The International Franchise Association (IFA) today applauded the introduction of the Save Local Business Act, legislation that will clarify the joint employer standard and protect the independence of local franchise businesses, introduced by Sen. Roger Marshall (R-KS) and Rep. James Comer (R-KY).

The International Franchise Association (IFA) today released the following statement on Julie Su’s confirmation hearing to serve as U.S. Secretary of Labor before the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP). Su was questioned on her history of bias toward franchising, her stance on the joint employer relationship, and her lack of experience:

The International Franchise Association (IFA) today urged the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to reject a “blanket ban on noncompete clauses in franchise agreements,” highlighting that an across-the-board ban would harm franchisors and franchisees, damaging the franchise business model. The comments are in response to the Commission’s recent Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for its proposed “Noncompete Clause Rule.”

The International Franchise Association (IFA) announces its support for the Employee Rights Act (ERA) of 2023, introduced today by U.S. Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) and U.S. Rep. Rick Allen (R-GA) with support from Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY). Among other key provisions, the Act will clarify the joint employer standard and protect American workers’ freedom of choice in the workplace.

The International Franchise Association (IFA) today released the following statement on the final, amended version of Arkansas HB 1783, legislation that could have devastated franchise operations in the state and hurt consumer choice. The amended bill, which is now only a technical change to existing statute after significant local business opposition, passed last week and was signed into law today.

IFA today released the following statement on the Small Business Administration (SBA)’s publication of the final rule changing how affiliation is determined for the purpose of identifying SBA lending program eligibility and the elimination of the Federal Franchise Directory.