NEXT VRLTA Call - Tomorrow, Friday, April 24, 10:00 a.m.
Join us for an update call tomorrow, Friday, 4/24 at 10:00 am
Dial in information: 202.602.1295, conference ID 789-103-256#
LEAD NEWS: Virginia General Assembly Reconvened Session Update
Yesterday, the Virginia General Assembly met for a very eventful reconvened session. Overall, VRLTA was successful in our requests to the General Assembly dealing with the Governor’s amendments to various bills.
The budget to override state law to waive penalties and interest to delay the sales tax and income tax payments; The Governor’s amendments were adopted.
HB395/ SB7 (minimum wage increases): The Governor’s amendment to delay implementation was adopted.
HB1414/ SB890 (Northern Virginia lodging tax): The Governor’s amendment to delay the lodging tax provision was adopted.
HB785/ SB588 (tax equalization between localities): The Governor’s amendment to delay the lodging tax provision was adopted.
HB1726, SB1038 (Hampton Roads lodging tax): The Governor’s amendment to delay the lodging tax provision was adopted.
HB1505 (Small Business Jobs Fund for Small Business Grants): The Governor’s amendments were adopted.
HB881/ SB971 (Games of Skill): The Governor’s amendment were adopted.
HB795/ SB235 (Association Health Plans): The Senate rejected the Governor’s amendment to add a reenactment clause and passed in enrolled form. The House failed to pass the bill in enrolled form. So the Governor’s amendment was not rejected.
So, as you can see our advocacy efforts paid off in a big way during today’s reconvened session. Thank you to everyone who took action! We will have a more discussion during our call tomorrow, or reach out to robert@vrlta.org with questions.
Senator Chap Petersen’s Op-Ed
Senator Chap Petersen (D-Fairfax City) recently penned an op-ed related to business closures in response to COVID-19. You can read it here.
E&J Gallo Winery will be hosting an educational webinar for restaurant operators on Monday, April 27st at 3PM. The webinar will be led by Kate Gritsch, Sr. E Commerce manager with the Winery. Event registration & approval is required to join this webinar; registration will close 2 hours prior. We encourage viewing from a computer. Attendees will only be able to hear audio if they join by phone or tablet, unless they already have the WebEx app downloaded.
Support the VRLTA Restaurant & Hospitality Relief Fund
VRLTA's industry relief fund will aid workers displaced by the recent restaurant and hospitality industry shutdowns and also help affected businesses.
The Virginia Restaurant & Hospitality Relief Fund will be providing direct cash support to workers that have been laid off due to the recent COVID19-related business downturn in Virginia and affected businesses. The VRLTAEF will be funding the new trust with donations from individual donors and grants from local private foundations and corporate partners. Donations may be disbursed to organizations around the state which can connect the support to individuals, or, in some cases, made directly to affected individuals/businesses.
All donations to the Fund are fully tax-deductible, subject to applicable laws and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) regulations. If you would like to direct your donation to a particular area, please reach out to jim@vrlta.orgfor assistance.
Virginia is for Restaurant Lovers Merchandise Supports the VRLTA Relief Fund - Make a purchase to show your support today!
VRLTA has also partnered with the Virginia Tourism Corporation to create a Virginia is for Restaurant Lovers t-shirt, and other merchandise, with a portion of the proceeds going to the Fund.
Continue to visit https://www.virginiaisforrestaurantlovers.com for more information about the COVID-19 pandemic and the impact on the tourism and hospitality industries. We are working to add additional resources, links, and news articles as they become available.
