National Federation of Independent Business Small Business Associations

The National Federation of Independent Business is the leading small business association representing small and independent businesses. A nonprofit, nonpartisan organization founded in 1943, NFIB represents the consensus views of its members in Washington and all 50 state capitals. NFIB members are a diverse group consisting of high-tech manufacturers, retailers, farmers, professional service providers and many more.

Being an NFIB member not only makes your voice heard in Congress and your state capitol-it also gives you access to benefits that save you money and time. Our Member Benefits are designed to help with your critical business needs: insurance, health care, shipping, technology, financial services and more.

NFIB's mission is to promote and protect the right of our members to own, operate and grow their businesses. NFIB also gives its members a power in the marketplace. By pooling the purchasing power of its members, the National Federation of Independent Business gives members access to many business products and services at discounted costs. NFIB also provides timely information designed to help small businesses succeed.

When NFIB speaks on its members' behalf, lawmakers in state legislatures, Congress and the White House listen. No wonder Fortune magazine acknowledges NFIB as the top-ranking business lobbying organization in Washington.

But NFIB's policy advocacy strength didn't come overnight. NFIB started out small. One man, Wilson Harder, founded the organization in 1943. Harder began with a home office and sold the first memberships to his neighbors. Harder's vision was to give small and independent business a voice in governmental decisionmaking through policy advocacy.

This vision remains strong today. NFIB sets its public-policy positions by regularly polling members and acting on their advice. Once this member ballot is tallied, NFIB carries a unified message to Congress and the state legislatures on behalf of small business owners.

In the last several years, NFIB has enlarged the scope of its policy advocacy. NFIB has entered the political arena to support pro-small business candidates for state and national office. In 2000, it added the NFIB Legal Foundation, representing small business interests in the judicial system. The NFIB Young Entrepreneur Foundation provides scholarships and internships to the entrepreneurs of tomorrow. And the NFIB Research Foundation provides policymakers, small business owners and other interested parties empirically based information on small business. NFIB also continues to build alliances with various businesses, allowing the organization to provide services to members at special prices.

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