Doug Wheeler, Brandon Arnold: The One Big Beautiful Bill — common sense for the Sunshine State

History appropriately attributes the phrase “Imperfect action is better than perfect inaction” to President Harry S. Truman. Some folks in Washington might need to be reminded of that right now when contemplating big decisions with big consequences.

Because when it comes to the “One Big Beautiful Bill” that President Donald Trump just signed into law, too many critics are doing just that—swatting away a smart, sound, yet imperfect piece of legislation in the name of ideological purity.

Some say it spends too much, others say it cuts too little.

But here’s a truth that anyone who has ever tried to budget for both hurricane shutters and a family beach trip knows: perfect rarely exists — and when it does, it’s usually fictional and made in Hollywood.

The reality is, this bill is good. Not utopian. Not revolutionary. But good. Good for Floridians and good for the state of Florida.

Why? Let’s start with what would have happened if Congress failed to pass this bill. According to the National Taxpayers Union Foundation, if the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TC&JA) expired at the end of 2025, nearly every Florida household would have seen a tax increase. Yes, across-the-board increases, especially for middle-income families. We are not talking about abstract macroeconomic shifts here. We are talking about real dollars disappearing from the wallets of nurses in Naples, teachers in Tallahassee, families in Ft. Walton and fixed-income retirees across the state. Thankfully, that massive tax hike has been averted.

And it’s not just a win on how much we must pay, it’s also a win on complexity. For most Florida families and businesses, the One Big Beautiful Bill means less paperwork, lower compliance costs, and fewer red tape. Translation: less bureaucracy in our lives.

The One Big Beautiful Bill not only extends key tax relief provisions, it helps restrain Washington’s spending impulse, and starts chipping away at a federal code that feels like it was written by a group of bureaucrats barricaded in a cubicle with no coffee and a case of the giggles.

Is it everything every fiscal hawk dreamed of? No. Is it a scorched-earth spending cut that would win applause at the next austerity summit? Also no. But it is real progress. A real step in the right direction. And in the world of politics, that’s often the best kind.

Thankfully, Congress didn’t allow the perfect to become the enemy of the good. Especially because the “good” includes stopping a tax hike, streamlining tax filing, preserving family budgets, and reining in reckless spending. It’s not just good. It’s great!

Let’s not forget that Florida didn’t become the freest, fastest-growing, most fiscally responsible state in America by waiting around for unicorns. We achieved this by embracing smart, steady policy and taking the wins when we could, then building on them.

Let’s keep our feet on the sand and our heads in the game. The One Big Beautiful Bill was a win. Let’s take it.

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Doug Wheeler is the director of the George Gibbs Center for Economic Prosperity at The James Madison Institute. Brandon Arnold is the executive vice president at National Taxpayers Union.