NYC Small Business Rally on 6/26 – Please Attend!
On Wednesday, June 26
th
, NYSRA will join with business community allies to rally on behalf of small businesses. In the face of relentless NYC regulations and mandates, it’s time for us to be heard loud and clear: enough is enough! If you oppose two weeks of required paid vacation, exclusive waste zones, increased street vendor permits, or other issues, please join us! Our message is more impactful when our members are involved and engaged! RSVP
here
.
NYC Members Contact Your Legislator About Paid Vacation
If you haven’t already done so, please contact your Council Member to express opposition to two weeks of paid vacation! You can do so through
this easy tool
. Please take a moment to make yourself heard!
NYSRA Gearing up for Next Week’s NYC Hearings
Next week will feature three important hearings that could impact restaurants, all of which have been scheduled for June 27
th
. In the morning, the
Sanitation Committee
will discuss a proposal that calls for exclusive commercial waste zones. NYSRA has strongly opposed exclusive zones, which eliminate customer choice, and will testify against this measure.
At the same time, the
Consumer Affairs Committee
will discuss a broad study and eventual ban on single use plastics, as well as other environmentally- focused legislation targeting restaurants. One piece would prohibit restaurants from refusing the request of a customer who wants to be served in their own reusable cup, rather than a disposable cup. The other would make single-use utensils only available upon request for takeout and delivery, and prohibited for dining-in. For each of these proposals, NYSRA will push for full consideration of the costs to restaurants and the feasibility of finding alternatives to single-use plastics.
In the afternoon, the
Small Business Committee
will hold an oversight hearing about third party delivery platforms (Grubhub, Seamless, Uber Eats, Postmates, etc.) This will focus broadly on the impact of these platforms on the food service industry, including fee structures, food safety, and market presence. The goal of the hearing is to gather as much information as possible about the delivery platforms, and NYSRA hopes to hear from many of our members about their experiences.
If you have questions about how to participate in any of the above events, please email
[email protected]
.
State Assembly and Senate Wrapping Up Legislative Year
Both houses in the New York State legislature are hoping to wrap up their business today and put a bow on the 2019 legislative session. The Assembly and Senate were both working into the wee hours of the morning on Thursday, with the goal of ending the year later in the day. With most of the big issues settled it’s likely they will get their wish. As with most final weeks, the mood at the Capitol could be described as frantic, as advocates and lobbyists make last minute pushes to get their goals across the finish line.
Deals were reached this week on a number of key issues, including the expansion of worker protections for farm workers, expanded definitions on sexual harassment, and sweeping climate change reform, just to name a few. As far as the restaurant industry is concerned, it was fairly quiet. Legislation did pass that strengthened laws surrounding wage theft and a few items remain outstanding regarding possible menu labeling. On the positive side, both houses passed a measure to allow the use of e-bikes and e-scooters in NYS, legislation the Association has long supported. Many delivery drivers around the State use this type of transportation to make their jobs easier, and now instead of incurring costly fines they will soon be able to perform their work without worrying about breaking the law.
Other big ticket items appear to be stalled without much hope of advancement in 2019, most notably the legalization of recreational marijuana. Momentum seemed to build Monday afternoon and most pundits thought that an agreement might be able to be reached before legislators were due to leave town, however that wasn’t to be. Downstate Senators could not be persuaded, and there were differing opinions on how to appropriately regulate the industry. All involved expect to see another push for legalization in 2020.
