Wilk wants to make restaurants essential businesses
SACRAMENTO — State Sen. Scott Wilk, R-Santa Clarita, joined 10 state senators of both parties to ask Governor Gavin Newsom “reclassify restaurants as essential businesses, and adopt the industry’s protocols that would allow restaurants to operate safely.”
The state senators — Patricia C. Bates, R-Laguna Niguel; Shannon Grove, R- Bakersfield; Andreas Borgeas, R-Fresno; Brian Dahl, R-Redding; Melissa Hurtado, D-Hanford; Brian Jones, R-El Cajon; Monique Limon, D-Santa Barbara; Melissa Melendez, R-Murrieta; Jim Nielsen, R- Roseville; Rosilicie Ochoa Bogh, R-Rancho Cucamonga and Wilk — penned the letter to Newsom last Friday in opposition to the ban on in-person dining where intensive-care unit best are below 15% capacity.
“We ask that you immediately reclassify the restaurant industry as critical infrastructure before more damage is done,” the lawmakers said in their Dec. 11 letter. “As it is becoming obvious to Californians, these essential businesses do more
than simply provide a place to eat. Restaurants are active participants in local neighborhoods, providing meals to senior citizens and working with food banks to feed families struggling to put food on their tables.”
“The governor’s recurring shut downs have made it incredibly difficult for all businesses in California but restaurants have been particularly hard hit. Many have spent tens of thousands of dollars to comply with the governor’s ‘outdoor dining’ regulations only to have him pull the rug out from under them again,” Wilk said in a statement. “Community restaurants have played a vital role in providing meals during the pandemic and should be treated as the essential businesses they are in our neighborhoods.”
According to the California Restaurant Association, 60% of California restaurants are owned by people of color, and 50% of California restaurants are owned or partly-owned by women. In 2019, more than 1.8 million jobs were attributed to the restaurant and food service industry in California. This equates to approximately 11% of employment in the state. Closed restaurants means jobs lost, missed rent, mortgage and car payments and a lot of unemployment checks, the letter said.
“California’s restaurants have taken significant steps to ensure the safety of their employees and customers during this pandemic. The industry has proposed guidelines that would allow restaurants to continue to operate safely and at capacity levels that will allow restaurants to stay afloat, while at the same time implementing safety protocols that address the unique challenges inherent with indoor restaurant operations.