The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), a sweeping tax-reform package that includes significant provisions for businesses of all sizes, was signed into law on July 4. While many headlines have focused on individual tax cuts, the bill contains several game-changing business provisions that deserve the attention of every entrepreneur, CFO, and business owner.

Three key opportunities from the legislation are:

1.​ The return of 100 percent bonus depreciation — along with an expanded Section 179 and a brand-new Qualified Production Property category

2.​ Full expensing of domestic research and development costs

3.​ Expanded business interest deductions under a favorable EBITDA-based limitation

Return of 100 percent Bonus Depreciation, Expanded Section 179

What’s changed?

Under prior law, businesses were watching bonus depreciation phase down — dropping to 40 percent in 2025. The OBBBA restores 100 percent bonus depreciation for qualified property placed in service after Jan. 19, 2025. That means businesses can immediately expense the entire cost of eligible assets instead of depreciating them over several years.

What qualifies?

Bonus depreciation generally applies to:

• ​New and used tangible assets with a recovery period of 20 years or less (think equipment, machinery, furniture, and certain improvements to nonresidential real estate).

The OBBBA also introduces a new category to further incentivize domestic production: Qualified Production Property (QPP). While IRS guidance is (hypothetically / theoretically) expected, this new category is effectively referring to property built for manufacturing. For local manufacturers, contractors, and even breweries, this could be a major incentive to modernize facilities.

Section 179 expansion

Alongside bonus depreciation, the OBBBA significantly expands IRC §179 expensing, another powerful tool for small and mid-sized businesses. Section 179 allows companies to immediately deduct the cost of qualifying property — generally machinery, equipment, vehicles, and certain improvements to nonresidential real property (think roofs, HVAC, alarm, and security systems) — up to an annual limit. Under the new law, that limit increases to $2.5 million with the phase-out threshold beginning at $4 million of qualifying purchases. In practice, this means many more businesses, even those making substantial investments, will be able to expense the full cost of their purchases without relying solely on bonus depreciation.

 Planning opportunities:

•​Evaluate expansions. If you’re building out a production line, opening a new facility, or expanding capacity, review whether the investment qualifies as QPP.

•​Compare strategies. Section 179 allows greater flexibility (you can pick individual assets to expense), while bonus depreciation applies automatically unless you elect out for an entire asset class. Smart planning can maximize deductions in years when taxable income is high. Note that your review process should factor in New York State’s exclusion of bonus depreciation.

Full Expensing of Domestic Research & Development

What’s changed?

One of the most controversial provisions of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) required businesses to amortize domestic research and experimental (the IRS refers to this as “R&E”, but you’ll often hear this called R&D) expenditures over five years. This created cash flow headaches and reduced incentives for innovation.

The OBBBA repeals that rule and restores immediate expensing of domestic R&E costs for tax years beginning after Dec. 31, 2024. This means wages, supplies, and certain overhead costs directly tied to U.S.-based research can once again be deducted in full in the year incurred. In addition, businesses that capitalized research expenses from 2022 through 2024 can now accelerate recovery of such deductions, and small businesses (defined as average gross receipts under $31 million) may apply this change retroactively.

What Qualifies?

Qualifying expenditures include research or experimental costs intended to discover information that would eliminate uncertainty regarding the development or improvement of a product. Importantly, any amount incurred domestically for internally developed software is treated as a qualifying R&E expenditure.

Why this matters:

Whether you’re a tech startup developing software, a manufacturer improving processes, or even a food company testing new recipes, these costs may qualify. Combined with the R&D tax credit under IRC §41, this is a one-two punch of tax relief.

Planning opportunities:

• ​Rewrite history or accelerate now. Consider whether amending prior tax returns or “catching up” deductions on your 2025 return provides the greatest benefit. Businesses that incurred heavy R&D costs in recent years may unlock significant refunds.

Expanded Business Interest-Expense Deduction

The OBBBA permanently restores the EBITDA-based limitation for the business interest-expense deduction under IRC § 163(j). For tax years beginning after Jan. 1, 2025, businesses may deduct interest expense up to 30 percent of adjusted taxable income, calculated as EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization). This change reverses the prior, more restrictive EBIT-based limitation that excluded depreciation and amortization from the calculation. In practical terms, this means depreciation and amortization (the DA of EBITDA) are added back to adjusted taxable income — raising the ceiling on deductible interest.

Planning Opportunities:

• Project the impact on your current debt. Forecast your taxable income and deductible interest under the new standard, factoring in the effects of bonus depreciation and R&D expensing, both of which increase EBITDA and thus the interest-deduction limitation

• Strategic Debt Planning. With cheaper after-tax borrowing, expansion projects that once looked marginal may now pencil out. This is especially relevant for small and mid-sized businesses seeking to expand capacity or acquire competitors.

Final Thoughts

The One Big Beautiful Bill Act is a turning point in business taxation. For many local companies, these provisions represent more than just tax savings — they’re tools to fuel growth, innovation, and expansion.

The key takeaway? Timing and proactive planning matters. Because these provisions hinge on assets and expenses incurred in 2025 and beyond, now is the time to coordinate with your CPA or tax advisor. Whether it’s accelerating equipment purchases, reevaluating R&D activities, or planning financing strategies, proactive businesses will capture the greatest benefits. This game will not be won from the sidelines.        

Joe Greene is a senior manager at Evans and Bennett, LLP, a full-service accounting firm based in Syracuse. Contact him at jgreene@evansandbennett.com