This is a challenging time — many of us are on the verge of closure and need to know if Congress will provide more relief for our industry. We wanted to share some updates on where things stand in Washington.
You are probably seeing news reports that Congress is trying to buy more time to negotiate a budget that we hope will include funding to continue the Restaurant Revitalization Fund (RRF). This means that March 11th is now the deadline for Congress to act, and we hope they will fund the government and replenish RRF before then. We know this is not the news you want to hear, and we know how important this legislation is for your small businesses.
Although Congress’ next spending bill is delayed, the decisions about what it will include are being made now. Over 44 Senators from both parties have made it clear they stand with restaurants and cosponsored legislation to refill the RRF. Have yours?
We’ve seen a lot of progress over the last few weeks because of our constant advocacy. Following our national Day of Action, people made more than 10,000 phone calls to members of Congress, and members clearly heard our message. Rep. Dean Phillips spoke on the House floor last week about why Congress must move swiftly to deliver relief. Rep. Carolyn Maloney and Sen. Maria Cantwell are among the others who are speaking out. When we take action, so do our representatives, which means that it is more important than ever that you reach out to your members of Congress to push them to support independent restaurants.
Visit our advocacy page to make a phone call, send an email, and get loud on social media using #ReplenishRRF.
We’re not giving up. We know that thousands of small businesses and even more jobs are hanging in the balance. Thank you for your continued advocacy — we can’t do this without you.
In solidarity,
The IRC Team
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