• In late March, Tarrytown's Horsefeathers began "A Moveable Feast," a program that lets patrons support the bar and restaurant while also giving to the community at large. Customers can donate through the restaurant's website to pay for meals for "health care workers, first responders, COVID-19 victims, those in quarantine, the elderly and those facing financial difficulties due to lack of work." Read More: https://www.newsweek.com/restaurant-meal-program-community-coronavirus-horsefeathers-1496923​ 

• Late yesterday the federal government issued new, overarching guidelines for reopening the country. The plan directs individual states to implement the details, based on their situation.
• The National Restaurant Association’s Restaurant Law Center, working with legal experts from Jackson Lewis, P.C., answer many of the most commonly asked questions surrounding temperature checks, HIPAA liability and doctor's notes to return after illness. Click here to learn more.

• To gain important data, the New York State Restaurant Association has put together a survey that will help us make recommendations to the Governor and his regional task force on NY Forward. Please take the survey: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSe3X43dBtBLTmH4FH9D_3H0dVYMth4jxpEFBAmDvjigl2nAnA/viewform?usp=sf_link 
• The Governor again touted a “Blueprint to Un-PAUSE New York” with four steps:
• Do No Harm - continue controlling the rate of infection
• Strengthening the Healthcare System – ensure that anyone who needs medical attention gets it, and build out the strategic stockpile of PPE and other medical equipment
• Testing and Contact Tracing – call on the federal government to work with states to test on a massive scale, in order to limit the spread of COVID-19 and reopen the economy and society
• Phased Return to "New Normal" – evaluate industries and strategically phase-in the reopening of our economy

• Mayor de Blasio has announced that the city will partner with Open Society Foundations to create a new fund aimed at supporting immigrant communities, including undocumented workers, with one-time relief payments. Details on eligibility and how to claim these benefits has not yet been announced. 
• In a message from Mayor de Blasio about his updated executive budget, he cited a drop in restaurant sales of about 90% compared to this time last year. Mayor de Blasio called on the federal government to provide more direct funding to NYC to help fill the projected $7.5 billion budget gap. He has announced plans to keep all City beaches and pools closed this summer, and traffic enforcement and sanitation services will be scaled back. All nonessential permitted events will officially be canceled through the month of May, (i.e. Brooklyn half-marathon, parades, concerts, rallies and other large gatherings) and discussions on cancelling through June are ongoing. Essential permitted locations, including medical sites, hygiene stations and farmers markets/meal distribution locations will remain open.
• The City Council today said it will introduce legislation next week to force Mayor de Blasio to open streets to pedestrians and cyclists after a pilot program to create open space in each borough was cancelled due to the cost of enforcing social distancing rules.

• Zoom Meetings/Calls
• More than 130 operators registered for our NYC Operator’s Roundtable discussion today.
• The WNY Chapter will hold its weekly Zoom call on Monday at 2 pm. Click here to register.
•  Webinars
• The National Restaurant Association will be hosting the following webinars next week
• April 21, 2 p.m. EDT: How Your Cloud POS Can Help You Pivot - Sponsored by Heartland
• April 22, 2 p.m. EDT: Real time lessons restaurants learned from Coronavirus, Hepatitis A and Norovirus - Sponsored by Gojo, the makers of Purell
• April 23, 2 p.m. EDT: Motivation for Nutrition & Physical Wellness for the Foodservice Community - Sponsored by Unilever

• Melissa Fleischut was interviewed on WKBK TV in Buffalo today about the Payroll Protection Program.