Legislation Would Support Nearly 200,000 Struggling Restaurants and Bars That Applied for Restaurant Revitalization Fund Grants and are Still Waiting for Help

WASHINGTON D.C. (April 13, 2023) – Today, the Independent Restaurant Coalition (IRC) issued the following statement on the introduction of the Restaurant Revitalization Tax Credit Act in the House of Representatives. This legislation would establish a special tax credit available to businesses that applied for funding from the Small Business Administration’s Restaurant Revitalization Fund but were unable to receive a grant because the program ran out of funding. 

“The Independent Restaurant Coalition (IRC) is immensely grateful for the tireless work of Representative Blumenauer (D-OR) and Representative Phillips (D-MN) as they continue to help protect our industry,” says Erika Polmar, Executive Director, IRC. “The introduction of the RRTC comes at a pivotal moment for the restaurant and bar industry, which lost over $280 billion in the first year of the pandemic alone and received a mere $28.6 billion in dedicated RRF relief.”  

Polmar continued, “Every member of Congress has the opportunity to keep their neighborhood restaurants open and millions of workers employed. Nearly 200,000 small businesses applied for and did not receive a Restaurant Revitalization Fund grant last year. We hear from restaurants and bars owners each day who applied for a grant and never received one. They are struggling to keep the lights on and their doors open. When restaurants close, our communities, local economies, and most of all, our workers lose jobs that provide unparalleled ladders of opportunity. We urge our elected officials to listen to their local restaurants and vote for this bill.”

The Restaurant Revitalization Tax Credit (RRTC) would establish a special tax credit available to businesses that applied for funding from the  Small Business Administration’s Restaurant Revitalization  program but were unable to receive a grant because the program ran out of funding. The tax credit could be used to offset employment taxes up to $25,000 per quarter in 2023 and is refundable up to a total of $25,000 for all four quarters for employers that had an average of 10 or fewer employers in the fourth quarter of 2022. The cap on refundability is reduced by $2,500 for each additional employee over 10.

If passed, the RRTC would be open to RRF applicants that:

• Were eligible for, but did not receive an RRF award due the program running out of funding;
• Experienced an average reduction in gross receipts in 2020 and 2021 of greater than thirty percent as compared to 2019 or a reduction in gross receipts of greater than fifty percent in either 2020 or 2021 as compared to 2019;
• Were in operation prior to March 14, 2020;
• Paid payroll taxes in at least two quarters during 2021.

ABOUT THE IRC:

Founded in March 2020 by the restaurant and bar community, the Independent Restaurant Coalition began with a singular mission — to save independent restaurants and bars impacted by COVID-19.

Today, the IRC represents the unique needs of the independent restaurant and bar community across the country, and has grown into a grassroots movement empowering more than 150,000 independent restaurant and bar owners, suppliers, workers and diners to take action and advocate for the policies that will create a sustainable future for independent restaurateurs, their employees, and the communities they support. For more information, please visit independentrestaurantcoalition.com

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