When election season rolls around, voters are accustomed to hearing politicians proclaim their support for small businesses–institutions that routinely top Gallup’s list of America’s most trusted by a country mile.

It’s easy to talk the talk during campaign season. It’s much harder to do the work when the cameras are off, and the spotlight fades.

In Louisiana, entrepreneurs have no firmer ally than our senior senator, Bill Cassidy. For those of us in the franchise community, Senator Cassidy has been a consistent and steadfast advocate—and that matters, especially as our state continues to face economic headwinds. In 2025, Louisiana ranked near the bottom of CNBC’s “Top States for Business.” We cannot afford policies that make it harder to grow.

As a franchisee operating two family-run Chicken Salad Chick locations in the New Orleans area and soon to open a third, I’ve seen firsthand how federal policy decisions ripple through local businesses like mine. Senator Cassidy has stood up not just for me, but for the more than 12,000 franchise establishments across Louisiana that provide jobs and opportunity in communities large and small.

Like many entrepreneurs, I chose the franchise model because it offers the best of both worlds: the independence to run my day-to-day operations while benefiting from the strength of a proven brand. It’s a uniquely American system with roots tracing back to Benjamin Franklin’s printing press.

Yet the foundation of franchising depends on a clear line between franchisor and franchisee—a line defined in federal policy by what’s known as the “joint employer standard.”

This rule determines whether franchise owners remain truly independent operators or become little more than middle managers under distant corporate control. When that line blurs, the consequences are significant. Expanded joint employer standards expose entire brands to increased litigation, higher insurance costs, compliance burdens, and legal fees. Those pressures inevitably trickle down to local operators, our employees, and ultimately the customers we serve.

Franchising works because of appropriate independence between franchisor and franchisee. Undermine that balance, and you undermine a system responsible for nearly nine million American jobs.

In 2023, when the Biden Administration sought to expand the joint employer standard through the National Labor Relations Board, Senator Cassidy led a bipartisan effort to overturn the rule under the Congressional Review Act. The measure passed both chambers of Congress before ultimately being vetoed. In 2024, a federal court vacated the rule—a decision Senator Cassidy rightly celebrated as a win for workers and small businesses alike.

But small businesses should not have to rely on court decisions or shifting political winds to preserve our operating model. Regulatory ping-pong creates uncertainty that makes it harder to invest, hire, and grow.

That’s why now is the moment for Congress to act. The American Franchise Act offers a bipartisan, straightforward legislative solution. With more than 100 co-sponsors in the House and growing support in the Senate, the bill would permanently codify a clear and appropriate federal joint employer standard—removing it from partisan swings and judicial uncertainty.

Unlike many bills weighed down by unrelated provisions, the American Franchise Act is focused and practical. It provides clarity. And clarity is what small businesses need most.

Family-run operations like mine are still navigating the aftershocks of the pandemic, persistent supply and labor challenges, and new uncertainties tied to tariffs and shifting economic policy. In the restaurant business, margins are thin on our best days. Added regulatory instability only makes it harder to keep prices reasonable, retain employees, and reinvest in our communities.

Senator Cassidy has consistently stood with Louisiana’s franchise owners. By championing the American Franchise Act, he can once again provide the certainty and stability that local businesses depend on.

Small businesses are counting on him.

With more than 30 years in the restaurant and hospitality industry, Bill DiPaola is the CEO and Founder/Owner of Nibbles Hospitality Group, and owns and operates the Chicken Salad Chick location in Metairie