Get the free daily newsletter read by industry experts. (Recommendation 1), The Associate Administrator for the Office of Capital Access should assess how the design of RRF pre-award controls may have adversely affected applicants from U.S. territories, and identify and document steps to mitigate this issue for future programs. Klicken Sie auf Alle ablehnen, wenn Sie nicht mchten, dass wir und unsere Partner Cookies und personenbezogene Daten fr diese zustzlichen Zwecke verwenden. IE 11 is not supported. This deadline had many restaurants wondering who is eligible, when to expect additional RRF updates to the legislation, if any additional RRF forgiveness has been granted, and which anti-fraud mechanisms were put in place to determine which claims are legitimate. By the time it closed in July 2021, the RRF. Apr 7, 2022. More than 90,000 restaurants closed permanently or long-term because of the pandemic. GAO reviewed SBA documentation, analyzed SBA data on the program's applicants and recipients, and interviewed SBA officials and representatives of industry associations. According to the SBA, the grants are being released to operators in the order their applications were received. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. Restaurant owners plead for Congresss help after omicron surge. That is a serious consideration. According to the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA), the amounts received from the SBA in the form of a Restaurant Revitalization Grant shall not be included in gross income (non-taxable); additionally, the expenses incurred are deductible. Most recipients (72 percent) reported they were owned by women, veterans, or members of socially and economically disadvantaged groups. the Senate didnt pass the proposed increase, Easy Tips To Understand How To Properly Read Your Balance Sheet, Restaurant Business & Startup Loans: Complete Guide, Business payroll costs, including health insurance, Payments on any business mortgage obligation (both principal and interest; note: this does not include any prepayment of principal on a mortgage obligation), Business rent payments (note: this does not include prepayment of rent), Business debt service (both principal and interest; note: this does not include any prepayment of principal or interest), Business utility payments, maintenance expenses, Business supplies (including protective equipment and cleaning materials), Covered supplier costs, same definition as under PPP Forgiveness nonpayroll expensesfood purchases, Legal expenses, marketing expenses, insurance expenses, business licenses, shipping fees, equipment (new hood or a new grill, new fryers, etc.). | 2 p.m. By June 2021, the funds $28.6 billion had been disbursed to 100,000 applicants in grants averaging $283,000. "We must continue to look forward because the enormous challenges of the industry will continue beyond today. This is not an infusion of funds into the RRF currently; in. Most applicants got to the trough too late, when it was empty. The recipient has until March 11th of 2023 to use the RRF grant unless the business has permanently closed. Recipients cannot claim other expenses paid with RRF grant money as nonpayroll costs for purposes of PPP forgiveness. The Restaurant Revitalization Fund covered period begins on February 15, 2020 and ends on March 11, 2023. When typing in this field, a list of search results will appear and be automatically updated as you type. In January 2023, SBA stated that it was weighing potential solutions, such as adding functionality in the RRF platform to allow recipients to report their operating status. In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, restrictions on gathering and other crowd control measures had a huge impact on restaurant owners. 3807, the Restaurant Revitalization Fund Replenishment Act of 2021. Congress can talk about refilling the Restaurant Revitalization Fund, but it can never be full enough to service all factions who can claim, with some plausibility, that they experienced unfairness not easily distinguished from that suffered by factions who benefited from the first $28 billion. The 177,000 restaurants that applied but didn't receive RRF funding represent around 20% of the industry, according to the National Restaurant Association, suggesting another round of restaurant-specific federal grants could improve the industry's recovery. www.arffinancial.com/updates-to-the-restaurant-revitalization-fund/, Mozilla/5.0 (Windows NT 10.0; Win64; x64) AppleWebKit/537.36 (KHTML, like Gecko) Chrome/103.0.0.0 Safari/537.36. Hes also encouraged people to stop working from home and head back into their offices in an effort to move forward after two years of absolute chaos and devastation. The government closed restaurants and bars because they were considered particularly apt to endanger the public by spreading the coronavirus, so the public should compensate everyone for losses suffered on the publics behalf. Writing for Reason, he noted six weeks ago that Open Table, the reservation app, shows that close to 95 percent of restaurants open in 2019 are back to accepting reservations. The U.S. House and Senate passed a bill, S.4008, which would've added $40 billion to the plan - a significant increase over the approximate $29 billion originally proposed in the RRF. 3807), that included $42 billion to replenish the RRF, on April 7. This news doesnt exactly come as a surprise, but earlier this year, there was some hope that more money was coming. There are steps the government can take to support restaurants in every community, and we will continue to press for solutions at the federal, state, and local level.". With so many questions surrounding the RRF, we created this resource and guide to provide answers. "This should be the driving factor in bipartisan support for replenishing the RRF. SBA stopped accepting applications in July 2021 with the program oversubscribed and almost all its funds disbursed. This is not an infusion of funds into the RRF currently; in fact, a new law was introduced and passed by the House of Representatives to replenish the RRF with more than $40 billion, but it did not pass the Senate (See June 2022 update below). As a restaurant owner, youve most definitely heard about the varying RRF updates throughout the last year, how they could possibly impact your establishment, and more. So, however, is this: Once government begins to pursue the chimera of ever-more-perfect fairness, it finds actually, it incites more and more factions claiming that justice demands their inclusion in the governments ever-expanding plans for smoothing lifes rough surfaces. ), buses and ferries, etc. Past-due expenses qualify as RRF expenses. SBA stated that the results of the analysis are scheduled to be completed by March 2023. They are on the verge of closing permanently as a result.". What are eligible expenses and restrictions that RRF grant recipients should know about? Consider the House-passed, $55 billion Restaurant Revitalization Fund Replenishment Act, which could be the No Faction Left Behind Act.. The Restaurant Revitalization Fund was established in March 2021 to support eligible entities suffering revenue losses from the COVID-19 pandemic. We recommended that SBA do so. The unions proposals often focus on specific changes to systems workers interact with all day, every day, including equipment and mobile ordering. A requirement for annual reporting submissions applies to any applicant who doesnt fully expend RRF grant funds before December 31, 2021. Copyright 2023 Sawyer Direct LLC | All Rights Reserved. 200Littleton, Colorado 80120. According to the Small Business Administration, which handles the fund, restaurants and other eligible businesses can receive funding "equal to their pandemic-related revenue loss up to $10 million per business and no more than $5 million per physical location." Recipients that are unable to use all of the funds received on eligible expenses by the end of the covered period must return any unused funds to the Treasury. We are beyond disappointed that this massive government funding proposal ignores the needs of 177,300 neighborhood restaurants and bars impacted by the pandemic, IRC executive director Erika Polmar said. Dont do that. 3807 or, the Relief for Restaurants and other Hard Hit Small Businesses Act of 2022, which would provide about $42 billion to provide fresh funding for the RRF . The legislation would also provide $13 billion for other businesses affected by the pandemic, and it would establish oversight and reporting requirements to ensure grants are awarded properly and to verify the use of funding. In March 2021, Congress appropriated $28.6 billion to the Small Business Administration to help the food service industry weather the COVID-19 pandemic. WASHINGTON, Nov. 23, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, the Small Business Administration (SBA) announced the release of $83 million dollars in unobligated Restaurant Revitalization Fund (RRF) grants to 169 operators with pending applications. From independent operators to hospitality groups, most are disappointed and some are angry that there remains no federal aid to support struggling restaurants. All Applicants that do not fully expend award funds . Cardin's bill, S.4008, would provide $40 billion in additional funding for the Restaurant Revitalization Fund. If the recipient fully expends their funds prior to December 31, 2021, they will be asked to certify that proceeds have been used on eligible expenses. As a recap, the Restaurant Revitalization Fund was created to give restaurants and other hospitality-related businesses the financial assistance that they need to get through this world-wide pandemic.To ensure all types of restaurant owners receive funding, including smaller establishments and minority . The $55 billion bill would largely replenish a grant program created by the American Rescue Plan that provides assistance to restaurants. (Recommendation 6), The Associate Administrator for the Office of Capital Access should develop and implement a plan to respond to potentially fraudulent and ineligible RRF awards in a prompt and consistent manner. Roger Wicker (R-MS) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ), signed the letter . The CARES Act includes a provision for GAO to monitor federal efforts to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. GAO maintains that all of the recommendations are valid, as discussed in this report. Is the grant money taxable and are the expenses deductible? 2023 Restaurant Accounting Services Inc. All Rights Reserved. Restaurant Industry News and Resources in Georgia. The SBA, which had $83 million in unobligated RFF money worked with the advice of the Department of Justice to begin distributing the remaining funds to 169 restaurant operators with pending RRF applications. In addition to restaurants and bars, eligible businesses include food trucks, bakeries, wineries or breweries and inns. The age of the Silicon Valley moonshot is over. LOOK What Happened When This Restaurant Posted a Politically Incorrect Sign. The bill also would provide $13 billion for a Hard Hit Industries Award Program for small Sie knnen Ihre Einstellungen jederzeit ndern, indem Sie auf unseren Websites und Apps auf den Link Datenschutz-Dashboard klicken. On April 7, 2022, the House passed H.R. For instance, it prevented over 30,000 suspicious applications from receiving awards. Bei der Nutzung unserer Websites und Apps verwenden wir, unsere Websites und Apps fr Sie bereitzustellen, Nutzer zu authentifizieren, Sicherheitsmanahmen anzuwenden und Spam und Missbrauch zu verhindern, und, Ihre Nutzung unserer Websites und Apps zu messen, personalisierte Werbung und Inhalte auf der Grundlage von Interessenprofilen anzuzeigen, die Effektivitt von personalisierten Anzeigen und Inhalten zu messen, sowie, unsere Produkte und Dienstleistungen zu entwickeln und zu verbessern. SBA emphasized pre-award controls to detect fraudulent or ineligible applications but has not assessed their effectiveness. Access from your Country was disabled by the administrator. Last year, lawmakers created. No later than December 31, 2021, all recipients are required to report to the SBA how much of their RRF grant has been used against each eligible use category. This plan should include coordinating with the OIG. Painel do Inscrito. (Recommendation 2), The Associate Administrator for the Office of Capital Access should develop and implement policies and procedures for addressing RRF recipients who do not meet annual reporting requirements. Taking additional steps to identify and address potentially fraudulent awards in a timely manner could help SBA recover funds. In 2020, independent locations declined by 8 percent, according to The NPD Group. The bill would also put $13 billion toward other businesses impacted by the COVID-19 crisis. Optimal accounting solutions for small, medium, multi-unit concept, franchise, and enterprise restaurant operators. The Senate has a $48 billion bill, with more than restaurants eligible for revitalization: gyms, minor league sports teams, companies that support live entertainment events (lighting and sound technicians, etc. This program will provide restaurants with funding equal to their pandemic-related revenue loss up to $10 million per business and no more than $5 million per physical location. And by the third quarter of 2021, Britschgi writes, the number of restaurants had surpassed pre-pandemic levels.. By contrast, almost half of restaurants that didn't receive RRF funding said it's unlikely they will survive the pandemic, and 94% reported an RRF grant would allow them to retain or rehire staff, according to NRA research. The bill is co-sponsored by Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS) and includes additional funds for gyms, live venues and transit systems, among other business categories. This recommendation will remain open until SBA (1) provides documentation of its review, and (2) addresses or mitigates any deficiencies identified. To amend the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 to increase appropriations to the Restaurant Revitalization Fund, and for other purposes. Atendimento ao inscrito. Restaurant Revitalization Fund Award Disbursements, May 3July 1, 2021. The bill would provide $42 billion to replenish the RRF. GAO makes seven recommendations to SBA, including to assess pre-award controls and address deficiencies, strengthen post-award reporting, take additional steps to identify fraudulent or ineligible awards, and develop and implement a plan to address potentially fraudulent award recipients in a timely manner. SBA took steps to detect fraudulent or ineligible applications. About the National Restaurant AssociationFounded in 1919, the National Restaurant Association is the leading business association for the restaurant industry, which comprises nearly 1 million restaurant and foodservice outlets and a workforce of 14.5 million employees. Stay informed as we add new reports & testimonies. Both political parties agreed that the RRF should be replenished but couldn't reach a consensus on how to pay for it. The median award was about $126,000. Recipients are not required to repay the funding as long as funds are used for eligible uses no later than March 11, 2023. 3807 (117th). Are there any reporting requirements for RRF grant recipients? And it underscores the inevitable inequities that accompany large-scale government interventions in the economy. On Nov. 23, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) released a statement about the current state of the Restaurant Revitalization Fund (RFF), which helped more than 100,000 restaurants and food and beverage business owners during the pandemic. But with Congress having adjourned for a two-week recess, the bill won't be considered anytime soon in the Senate. In 2022, many RRF updates are in the works. This recommendation will remain open until SBA enhances its post-award reporting procedures to require recipients to report their operating status. Realizar Login. Brands like Chipotle, McDonalds and Starbucksarewalking a tightrope charge enough to protect the bottom line without alienating customers. SBA stated that the agency will review a sample of RRF awards and use the results of this review to inform the effectiveness of its post-award procedures. In January 2023, SBA stated that it follows standard operating procedures to refer suspicious activity to the OIG. For more information about the SBA, visit sba.gov. And stop digging. The RRF is actually part of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), which was established in March 2021. Would a grant recipient ever have to pay back any of the funds? The Restaurant Revitalization Fund was established in March 2021 to support eligible entities suffering revenue losses from the COVID-19 pandemic. And SBA has not proactively used data analytics or information from enforcement entities to identify potentially fraudulent award recipients. They have until March 2023 to spend the money. Even the Restaurant Revitalization Fund, with its paltry $28.6 billion in initial funding, wasnt enough to meaningfully help most establishments. But, then, weapons systems have been purchased because suppliers of components were spread across the country like tapenade on toast. The first reports were due in December 2021, but 32 percent were overdue as of June 2022. The American Rescue Plan created the Restaurant Revitalization Fund. Copyright 1999 2023 GoDaddy Operating Company, LLC. "After navigating an unpredictable supply chain, multiple COVID-19 surges, and dealing with revenue-hampering restrictions, these businesses have two years of crushing debt," Erika Polmar, the IRC's executive director, said in a statement. It's unclear whether Democrats in the evenly split Senate will be able to win over at least 10 Republicans to overcome the 60-vote threshold to end any potential filibuster and pass the measure. It should take place Monday or Tuesday . A vague, anti-drag bill in Tennessee has bar and restaurant owners worried for their future, By submitting your email, you agree to our, Congress Wont Send Any More Financial Aid to Restaurants Despite Pleas From the Industry, The Weird (and Wired) Truth Behind Whats Really in Coca-Cola, Why Coca-Cola contracts with a chemical company to manufacture cocaine in New Jersey, there was some hope that more money was coming, just about a third of the grant requests that it received because the demand was so great, exhortations from everyone from Tom Colicchio to Elizabeth Warren for Congress to provide aid to restaurants, that ongoing rise in the cost of doing business, Liquid Deaths New Tea Tallboys Are Coming for AriZonas Neck, If You Took the Drag Away, Then Its Just Another Boring Bar, How to Make Misis Iconic Ricotta-Filled Occhi Pasta. In January 2023, SBA stated that SBA's Office of Financial Program Operations had partnered with the agency's Office of the Chief Data Office to execute data analytics across the RRF portfolio. Let Restaurant Dive's free newsletter keep you informed, straight from your inbox. Do it again, but bigger. If you are the site owner (or you manage this site), please whitelist your IP or if you think this block is an error please open a support ticket and make sure to include the block details (displayed in the box below), so we can assist you in troubleshooting the issue. After this money was distributed, more than 177,000 applications were left in limbo at the SBA. The restaurant industry was the hardest hit by the pandemic. The Association was first to lay out the plan for a restaurant industry recovery fund to Congress in April 2020. Rebecca Shabad is a politics reporter for NBC News based in Washington. The American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) established the Restaurant Revitalization Fund (RRF) to provide funding to help restaurants and other eligible businesses keep their doors open. The Small Business Administration (SBA) began accepting applications and awarding funds in May 2021. In March 2021, Congress appropriated $28.6 billion to SBA for a Restaurant Revitalization Fund to assist the industry. Today's announcement is great news for those 169 operators fortunate enough to receive an RRF grant, but hundreds of thousands more are struggling with uncertainty. Supply chain shortages are still a massive problem for restaurants, and the cost of doing business grows by the day. In January 2023, SBA stated that it was reviewing 10% of RRF awards to confirm eligibility and use of funds compliance. This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. I hear from business owners every day who are having to close their doors and since Congress and the White House couldnt see their way to refill the RRF, hundreds more will face the same fate in the coming weeks.. There had, however, been 278,304 applicants seeking $72 billion. A similar attempt to refill the RRF was left out of the omnibus spending bill earlier this year. If the business permanently closes, the covered period will end when the business permanently closes; or, on March 11, 2023 whichever occurs sooner. Payroll costs claimed as ERTC eligible wages, Forgivable payroll expenses on the PPP forgiveness application, Nonpayroll expenses claimed on the PPP Forgiveness application. From the recruitment of employees to the constantly rising costs for food, running a restaurant right now is a daily struggle. Number of Restaurant Revitalization Fund Applications by Eligibility and Funding Status. According to the SBA, the RRF provided $28.6 billion to more than 100,000 restaurants, bars, and other businesses that provide on-site food and drink. In January 2023, SBA stated that recipients have until March 2023 to exhaust RRF funds. U.S. Small Business Administration RRF Award Portal, Restaurant Revitalization Funding Program. SBA disagreed with five recommendations, including to assess pre-award controls and implement a plan to address fraudulent or ineligible awards. RASI will only use your information to contact you about our products and services. Follow. Forty-three Senate Republicans, objecting to the fact that only a smidgen of the Senate bills cost would be offset by economies elsewhere, on May 19 prevented there being 60 votes to proceed with it. The SBA will work with the Department of Justice to disburse the money, according to the NRA. H.R.3807 - Restaurant Revitalization Fund Replenishment Act of 2021 117th Congress (2021-2022) Bill Hide Overview More on This Bill Constitutional Authority Statement CBO Cost Estimates [0] Subject Policy Area: Commerce View subjects Give Feedback on This Bill Contact Your Member Summary (2) Text (3) Actions (17) Titles (3) Amendments (1) But what about those other small businesses (gyms, minor league baseball, etc.) Restaurant owners have taken on substantial debt and tapped into their own savings accounts, just in an effort to keep the doors open. Expect to see many more restaurant closures in the coming months. Published May 24, 2022 Thai Phi Le Senior Managing Editor The National Restaurant Association is asking Congress to replenish the Restaurant Revitalization Fund as the Covid omicron variant hits operators' businesses. (Recommendation 5), The Associate Administrator for the Office of Capital Access should develop, document, and implement procedures to use enforcement data on suspected fraud in other SBA programs, such as PPP, to identify potential fraud in RRF recipients. Hence the Replenishment Act. About 40% of eligible applicants received awards from the resulting Restaurant Revitalization Fund before it was depleted. By December 31, 2021, all Awardees are required to report through this application portal how much of their award has been used against each eligible use category. Welp, its (almost) official: when Congress takes up the 2022 omnibus spending bill, there wont be any new money for restaurants that are still struggling after years of pandemic-related losses.

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