Learners Live

Did you Know?
Menu

NAED Opens Registration For The 2026 Marketing Summit

William Attardi on May 1, 2026

The race has begun for the 2026 NAED Marketing Summit, as registration is now open for the event, August 3-5 in Indianapolis, IN. This year’s theme is “Shift, Accelerate, Outpace”, which could not be more appropriate as we navigate so much change and at a higher rate of speed. The 2026 Marketing Summit is targeted at Marketers working in electrical distribution, manufacturing, and rep agencies who want to evolve their approach to content strategy, cross-functional alignment, AI, and building marketing programs that can scale. NAED Opens Registration For The 2026 Marketing Summit – tEDmag

Tariff Q&A with NAED Director of Government Relations, Bud DeFlaviis

William Attardi on April 28, 2026

tED magazine talks with NAED’s Director of Government Relations, Bud DeFlaviis, about why distributors usually do not have a direct claim to IEEPA tariff refunds, why unwinding tariff-driven price increases is so difficult, and how distributors can explain that reality to customers. tED Magazine: Bud, what is the biggest misunderstanding in the market right now about tariff refunds? Bud DeFlaviis: We hear a lot that since the IEEPA tariffs were struck down, everyone who absorbed higher prices will easily get money back. That’s not how this works. The Supreme Court’s February 20, 2026 ruling held that IEEPA did not authorize the broad reciprocal and drug-trafficking tariffs, and CBP (Customs and Border Protection) has launched its refund process using a tool called CAPE (Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries). But that government refund process is built around the importer of record — the party that paid Customs — not every company farther down the supply chain that later paid higher prices.  tED Magazine: So who actually has the legal claim to a refund? Bud: In most cases, the importer of record does.  tED Magazine: Are the tariffs gone? Are they coming back? Bud: The IEEPA tariffs are gone. However, other tariffs imposed under the Trump administration remain in effect and the President has signaled that he wants to continue to find mechanisms to impose additional tariffs. Tariff Q&A With NAED Director of Government Relations, Bud DeFlaviis – tEDmag

NAED Washington Wire: Information and Updates on IEEPA Tariff Refunds

William Attardi on April 23, 2026

The Supreme Court’s February 2026 decision striking down broad IEEPA tariffs has triggered a complex refund process, now centered at the CIT and being implemented by the CBP. The main action items are straightforward. Importers should track liquidation dates, confirm ACH and ACE enrollment, preserve all entry and payment records, and review any contracts that may affect refund sharing. Wholesalers and distributors should check whether their pricing or surcharge provisions address tariff reimbursement. All parties should continue monitoring CBP’s rollout, the CIT’s next orders, and any appeal activity that could affect the scope or timing of refunds. For businesses, the key distinction is between legal entitlement and commercial recovery. Importers of record are positioned to receive refunds directly, provided they maintain proper documentation and system readiness. In contrast, wholesalers and distributors must rely on contract terms to determine whether they share in any recovered duties, making careful review of agreements essential. NAED – Washington Wire

Baird Research: Distributors Expect Growth in 2026

William Attardi on November 30, 2025

In the exclusive tED magazine/Baird research for the 2025’s third-quarter, NAED distributors point to indications of “healthy mid-single digit” growth for next year. 18 distributor companies representing more than $7 billion in annual sales responded to the third quarter survey, which showed revenue growth in the third quarter and a rise in pricing trends. Respondents say they expect to see a 5.4% growth rate in electrical next year, along with a 4.5% growth rate in Datacomm. Those forecasts are generally in line with the broader distribution industry, which anticipates a 4.7% growth rate next year. Baird Research: Distributors Expect Growth In 2026

NAED Attends “Unleashing Alaska”

William Attardi on November 7, 2025

The event titled “Unleashing Alaska,” touched on recent Trump Administration efforts to unleash vast oil, gas, and mineral extraction in the state, and forward-looking efforts to craft durable policy by codifying permitting reform through efforts like the SPEED Act, which NAED supports. According to Citizens for Responsible Energy Solutions (CRES), today’s permitting bottlenecks have been estimated to delay $1.5 trillion in projects that are awaiting final approval.  Further, these delays are responsible for a 30% increase in construction costs for developments and $140 billion in lost annual revenue. These efforts, combined with broad-based permitting reform, have the potential to have significant impacts on America’s capacity to extract more oil, natural gas, and minerals in the future. NAED Attends “Unleashing Alaska” – electrifiED

NAED Backs NEMA Tariff Incentive Proposal

William Attardi on September 9, 2025

Electrical equipment and grid components are the backbone of America’s energy, manufacturing, grid, and AI dominance priorities. To power growing demand for electricity, industrial capacity, and data centers, more of this infrastructure must be produced here at home. NEMA’s tariff incentive framework introduces a three-pronged approach to targeted, time-limited tariff incentives that support the Trump Administration’s industrial policy and energy objectives:

  1. Capital Investment in U.S. Manufacturing Incentive: A tariff offset equal to any capital investments made to build or expand a domestic manufacturing facility, available for up to three years after the facility is operational.
  2. Grid Infrastructure Incentive: A tariff offset for goods or raw materials used to build or operate our power infrastructure essential to global competitiveness, including but not limited to substations, on-site generation, distribution equipment, and data centers.
  3. Domestic Manufacturing Incentive: A tariff offset for manufactured goods that meet federal domestic content requirements.

NAED applauds NEMA’s innovative approach to incentivizing domestic manufacturing and grid expansion. To read NEMA’s tariff incentive proposal, click here.  NAED Backs NEMA Incentive Proposal – tEDmag

Powering the Future: Insights on the Growing Electrification Market

William Attardi on August 14, 2025

As electricity demand continues to grow, the electrical distribution industry is uniquely positioned to help lead the transformation of the energy landscape with the services, materials, and solutions needed to support its customers and drive progress. To help members navigate this shift, NAED’s Education & Research Foundation, in partnership with Ducker Carlisle, presents the research study: Electrification Drivers, Disruptors, and Scaling Your Business. This study delivers valuable insight into:

  • What’s driving electrification—and what may disrupt it
  • The most promising project areas for distributors
  • How to strategically scale and prepare your team

NAED Electrification Research

NAED Statement on House Ways & Means Committee Reconciliation Bill

William Attardi on May 13, 2025

 Wes Smith, President and CEO of the National Association of Electrical Distributors, provided the following statement: The businesses we represent—located in every state and Congressional district—have seen firsthand how the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) has fueled growth across the electrical distribution industry, from small enterprises to large distributors. By lowering marginal tax rates, enhancing expensing provisions, increasing the estate tax threshold, and establishing the 20% small business deduction under Section 199A, the TCJA has been a powerful catalyst for economic progress. We applaud the pro-business, pro-growth tax provisions, including the Section 199A deduction, enhancements to the 179 expensing, modifications to the Estate Tax, and the temporary restoration of Bonus Depreciation.  NAED Statement on House Ways & Means Committee Reconciliation Bill – tEDmag

That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind – The last time human beings headed moonward was on the Apollo 17 flight that launched Dec. 7, 1972—before any of the Artemis II crew members were born. Today’s crew will not land on the moon—they won’t even orbit the moon. But they will whip around the lunar far side, on a shakedown mission test-flying the Orion spacecraft. This is essential preparatory work for achieving NASA’s bigger lunar goals. Next year there will be another test flight in low Earth orbit during the flight of Artemis III, followed by up to two moon landings by Artemis IV and V in 2028, and annual landings thereafter. Unlike the Apollo program, Artemis aims not just for the so-called flags-and-footprints model of short, one- to three-day stays on the moon, but for a long-term presence at a long-term moon base in the south lunar pole, where deposits of ice can provide drinkable water, breathable oxygen, and oxygen-hydrogen rocket fuel. Very much like the Apollo program, Artemis finds itself in a closely watched moon race, not with the old Soviet Union this time, but with China, which has announced its intention to have astronauts on the moon by 2030. The U.S. is not going it alone this time, however. While Apollo was an entirely American enterprise, Artemis flies under the flag of 60 countries, signatories to the Artemis Accords, an international pact whose members vow to support the peaceful exploration of space and contribute money, modules, and astronauts to the Artemis cause. Artemis II Has Launched. Here’s Everything You Need to Know