3807), that included $42 billion to replenish the RRF, on April 7. Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG), HVAC (Heating, Ventilation and Air-Conditioning), Machine Tools, Metalworking and Metallurgy, Aboriginal, First Nations & Native American, A New Normal Takes Hold; Restaurants Focused on Paths to Continued Growth in 2023, DIRECTV for BUSINESS and National Restaurant Association Team-Up to Enhance the Restaurant Experience and Advance Restaurant Workers. WASHINGTON, Nov. 23, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, the Small Business Administration (SBA) announced the release of $83 million dollars in unobligated Restaurant Revitalization Fund (RRF) grants to 169 operators with pending applications. | 2 p.m. Painel do Inscrito. Recipients cannot claim other expenses paid with RRF grant money as nonpayroll costs for purposes of PPP forgiveness. While SBA prevented over 30,000 suspicious applications from receiving awards, GAO identified systemic control weaknesses. The Relief for Restaurants and Other Hard Hit Small Businesses Act of 2022 (H.R. "After navigating an unpredictable supply chain, multiple COVID-19 surges, and dealing with revenue-hampering restrictions, these businesses have two years of crushing debt," Erika Polmar, the IRC's executive director, said in a statement. The bill would provide $42 billion to replenish the RRF. Priority is to be provided to previous RRF applicants that did not receive an award. But it flagged 4,000 award recipients for suspected fraud and isn't taking timely action to address them. Published May 24, 2022 Thai Phi Le Senior Managing Editor Many independently owned restaurants havent been anywhere near profitable since the pandemic began, and its clear that many of them are in a hole that theyll never be able to dig themselves out of. Restaurant owners plead for Congresss help after omicron surge. This plan should include coordinating with the OIG to align efforts to address fraud. Oops. Restaurant Industry News and Resources in Georgia. Make Your Nomination for Restaurant Informers 2023, Lapeer Steak and Seafood Lands New Executive Chef McAlpine, Payback Time: What To Do About Your PPP or EIDL Loan, Georgia Hospitality Expo & ProStart Invitational 2023. The Association was first to lay out the plan for a restaurant industry recovery fund to Congress in April 2020. The Small Business Administration confirmed it will distribute $180 million in unspent money allocated for the Restaurant Revitalization Fund as awards, the National Restaurant Association said in an email to Restaurant Dive. Today's announcement is great news for those 169 operators fortunate enough to receive an RRF grant, but hundreds of thousands more are struggling with uncertainty. This recommendation will remain open until SBA develops and implements a plan to respond to potentially fraudulent and ineligible awards in a prompt manner. Washington, D.C. - The National Restaurant Association today sent a letter to Congressional leadership encouraging passage of Restaurant Revitalization Fund (RRF) Replenishment if the program comes up for a vote this week. The National Restaurant Association has been requesting these funds be released, and Executive Vice President of Public Affairs Sean Kennedy released the following statement in response: "The SBA's action represents the final chapter of our nearly three-year effort to secure dedicated federal pandemic relief dollars for local restaurants. Including $85 million for certain border region businesses, such as those in (herewith a geography lesson) the Northwest Angle, which CQ Roll Call explains is a region of Minnesota that is separated from the rest of the state by the Lake of the Woods but shares land borders with Canada, whose strict pandemic protocols injured Americans living in the Angle. This program provides emergency assistance for eligible restaurants, bars, and other qualifying businesses impacted by COVID-19. The restaurant industry reacts. Joanna Fantozzi | Apr 06, 2022. A requirement for annual reporting submissions applies to any applicant who doesnt fully expend RRF grant funds before December 31, 2021. Painel do Inscrito. The American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) established the Restaurant Revitalization Fund (RRF) to provide funding to help restaurants and other eligible businesses keep their doors open. The act illustrates a timeless truth legislative bargaining is additive. The SBA is set to award an added $180 million in unspent funds allocated for the Restaurant Revitalization Fund (RRF) back in 2021. "With the looming threat of another variant and growing challenges of inflation for both operators and consumers, the economic boost RRF will provide for those 177,000 restaurants would reach far into our communities," Sean Kennedy, NRA's executive vice president of public affairs, wrote in the letter. (Recommendation 3), The Associate Administrator for the Office of Capital Access should enhance RRF post-award reporting procedures by adding requirements for recipients to report their operating status. The U.S. House of Representatives voted yes on a bill Thursday that would provide $42 billion in relief to foodservice businesses that originally applied for the . After this money was distributed, more than 177,000 applications were left in limbo at the SBA. We sponsor the industry's largest trade show (National Restaurant Association Show); leading food safety training and certification program (ServSafe); unique career-building high school program (the NRAEF's ProStart). And by the third quarter of 2021, Britschgi writes, the number of restaurants had surpassed pre-pandemic levels.. Brands like Chipotle, McDonalds and Starbucksarewalking a tightrope charge enough to protect the bottom line without alienating customers. Restaurant Revitalization Fund Award Disbursements, May 3July 1, 2021. Well, then, what about that will-o-the-wisp, fairness? More than 90,000 restaurants closed permanently or long-term because of the pandemic. For more information, please check out our Privacy Policy. Atendimento ao inscrito. Despite literal years of exhortations from everyone from Tom Colicchio to Elizabeth Warren for Congress to provide aid to restaurants, neither the Biden administration nor Congress has acted in a way to provide meaningful, comprehensive assistance. The freshest news from the food world every day. We are beyond disappointed that this massive government funding proposal ignores the needs of 177,300 neighborhood restaurants and bars impacted by the pandemic, IRC executive director Erika Polmar said. In GovTrack.us, a database of bills in the U.S. Congress. As a restaurant owner, youve most definitely heard about the varying RRF updates throughout the last year, how they could possibly impact your establishment, and more. The bill also would provide $13 billion for a Hard Hit Industries Award Program for small By the time it closed in July 2021, the RRF gave out just about a third of the grant requests that it received because the demand was so great. This recommendation will remain open until SBA provides evidence of using enforcement data (e.g., information on suspicious borrowers provided by the Department of Justice or SBA's Office of Inspector General) on suspected fraud in other SBA programs to identify potential fraud in RRF recipients. Payroll costs claimed as ERTC eligible wages, Forgivable payroll expenses on the PPP forgiveness application, Nonpayroll expenses claimed on the PPP Forgiveness application. The industry still has not recreated 565,000 jobs lost at that time, which is the largest current employment deficit caused by the pandemic among all U.S. industries. If you are the site owner (or you manage this site), please whitelist your IP or if you think this block is an error please open a support ticket and make sure to include the block details (displayed in the box below), so we can assist you in troubleshooting the issue. The Restaurant Revitalization Fund was established in March 2021 to support eligible entities suffering revenue losses from the COVID-19 pandemic. New York City got him rehired, KFC is getting rid of 5 menu items but one fan favorite is finally coming back, Wagamamas Food Fight With Hedge Fund Is Delicious, Smart Mobility Data: The Essential Guide to US Retail Location Selection, What Diners Want: 5 Top Trends in the Restaurant Industry, NRA forecasts 2023 job growth, not major recession, Starbucks board opposes labor review backed by NYC pension funds, CA bill would establish joint franchisor-franchisee liability for QSRs, The Relief for Restaurants and Other Hard Hit Small Businesses Act of 2022 (H.R. SBA stated that the agency will review a sample of RRF awards and use the results of this review to inform the effectiveness of its post-award procedures. The first reports were due in December 2021, but 32 percent were overdue as of June 2022. About 43 percent had 2019 revenue of $500,000 or less. Until these funds were used up, they were available for eligible entrepreneurs, establishments, and corporations. The bill is co-sponsored by Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS) and includes additional funds for gyms, live venues and transit systems, among other business categories.
Actions to satisfy the intent of the recommendation have not been taken or are being planned.
, Executive Candidate Assessment and Development Program, Business Regulation and Consumer Protection, The Associate Administrator for the Office of Capital Access should conduct and document an assessment of the RRF pre-award controls and address or mitigate deficiencies. CEO of Berryhill Baja Grill restaurants in Houston, Jeff Anon, decided to take matters into his own hands in regards to declaring his right to free speech. The CARES Act includes a provision for GAO to monitor federal efforts to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. 3807 (117th). However, in May, the Senate didn't pass the proposed increase, which was viewed by many as a setback. In 2022, many RRF updates are in the works. ABC News reported on the story, where Anon explained how he was fed up with how sensitive people have gotten . The House already has passed H.R. ), buses and ferries, etc. If H.R. The House is expected to vote on the bill,which has a mix of 234 Democratic and Republican sponsors, this week. This plan should include coordinating with the OIG. According to reporting from CNNs Manu Raju, Senate small business and entrepreneurship committee chairman Ben Cardin said on Tuesday, March 8 that Republican opposition means that the Restaurant Revitalization Fund (RRF) will not be replenished. And it underscores the inevitable inequities that accompany large-scale government interventions in the economy. According to the Small Business Administration, which handles the fund, restaurants and other eligible businesses can receive funding "equal to their pandemic-related revenue loss up to $10 million per business and no more than $5 million per physical location." According to the SBA, the grants are being released to operators in the order their applications were received. Outdoor diners at the Bit and Spur Saloon in Springdale, Utah, in summer 2020. Lawmakers. We noted in our report, however, that SBA's post-award review procedures for RRF state that flagged awards will be reviewed when the recipients certify that they have spent their entire award or after they submit their final use-of-funds report (not when fraud is initially suspected). 2023 Restaurant Accounting Services Inc. All Rights Reserved. According to the SBA, they received more than 278,000 applications by June 30th, 2021, seeking more than $72.2 billion in funding. 3807 passes the House and then the Senate, it would be a massive victory for restaurants that are struggling to shake the effects of past dining room restrictions as they navigate supply chain shortages, surging inflation and a historic labor shortfall. The restaurant industry was the hardest hit by the pandemic.