Hopes of Replenishing RRF Dashed by the Senate

Yesterday, the United States Senate failed to replenish the Restaurant Revitalization Fund (RRF), leaving 2,100 restaurants in South Carolina and 177,000 nationwide behind.

The $48 billion Small Business COVID Relief Act of 2022 (S. 4008), introduced by Senators Ben Cardin (D-MD) and Roger Wicker (R-MS), included $40 billion for RRF replenishment and $8 billion in support for other industries deeply impacted by the pandemic. The House passed the Relief for Restaurants and other Hard Hit Small Businesses Act of 2022 (H.R. 3807), that included $42 billion to replenish the RRF, on April 7. Both political parties agreed that the RRF should be replenished but couldn’t reach a consensus on how to pay for it.

Despite the best efforts of the South Carolina Restaurant and Lodging Association, the National Restaurant Association, and our members, round two failed by a vote of 52-43. Disappointingly, Senators Lindsey Graham and Tim Scott from South Carolina voted against invoking cloture to overcome the filibuster (60 votes were needed).

The SCRLA will continue to fight for South Carolina's hospitality industry— one of the top economic drivers in our state, supporting one in every 10 jobs. We want to thank our members who joined in our grassroots efforts and contacted their elected officials, even though the outcome is not what we had hoped. Along with our partners at NRA, we will continue searching for any further opportunities to address much needed relief. This may appear to only be a “restaurant issue”, however, hotels and venues were impacted as well.

Click here to read the full press release from the National Restaurant Association.

The SCRLA would like to extend a sincere thank you to Sean Kennedy, Matt Walker, Dan Roehl, Aaron Frazier, Mike Whatley, and the entire NRA Advocacy Team for their hard work and dedication to our industry.