10-05-2026IMPACT COUNCIL

30 leaders on the legislation shaping their industries

From AI accountability to healthcare, tariffs, clean energy, and consumer protection.

[Photo: Getty Images]

The Fast Company Impact Council is an invitation-only membership community of top leaders and experts who pay dues for access to peer learning, thought leadership, and more.

BY Fast Company Impact Council

If following a piece of legislation were only as simple, and pleasant, as School House Rock depicts. Proposed legislation or passed laws can change business as usual. Sometimes for the better, sometimes with negative consequences. Often, business leaders must advocate for or against policies that impact their industry, their customers, or how they do business.

We asked members of the Fast Company Impact Council what industry legislation—state or federal—they’re following right now and why. Below, 30 members weigh in on what they’re watching and why it matters to them.

1. CHEMICAL MANAGEMENT POLICIES

I’m watching chemical management and risk evaluation policies at both the federal and state levels as they directly affect innovation, manufacturing, and the safe use of essential chemistries. What matters most is that regulatory decisions are based on credible science and rigorous research. That’s why we engage with organizations like the American Chemistry Council that help bring scientific expertise and industry insight into policy discussions. Hexion advocates for science-based decision making to ensure regulations protect people and the environment while continuing to support innovation, manufacturing competitiveness, and economic growth. — Michael Lefenfeld, Hexion

2. FEDERAL HEALTHCARE LEGISLATION

I’m following federal healthcare transparency legislation, including the Lower Costs, More Transparency Act of 2026 and the Patients Deserve Price Tags Act. Employers are under real pressure to manage rising healthcare costs, and these policies can give them clearer access to prices, claims, payment, and fee data so they can make better-informed decisions for their people. Transparency is not about taking sides. It is about creating a common foundation for employers, health plans, pharmacy benefit managers, and providers to compete on value, improve accountability, and make quality care more affordable. — Glen Tullman, Transcarent

3. CMS’S KIDNEY CARE CHOICES MODEL

The legislation I’m following right now is the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ Kidney Care Choices Model. It is a smart step toward coordinated care, but it only engages patients once they’ve reached stage 4 or 5 chronic kidney disease, or end-stage renal disease, which is like building a fire response plan after your home is already ablaze. Most people with progressive kidney disease go undiagnosed for years, so coordinating care this late misses the window when intervention can change outcomes. To bend the cost and mortality curve, policy needs to shift toward incentivizing preventive screening in primary care, rather than managing patients after the damage is done. — Salvatore Viscomi, Carna Health

4. CYBERSECURITY MATURITY MODEL CERTIFICATION

I’m watching Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification, not because the headlines keep changing, but because they keep missing the point. Every new CMMC announcement kicks off a cycle of hot takes, but the real story hasn’t moved: Defense contractors have to protect their data. Full stop. The organizations reacting to Washington’s latest update are already behind. The ones building security as an ongoing discipline rather than a compliance checkbox are the ones who will be fine no matter what the assessment model looks like next year. No defense contractor can afford to ignore the basics. — Steve Tchejeyan, Island

5. OVERSIGHT OF SPECIAL EDUCATION

I’m following what’s at stake since the Department of Education has shifted oversight of special education to other federal agencies. This affects a lot of families: Over 8 million public school students receive support through an Individualized Education Program or 504 plan, which outlines the special education services or accommodations required to help them learn. In our recent survey, 73% of parents expect the change to affect the quality of their child’s education, yet more than half didn’t know it had happened. When awareness lags behind a change this big, trusted information becomes a scarce resource and we are here to fill that gap. — Nathan Friedman, Understood.org

6. STATE LEGISLATION ON ELECTRONIC WILLS

I’m following electronic wills legislation at the state level. Trust & Will is a founding member of the LIVE Coalition, the first advocacy group dedicated to modernizing estate planning laws for the digital age. The momentum is real: New York, Missouri, and North Dakota passed digital estate planning laws in 2025,........

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