GRA Weekly

September 29, 2022

This week's newsletter is brought to you by GRA Allied Member, Archatrak.

UPCOMING REGIONAL ALLIANCE MEETINGS

Upcoming Regional Alliance Meetings

Tuesday, October 11 at Scott's Downtown with Congressman Andrew Clyde at 2:00PM
Tuesday, October 18 at Edgar's Above Broad celebrating Augusta Mayor-elect Garnett Johnson at 5:00PM

Space is limited and you must RSVP to Daniel New to have access to either event.

ARE YOU READY?

Preparing for Natural Disasters

The Georgia Restaurant Association has compiled Georgia specific information to help your restaurant be prepared for Hurricanes, Power Outages, Tornadoes and more. All these resources can be found here.

In addition, the National Restaurant Association has developed a comprehensive toolkit of assets that provide restaurant-specific recommendations for what to do in advance, during, and after a natural disaster, including hurricanes, floods and wildfires. These assets incorporate best practices from official agencies (FEMA, CDC, Ready.gov) and restaurant operators. The guide is supported by DoorDash and is free to download. Click the following links to get their guide and assets.

OUTDOOR DINING

RESTAURANT INDUSTRY SALARY REPORT

Restaurant Industry Salary Report 2022

RestaurantZone always aims to provide an annual salary guide, a quick reference of salaries paid across the hospitality industry in the United States. We are happy to publish this year’s Restaurant Industry Salary Report figures! The data aggregated from restaurants of all sizes in Upscale, Hotel, Full-Service, Fast-Food & Fast-Casual are a guide only. We make sure it is concise and accurate.View the full report here.

GRA IN THE NEWS

Georgia Restaurant Association Unveils GRACE Award Winners

The winners of the 2022 Georgia Restaurant Association Crystal of Excellence (GRACE) Awards were announced Tuesday, Sept. 27, at the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta. The GRACE Awards Gala is the Georgia Restaurant Association’s (GRA) annual black-tie event honoring Georgia’s restaurant industry.

The GRACE Awards are peer-nominated and winners are selected by the GRACE Academy, made up of past honorees. GRACE winners are presented with crystal works of art created by renowned local artist Hans Godo Fräbel. Also presented at the event was the 2022 GRA Chairman’s Award to Georgia State Senate President Pro Tempore Butch Miller. Read more.

Mayor Andre Dickens at GRACE Awards

Mayor Andre Dickens was on hand to celebrate the glorious food Atlanta has to offer at the Georgia Restaurant Association's 14th Annual GRACE Awards dinner. Check out some of the restaurants mentioned to plan your next night out on the town! (City of Atlanta Government via Facebook)

FEDERAL UPDATES

State high court rules in favor of businesses in insurance case

Last week, the Vermont Supreme Court ruled in Huntington Ingalls v. ACE that COVID-19 on-site may cause property damage to trigger insurance coverage under a commercial property policy. The case was previously dismissed by a lower court. Also, a Calif. appellate court reversed the previously ordered dismissal of Tarrar Enterprises’ COVID-19 lawsuit.

What this means for restaurants: State courts are closely examining business allegations of unfair insurance claim denials. In the coming weeks, the Restaurant Law Center will file briefs supporting restaurants and other retailers in a COVID-19 case before the Nevada Supreme Court, arguing that the businesses experienced “physical loss or damage,” due to COVID-19.

U.S. DOL | Just Tap the App! Wage & Hour Time Tracking App Available for iOS and Android

Employees and employers can keep accurate records of hours on the job. The DOL-Timesheet App helps track regular work hours, break time, and overtime hours. The new version of the app also enhances the comments capability, offers multiple pay frequency options, and additional pay calculations.

Features include:

Employer and employee options
Calculates pay automatically
Records work hours simply and quickly
Free for iOS and Android

Learn more and download here.

Federal Update | U.S. DOL - Industry-Recognized Apprenticeship Program (IRAP)

The Labor Department published a final rule in the Federal Register this week formally nixing former President Donald Trump’s employer-overseen apprenticeship program. It’s the last step in a process that began in Feb. 2021 when President Joe Biden signed an executive order revoking the Trump-era executive order that established the program and directed agencies to rescind any related regulations. Dubbed Industry-Recognized Apprenticeship Program (IRAP), it allowed the private sector to control its own apprenticeship programs. Registered apprenticeships, on the other hand, are regulated by the government. According to the agency document, the final rule will direct the department to work with existing IRAPs and their facilitators to become registered apprenticeship program sponsors or intermediaries. It will also connect IRAP apprentices with programs in the registered apprenticeship system. More details.

Association urges SBA to eliminate EIDL debt

In a letter to Administrator Isabella Casillas Guzman yesterday, the Association urged the Small Business Administration to eliminate EIDL accrued interest debt, lower interest rates, and create “good borrower” relief.

What this means for restaurants:The Association wants the SBA to apply the same flexible terms and conditions it applied in the Paycheck Protection Program to the COVID-EIDL program because fewer than 1 in 4 restaurant operators will be able to make scheduled principal and interest payments that are coming due.

House committee passes travel, tourism coordination bill

The House Energy and Commerce Committee unanimously passed the Visit America Act last week, bipartisan legislation that would create an Assistant Secretary position in the Department of Commerce to focus on coordinating America’s travel and tourism industry across federal agencies. The Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee approved the ‘Omnibus Travel and Tourism Act of 2021,’ which includes the Visit America Act and several other policies that travel/tourism covers

What this means for restaurants: Restaurants could benefit from this new federal position, which is tasked with developing a travel and tourism strategy and implementing a COVID-19 pandemic-recovery strategy.

SALES & USE TAX RATES

Georgia Department of Revenue | Sales & Use Tax Rates Effective October 1, 2022

The Georgia Department of Revenue has posted the upcoming quarterly sales and use tax rate changes. Counties/cities with S&U tax changes include: Appling, Dekalb (Atlanta), Fulton (Atlanta), Fulton (Hapeville), Fulton (College Park), Fulton (East Point), Clayton (College Park), Greene, Pike, Screven, and Webster.Please visit the Department's website to view current, historical, and upcoming sales and use tax rate charts.

TIME TO SAVE ON ELECTRIC RATES

October 1st is the Time to Save on Electricity Costs

The Georgia Restaurant Association fought hard for restaurants to have access to a rate that was previously only available to large, multi-unit chains. If you are a restaurant that uses Georgia Power, identifies as 722 in NAICS, and meet the actual peak demand requirement of not less than 30 kW, then you should reach out and ask about switching to the TOU-FD. We have heard testimonies from independent restaurants from across the state reporting an average savings of 10%-15% on their power bill.

On October 1st, you may contact Georgia Power’s Business Solutions Center directly at 1-888-655-5888. If you have any questions, you can contact us and we are happy to assist to the best of our ability or connect you with a trusted partner.

Background: Every 3 years, the Georgia Public Service Commission (PSC) holds hearings regarding the electricity rates suggested by Georgia Power. In 2019, the Georgia Restaurant Association (GRA) filed a rate case with the PSC against Georgia Power. There are over 80 different electricity rates. Restaurants and other medium businesses pay more for a unit of electricity than residential consumers and large manufacturers. Prior to 2020, large chains and franchises paid less for a unit of electricity than an independent restaurateur. The GRA successfully petitioned opened 3,000 slots for any restaurant filed as 722 of the NAICS to have access to the lower rate. The new rate is called Time of Use Food and Drink (TOU-FD).

SCAM ALERTS IN GEORGIA

Gift Cards

As the holiday season approaches, be aware of growing gift card scams. Recently, some restaurateurs have seen an increase of individuals purchasing online gift cards with stolen credit cards. These individuals are using the gift cards the same day and are neglecting to tip the servers who take care of them. We recommend that you reach out to your gift card supplier for information on what protection can be offered to you regarding gift card fraud. Please check with your processor or POS to see if they have a service or software that would address this issue. If you have any questions or would like more information, contact us and we would be happy to connect you with a trusted partner to assist.

Health Inspectors

Instances of individuals posing as health inspectors are on the rise. In many cases, individuals will contact a restaurant and demand payment for the inspection fee. Please be aware that inspection fees are only charged when a restaurant requests an additional inspection or a re-inspection. Also, the Health Department will bill the restaurant and will not ask for payment at the time of the inspection. If you ever have any doubts or want to verify that the health inspector is legitimate, you can reach out to your local health department or contact the State Health Department. If you need assistance contacting your local health department, you can contact us and we will get you the proper information.

Reminder: Questions to know when Health Inspector Arrives

Georgia Food Code mandates that every location have one Certified Food Service Manager (CFSM). However, if the CFSM is not there when a health inspector arrives, then the person in charge must be able to answer certain questions. See Georgia Food Code 511-6-1-.03(c) Correct Answers to Food Safety Questions to make sure all people in charge are prepared. Learn more.