[6][7][8] In November 2019, NRF called on lawmakers to adopt a “uniform and fair framework” for the handling of sensitive data.

[9] The NRF successfully lobbied for passage of long-sought comprehensive tax reform that lowered rates for individuals and businesses alike, and said the measure would help create jobs while leaving workers with more take-home pay.

[10][11] NRF supported legislation passed by the House to repeal the Affordable Care Act and its employer mandate, which requires businesses to provide workers with health insurance at levels dictated by the government.

Since passed in 2010, some retailers have kept payrolls below the 50-worker level to avoid triggering the law and to keep workers below the 30-hour a week definition of full time that requires coverage.

[14][15] After fighting for online sales tax collection in Congress and the courts for over 15 years, NRF welcomed a Supreme Court ruling in South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc. allowing states to require online sellers to collect sales tax the same as local stores.

The ruling will help rein in “patent trolls,” which have targeted retailers with frivolous lawsuits over off-the-shelf technology and routine practices like attaching a file to an email.

[20] NRF successfully advocated[21] for the CARES Act, signed into law in 2020 to provide relief for retailers affected by the COVID-19 pandemic which included: $350 billion Paycheck Protection Program, expansion of unemployment insurance, relief for retail workers and consumers and corrected the qualified improvement property (QIP) error in the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA).

[22] In September 2021, NRF launched an advocacy campaign "S.O.S: Save Our Shipments" in response to the crisis in American's supply chains.

NRF successfully lobbied for passage of the Ocean Shipping Reform Act[24] to help address longstanding systemic supply chain and port disruption issues that was signed into law[25] by President Biden in June 2022.

The largest revenue source, conferences and conventions like the Big Show and Shop.org, increased by nearly two and a half times, and its net assets have quadrupled, according to information provided to Retail Dive from the NRF.

[44] Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, NRF has asked the federal government to step in to support retailers coping with a serious downturn in discretionary spending.

[45] NRF also suggested government-backed loans and tax relief, including reinstatement of the net operating loss carryback, assistance with payroll costs, and expansion of employee retention tax credits to retailers with financial losses related to the decline in purchases of most goods beyond food and other essentials.