The New Administration’s 2025 Plan: the First 100 Days and What it All Means

I recently sat down with several of alliant’s Strategic Advisory Board members who have each been very active advocating for U.S. businesses on Capitol Hill. We talked about the coming months, especially the immediate future and the incoming administration. While the future is always a primary concern, both for our clients and the country, the potential changes we’re facing are immense—particularly for the first 100 days. I came away deeply impressed and confident about our expert’s forecasts, and felt compelled to share them with you, too.

With a new administration entering the fold, there are many questions left to be answered on economic policy. While seismic shifts are expected, the lack of clarity is leaving many businesses unsure on how to prepare for the coming year. There are, however, certain pieces of legislation that we feel confident will pass.

For instance, former U.S. Congressman for New York and alliant Vice President Rick Lazio strongly believes that the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act will largely be extended, which will include a fix to the 174 R&D expense amortization requirement. Being prepared for this change early can potentially result in a six figure increase to a business’s bottom line.

Below we’ll explore what else you can bank on when the new administration takes over.

Our Strategic Advisory Board has had conversations with high-level policymakers across Capitol Hill since the election, and the legislative agenda is coming into focus. Therefore, we are expecting three major bills in the first 100 days.

The first order of business will be a spending bill, which is likely to pass via the reconciliation process. The three pillars of this spending bill will be based on the border, energy policy and national security.

The first issue, immigration, was also a touchstone of the president-elect’s first term, and it’s something he has shown no intention of easing up on. Policy-wise, former U.S. Congressman for New York and alliant Chairman for Job Creation and Retention Joe Crowley believes it will result in a heightened focus on border security, visas, work permits, and visitors – and potentially even a large-scale deportation program. Any flux in the workforce – let alone an outright reduction – will mean a monumental change in the ability to recruit and retain talent. Hiring incentives such as the R&D Credit will go a long way in helping domestic businesses deal with these new policies.

Next is the reconfiguration of American energy policy. Though the country has for years now been a net exporter in primary energy, production will ramp up under the new presidential agenda, due to decreased regulations, new drilling exploration, and energy-friendly changes to environmental policy. A fresh slate of laws, says Congressman Lazio, means that companies in every adjacent industry will be reaping the benefits of lower energy costs and an economic stimulus injection. Such a boon will create newfound projects, more research programs for cutting-edge engineers and specialists, and exploratory projects in and around the industrial sector. The benefits of R&D are essential to staying competitive in this fast-moving field, Lazio told me, providing increased opportunities in applied research, technology development, and new production methods.

Third is the realignment of America’s national security. One of the lynchpins of this initiative is a renewed focus on domestic capabilities. It means a bigger piece of the pie for the American manufacturing sector, and a tighter, more U.S.-centric supply chain for aircraft, vehicles, weapons, and all the different parts and parcels that help create these assets. Much of the development work occurring as a result of this shift qualifies for powerful incentives such as the R&D Credit.

The second bill will be the much-anticipated extension of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, according to National Managing Director and Former Senior Counsel to the U.S. Senate Finance Committee Dean Zerbe. This bill is also likely pass through reconciliation, and business owners can expect a continuation of the favorable tax policies the Trump administration passed eight years ago.

Zerbe believes that leaders on the Hill largely expect a straight extension and the prevailing view is that additional pay-fors will not be required. This indicates Congress will not necessarily need to look for new means of offsetting the cost of the bill, which is expected to be in the $4-5 trillion range.

One immediate benefit is that businesses can expect Section 174 to be fixed, allowing them to immediately deduct their R&D expenses, instead of having to amortize them over five years. Knowing this change is on the horizon should give business owners confidence to take advantage of unclaimed R&D credits, especially those that went unclaimed for 2021. Those credits are set to expire this upcoming tax season. Likewise, R&D credits can substantially reduce a business’s quarterly estimated payments, and waiting for the bill to pass could result in losing up to six figures in benefit.

The third passage will be a supplemental tax bill. We believe this bill will have miscellaneous tax provisions that don’t necessarily fit neatly into the TCJA extension. There is less clarity on the specifics of this bill, but we do know it will likely include incentives for domestic manufacturing.

This could allow businesses to enjoy not only the benefits of the R&D credit for activities related to product and process improvement, but also an additional benefit for fabricating domestically, according to Congressman Crowley.