Operations

White House amps up NRA's pro-Restaurant Revitalization Fund letter to Congress

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March 2, 2021

Shortly after the National Restaurant Association sent an urgent request to Congress in support of the Restaurant Revitalization Fund Tuesday, the White House took the somewhat unusual step of amplifying the letter in its own release, underscoring the need for passage of the fund that is part of the overall American Rescue Plan supported by the Biden Administration.

In its letter, the NRA revealed survey results showing that 14% of restaurant operators recently surveyed said they would "probably" or "definitely" be closed within three months without further federal relief, a news release said. The numbers were among other statistics the NRA said prove that the nation's second-biggest private employer needs help. Specifically, the Chicago-based restaurant membership organization said it was pushing hard for "prompt passage" of the $25 billion Restaurant Revitalization Fund within the American Rescue Plan.

"The Restaurant Revitalization Fund represents the culmination of a year's worth of advocacy and development toward an industry-specific solution," NRA EVP of Public Affairs Sean Kennedy wrote in the letter. "Prompt passage and implementation will provide new relief opportunities for some of the nation's hardest-hit restaurants and communities. Help for restaurants is help for employees and communities, and a signal that our country is one step closer to turning a corner."

Then, later Tuesday, the White House issued a release to underscore its support of the arguments made by the NRA to Congress.

"Help for restaurants is help for employees and communities, and a signal that our country is one step closer to turning a corner. We urge prompt passage of the American Rescue Plan," the White House release said, adding that the NRA letter followed another sent by over 160 business leaders supporting the Biden's American Rescue Plan. The White House also said that the NRA's letter also followed the endorsement of more than 400 more bipartisan mayors across the nation.

As part of its argument for the plan's passage, the NRA also included these pieces of information from their latest survey and other sources:

• Nearly 450,000 restaurant jobs were lost from November 2020 to January 2021.
• 77% of restaurant operators reported a drop in January 2021 total sales volume from that of January 2020.
• 32% of operators believed business conditions would not return to normal for another seven to 12 months.
• 29% of operators believed business conditions would not return to normal until a year or more.
• 10% of operators said business conditions would never return to normal for their restaurant.

The NRA reported that the restaurant industry ended 2020 with sales down $255 billion for the first 10 months of the year from what was expected. The industry also lost 2.5 million jobs, the release said.

This was the sixth time the NRA has sent information to Congress since the pandemic began to advise them of industry conditions. The latest numbers are based on results from a survey of 3,000 operators from Feb. 2 to Feb. 10.