International Franchise Association Cheers Launch of Congressional Franchise Caucus 

Bipartisan Members of Congress to promote contributions of local franchise businesses

WASHINGTON, DC – The International Franchise Association (IFA) today applauded the establishment of the Congressional Franchise Caucus, a bipartisan group of Members of Congress formed to promote and educate about the community contributions of local franchise businesses across the country. The Franchise Caucus is co-chaired by U.S. Reps. Kevin Hern (R-OK), Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ), Beth Van Duyne (R-TX), and Tony Cárdenas (D-CA).

“The franchise business format democratizes the American Dream of business ownership more than any other business model,” said Michael Layman, IFA’s Senior Vice President of Government Relations and Public Affairs. “Franchising opens doors for people from all backgrounds to start a small business and serve their communities, and we are grateful to the leadership of Reps. Hern, Gottheimer, Van Duyne, and Cárdenas for helping to educate their colleagues on how franchising improves lives for so many entrepreneurs, workers and customers.”

“As a former franchise owner, I know how important it is to have government leaders who understand what it’s like to live on the other side of the policies and regulations coming from DC,” said Rep. Kevin Hern (R-OK. “I’m excited for the opportunity to co-chair the Franchise Caucus and help advance the priorities of franchisees around the country!”

"In New Jersey, we're proud to have nearly 20,000 local franchise establishments supporting more than 200,000 jobs and contributing billions in economic output," said Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ). "I'm proud to help relaunch the bipartisan Franchise Caucus this Congress to ensure we're supporting franchise small businesses, franchise owners, and employees, to work with both Democrats and Republicans on policies that grow and improve our economy, and to make sure our communities and businesses can reach their full potential."

“Contributing more than $1 trillion annually and creating hundreds of thousands of jobs in our communities, small and franchise businesses are a vital part of economic growth and opportunity for our country,” said Rep. Beth Van Duyne (R-TX). “I continue to hear from North Texan franchise small businesses about the many challenges they face – from workforce issues to regulatory troubles – and am working to get the federal government out of the way for our job creators. I look forward to working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to deliver solutions that help our nation’s franchise small businesses continue to operate through the challenges they face.”

“As a former franchise and small business owner, I am proud to join my colleagues in serving as a co-chair of the Congressional Franchise Caucus,” said Rep. Tony Cárdenas (D-CA). “The franchise model offers an avenue for new business owners to build generational wealth while removing some of the uncertainty that comes with starting a business from square one. Many of these businesses are minority, woman and veteran-owned and play an important role in our economy. I look forward to working through the caucus to ensure their voices are heard in Congress.”

The Congressional Franchise Caucus was first established in 2016 to promote the franchise business model in the United States. Today there are approximately 790,492 franchise establishments that support nearly 8.4 million direct jobs, provide $825.4 billion of economic output for the U.S. economy, and contribute almost 3 percent of U.S. Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

The franchise model opens doors for people from all backgrounds to start a small business – around 26% of franchises are owned by people of color, while 14% are owned by veterans. Franchising also provides greater opportunity for employees to earn competitive wages and benefits. Franchise businesses span 300 sectors of the American economy, from hotels to in-home health care to quick service restaurants to early childhood development programs. One-third of franchise owners say they wouldn’t own a small business without the franchise business format.

More information on the economic footprint of franchising in each state is available here.

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