers whose individual claims may fall below the new thresholds.
They would acknowledge the bill’s stated intent to reduce regulatory burden on small businesses but regard the tenfold increase for 2026 as abrupt and likely to harm enforcement.
A pragmatic moderate would see a legitimate policy goal in limiting agency burden on very small-dollar matters and appreciate automatic indexing to avoid repeated statutory tinkering.
At the same time, they would be wary of the abrupt magnitude of the 2026 multiplier (ten times) and the possibility that workers lose realistic access to federal remedies.
They would seek balance: streamline where appropriate but preserve essential enforcement and avoid unintended shifts of disputes into less-consistent state remedies.
A mainstream conservative would generally favor this bill’s objective to reduce federal regulatory burden on small businesses by raising dollar thresholds that let the NLRB decline jurisdiction in low-dollar disputes.
They would view indexing thresholds to a per-capita expenditure measure as a reasonable, market-linked mechanism that prevents repetitive statutory changes.
Concerns would be limited to implementation details and ensuring the rulemaking process is straightforward and does not produce new regulatory complexity.
Reached or meaningfully advanced
Reached or meaningfully advanced
Still ahead
Still ahead
Still ahead
On content alone, the proposal is narrow, administratively clear, and does not create new spending, which helps its prospects. However, it alters the balance of labor enforcement in a way that is politically salient to organized labor and worker advocates, raising opposition likelihood. Passage is plausible in a favorable legislative environment or as part of a broader package, but the standalone chance is modest absent bipartisan accommodation.
The bill has not accumulated any surfaced votes yet.
Whether raising thresholds (tenfold in 2026) protects small businesses or undermines worker protections and access to federal remedies.
On content alone, the proposal is narrow, administratively clear, and does not create new spending, which helps its prospects. However, it…
Relative to its intended legislative type, this bill clearly states and codifies a major substantive change to NLRB jurisdiction with a specific numeric and indexing mechanism, and it assigns the BEA responsibility to p…
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