I’m using my space to interview Bristol Bar & Grille’s Director of Operations, T. J. Oakley, who happens to be a KRA Board member. T. J. has taken great interest in KRA’s “Stop the Restaurant Tax” campaign, and I wanted you to hear from him how he become engaged in this issue.
Stacy: T. J., thank you for spending your valuable time crusading against a restaurant tax. What is your best advice to other restaurateurs about this issue?
- J.: First it’s important that everyone is aware of what’s being proposed and the misinformation surrounding it. Some have called a 3% tax a “pass through” that will be passed along to customers. We know that raising taxes doesn’t mean our customers will magically have more disposable income which means that more of the share will go to taxes and less revenue will go into restaurants. Louisville officials have called this a tourist tax rather than a tax on locals even fabricating that 25% would come from tourist. Each restaurateur I’ve spoken with in Louisville neighborhoods like The Highlands, Crescent Hill, Old Louisville, Germantown and West Louisville are beside themselves when I tell them that their Mayor says 25% of their customers are tourist. They all respond by letting me know that close to 99% of their guests are locals. Even the restaurants in Downtown Louisville that sees the highest level of tourists say less than 15%-20% of their guests are tourist.
Stacy: You put together some numbers showing how in Louisville, for instance, a restaurant tax could impact customer spending and employee wages. What did that look like?
- J.: It’s been estimated that a Louisville restaurant tax would raise between $20-$30 million in tax revenue although the officials that spout this amount have not produced any data showing how they’ve created this number. In Louisville alone, there are 40,000 restaurant employees and we all know that lost restaurant revenue would mean less hours, tips and wages for this workforce. Let’s say this tax costs employees $8 – $12 per week (it could certainly cost them more), the total amount of lost wages annually would be over $20 million. The thought of our government leaders suggesting $20 million in lost wages for restaurant workers to raise barely that much tax revenue is insane. To make matters worse, this revenue is claimed to be needed to pay for budget woes created by the pension crisis. I think everyone will agree that restaurant employees should not be the one’s responsible for funding pensions.
In 2018, Louisville Metro Council members and Mayor Fischer passed a Children’s Meal Ordinance and stated that this Ordinance was necessary because dining out for single moms and working families is often no longer an option but a necessity. After making this statement a corner stone of the Children’s Meal Ordinance, some of the same policymakers are trying deflect that these same single moms and working families would be burdened with this additional tax.
Stacy: You have some unusual ways of getting legislators’ attention, will you share one or two?
- J.: Clumsily may be the best way to describe it. Operating and working in restaurants for many, many years, its second nature to talk and engage with our guests. When I found our industry in the crosshairs of politics and the misinformation that came with it, my reaction was to talk and engage. Whether at events or even at the State Capital, I’ve made a point to locate legislatures and engage about the restaurant tax to make sure policy makers truly understand how careless and destructive this tax would be. What I’ve found is that many policy makers don’t understand our industry but are willing to listen, which is why it’s imperative for restaurateurs, customers and employees to reach out to State and City officials. I promise that a 5 minute call or Tweet can really make a difference.
Stacy: For restaurateurs who think they don’t have time to engage with legislators, what is your advice?
- J.: You can’t afford not to. Our industry is one of the largest employers in the Commonwealth but unfortunately our State and local legislatures have very little knowledge of the challenges and thin margins that restaurants try to work through. It’s imperative that restaurateurs, managers and employees take 3-5 minutes today to call, email or Tweet your Representative or Council Member and let them know restaurants should not be singled out and can ill afford to carry the burden of the budget crisis that’s driven by Government pensions.