The American Rescue Plan
The $25 Billion Restaurant and Bar Grant Program is a befitting breakthrough for the industry…
A few days ago, the U.S. House of Representatives voted to pass President Biden’s $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan, which included a $25 billion Restaurant and Bar Grant Program, that has been meticulously championed by the Independent Restaurant Coalition. This felt like victory — a long-awaited, befitting breakthrough for an industry that has unceasingly endured and banded together through the perils of the past year.
But what exactly does this legislation entail?
It is modelled after the $120 billion RESTAURANTS Act, which was initially proposed by the Coalition in last year via a letter to Congress that had been signed by thousands of members of the independent restaurant community (more details of which can be found in our article titled RESTAURANTS Act 2020: Essential not Optional). Thereafter, the bill (expounded in RESTAURANTS Act: An Update) — a bipartisan, bicameral legislation and updated proposal to establish a revitalisation fund to support independent restaurants and small franchisees as they dealt with the long-term structural challenges facing the industry because of COVID-19 — was presented, with overwhelming support, in the House led by Reps. Earl Bluemenauer (D-OR 3) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA 1), and in the Senate by Sens. Roger Wicker (R-MS) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ).
The program will provide, among other things, up to $5 million in grants for individual restaurants, bars, caterers, breweries and tasting rooms or up to $10 million for restaurant groups. To qualify, restaurants must not be part of an affiliated restaurant group with more than 20 locations. The first three weeks of the grant period will prioritise restaurants owned and operated by women, people of colour and veterans. Additionally, one-fifth of the funding is set aside for businesses that grossed less than $500,000 in receipts in 2019.
Addressing the industry, after the White House met with the Coalition to discuss the implementation of the proposition (hosting nearly 300 people from the independent restaurant and bar community), Erika Polmar, Executive Director of the Independent Restaurant Coalition said “Congress is helping millions of people who rely on restaurants and bars for their livelihood feel a little more optimistic tonight. Every week, more restaurants close and record numbers of unemployment claims are filed. Our communities desperately need these grants to stop the bleeding, and our coalition will continue fighting to make it a reality. We’re grateful to Reps. Blumenauer and Fitzpatrick for their tireless efforts to secure this $25 billion restaurant and bar relief program in the budget, and we urge the Senate to quickly deliver this relief to restaurants and bars. The IRC will continue working closely with our congressional champions and the Biden Administration to ensure the independent restaurant and bar community can fully reopen and keep millions of people employed when it’s safe to do so.”
The program would award grants to restaurants and bars with demonstrated losses for eligible operating expenses including: payroll, employee benefits, mortgage, rent, utilities, building maintenance and construction of outdoor facilities, personal protective equipment, sanitising materials, food, and debt obligations to suppliers. Unused grant money, or money not spent on eligible expenses, must be returned to the government.
While this is definitively a large battle won on the sizeable warpath to full recovery, we must not lose sight of the disproportionate impact that our industry has suffered. The Real Economic Support That Acknowledges Unique Restaurant Assistance Needed to Survive (RESTAURANTS) Act of 2021 remains an utmost priority. If your senators still haven’t signed on to support (check this list) — call 202–224–3121 to urge them to pass the restaurant relief fund and help save independent restaurants and bars!
Please reach out to aman@dashin.in for any feedback or clarifications regarding the content of this article.
