The One Big Beautiful Bill: What It Means for Your Business

Unplanned challenges already come with running a business - changing interest rates, labor shortages, and regulatory shifts. Now, with the One Big Beautiful Bill (H.R. 1, enacted July 4, 2025, as Public Law 119-21), a broad new tax and spending law is changing the ground rules.

(See the full bill text on congress.gov)

Below, we walk through the parts of the law most relevant to your business, then break it down so you can understand how these changes will affect your operations.

Key Provisions That Matter for Your Industry

These are the main changes from the new law that are likely to touch construction businesses, franchises, and accounting service providers (or their clients):

• Qualified Business Income (QBI/Pass-Through Deduction) is made permanent

  Under the prior Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), eligible owners of pass-through entities (sole proprietors, partnerships, S-corps) could deduct up to 20% of their qualified business income. That deduction was set to expire. The new law makes the 20% deduction permanent, restoring certainty for many small businesses. (rsmus.com)

  
  

• Expanded bonus depreciation and Section 179 expensing

  The law permanently reinstates 100% bonus depreciation for eligible property placed in service after January 20, 2025. This means many of your asset purchases such as machinery, equipment, or qualifying improvements can be written off, in full, up front. It also increases the Section 179 expensing limits (for qualifying small-business assets) to higher thresholds. (cbh.com)

  
  

• Interest expense deduction rules are relaxed (for many businesses, including contractors)

  Under prior law, depreciation, amortization, and depletion were excluded for purposes of the taxable income measure limiting business interest deductions. The new law allows add-backs of depreciation and amortization in many cases, so the “base” for the limit is more generous. This is especially helpful for capital-heavy industries like construction. (horne.com)

  
  

• Broader eligible contracts for election of completed-contract accounting

  The law expands the “residential construction contracts” definition, allowing more contractors (multiunit, mixed-use, multifamily) to treat contracts under the completed-contract method instead of the percentage-of-completion method. It also extends the small-business contract threshold from two years to three years, which gives more leeway for firms to defer income. (cbh.com)

  
  

• Tax treatment of tips and overtime pay (for qualified employees) — with limits

  The law creates a new deduction for qualified overtime and tip income for individuals whose adjusted gross income is below certain thresholds. That may reduce federal income tax on those types of income for eligible workers. (wikipedia.org)

  
  

• Expanded employer childcare credits and benefits

  The law makes permanent or increases credits for employer-provided childcare: from 25% to 40%, and up to 50% for eligible small businesses. The annual cap rises from about $150,000 to $500,000 (and $600,000 for eligible small businesses). (proskauertaxtalks.com)

  
  

• Higher SALT deduction cap and continued PTET (Pass-Through Entity Tax) options

  State and local tax (SALT) deduction caps are increased (benefiting owners in high-tax states). Meanwhile, pass-through entity tax (PTET) elections remain viable as a strategy to work around the previous SALT cap. (rsmus.com)

  
  

• Other perks, limitations, and caveats

  
  

  • Some green energy and climate-related tax credits were scaled back or eliminated.

  • Not all deductions apply to all taxpayers; eligibility thresholds, income phaseouts, and definitions may limit benefits.

  • Many changes hinge on implementing regulations from Treasury, IRS, or other agencies.

  • Some provisions may be temporary, subject to future modifications or sunsets.

  • The House Ways & Means “Section-by-Section” summary is a helpful reference. (waysandmeans.house.gov)

    
    

What These Provisions Mean — in Plain Terms

Now let’s translate those legal changes into what construction firms, franchise operators, and accounting practices might practically experience or need to plan for.

For Construction & Contracting Businesses

• Stronger cash flow from capital purchases

  If you buy equipment, heavy tools, or certain improvements, you can now expense (i.e., write off) a larger portion – or all – of that cost in the year you place it into service. That reduces tax drag and boosts cash in the near term.

  
  

• More flexibility for project accounting

  Because the law broadens the residential construction definition and extends contract length thresholds, more of your projects may qualify to use completed-contract accounting, delaying income recognition until project completion. That can help with smoothing cash flows and managing tax liabilities in volatile years.

  
  

• Interest deduction relief

  Contractors often carry debt and capitalized costs. The ability to add back depreciation and amortization when calculating interest deduction limits gives you more room to deduct interest – lowering taxable income.

  
  

• Revisit your project bids and pricing

  These tax changes may shift your after-tax cost structures, which can influence bidding, pricing strategy, and markups.

  
  

For Franchise Owners & Operators

• Better benefits for tipped and overtime workers

  If your staff receive tips or overtime, eligible portions of those earnings may now be deductible (or result in lower federal tax). That can affect payroll planning and take-home pay for employees.

  
  

• Leverage improved expensing and deduction rules

  Franchisees investing in equipment, renovation, signage, or expansion may find it more beneficial to accelerate those investments, capturing more tax benefits faster.

  
  

• Greater predictability in tax planning for multi-location models

  With the QBI deduction made permanent and PTET options preserved, your owners and franchisors can more confidently model long-term returns and expansions.

  
  

• Enhanced childcare benefit options

  The expanded employer childcare credits offer opportunity to help employees afford child care – something that may improve retention in service-heavy franchises.

  
  

For Accounting, Advisory & Bookkeeping Firms

• Demand for side-by-side scenario tools goes up

  Over the next months, clients will want to compare “old law vs new law” numbers. Tools in your software to toggle between tax regimes, input assumptions, and generate comparative reports will become valuable differentiators.

  
  

• More tax planning engagements

  Clients in construction, franchise, manufacturing, and capital investment business lines will request help: “Should I accelerate this purchase? Should I change my entity form? How much debt interest can I deduct under the new rules?” You’ll need to stay sharp and ready to revisit prior advice.

  
  

• Implementation timing and version control matter

  As regulations are published, your software patches must be precise. Keep track of which assumptions or rule versions (pre-law or post-law) were used in a given report – both for audit trails and client checks.

  
  

What You Should Do (Checklist for Business Owners & Advisors)

1. Model your capital expenditures now

   For any planned equipment or project investments, run forecasts showing both accelerated write-off under the new law vs spreading deductions under old rules.

   
   

2. Revise contract accounting decisions

   Look at your active and upcoming residential or mixed-use projects; see whether they now qualify for completed-contract accounting or other favorable methods.

   
   

3. Review or update your debt and interest structure

   Because interest deduction limits have more breathing room now, revisit your financing strategies to optimize tax benefit.

   
   

4. Implement software and reporting updates

   Ensure your accounting, payroll, tax, or ERP system will reflect the new deductions, limits, and eligibility rules. Enable toggles for “pre-law/post-law” views for user comparison.

   
   

5. Train operations, payroll, HR, and accounting teams

   Make sure staff know which expenses are now immediately deductible, understand how tip/overtime rules changed, and can answer questions from employees or clients.

   
   

6. Educate franchisees/contractors under your umbrella

   If you run a parent franchise or a contractor network, provide summaries or workshops to your franchises or subcontractors so they understand practical ramifications.

   
   

7. Watch official guidance as it unfolds

   Many critical details (definitions, thresholds, phaseouts) will be fleshed out by Treasury, IRS, regulations, and maybe litigation. Stay on top of new rules, notices, and updates.

   
   

8. Document assumptions and versions

   As you run reports or forecasts, clearly note which tax regime was used, on what date, and specify any key assumptions. This helps with audits, client trust, and comparing scenarios.

   
   

Closing Thoughts

The One Big Beautiful Bill brings significant change – especially to businesses in asset-heavy, labor-intensive, or multi-location sectors such as construction, franchising, and accounting. Some of the shifts (accelerated depreciation, expanded interest deductibility, QBI certainty) offer real financial relief; while others (thresholds, phaseouts, regulatory definitions) require caution and precise implementation.

For business leaders and advisors in these industries, the path forward is to be proactive. Run side-by-side forecasts, update your systems, educate your teams, and steer clients carefully as new guidance is released.