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Legislative Accomplishments

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2005 MRA Accomplishments

In June 2004, WJIM-AM radio in Lansing referred to the MRA as “the very powerful restaurant lobbying group” for our ability to advance the legislative agenda of our members while also putting a heavy thumb on those ideas that would have a negative impact on our industry.  

In October 2004, the Lansing State Journal echoed the sentiment and called the MRA on of the "powerful players" in the Lansing lobbying scene.  

We have been very successful in enacting positive public policy changes, we continue to work hard against those that would harm our industry, and we are always pushing to get our unresolved agenda items to the forefront. However, since Jennifer Granholm was sworn into office as Governor in January 2003, we’ve also seen a number of our agenda items reach her desk – often with bi-partisan support – only to see her veto them.

Here is what MRA has been able to achieve this year and in recent years for you …

• Successfully put a stop to frivolous lawsuits against restaurants brought by individuals with obesity problems who are looking to avoid personal responsibility.
  
• Successfully restored a Single Business Tax (SBT) deduction permitting franchisees to deduct all franchise fees and royalty payments paid to a franchiser from the SBT base.
  
• Successfully defeated numerous proposals to hike the liquor tax and liquor license fees and create a state death tax.  Each proposal would cost restaurants and other small business tremendous amounts of money in new taxes and fees – at a time when they can be least afforded.
  
• Successfully defeated a single business tax (SBT) increase for many restaurateurs which would have been used to pay for tax cuts provided to the “winners” – industry sectors hand-picked by the government to receive them.
• Successfully passed legislation allowing restaurant guests to take home unfinished bottles of wine they purchased with their meals.
  
• Successfully passed legislation allowing liquor licensees to remain open past 2am to provide entertainment options for guests and increase sales
• MRA successfully passed legislation requiring all schools to wait to start their school year after Labor Day.
  
• Permanently extended the resort liquor license program.
  
• Successfully put an end to unemployment tax dodging without placing new paperwork and fee burdens on Michigan restaurants.
  
• Successfully defeated attempts to hike the minimum payroll wage for tipped employees. However, a very large minimum wage increase was signed into law by Gov. Jennifer Granholm.  These proposals come back year after year and will no doubt be seen again … soon.
  
• Successfully continued the defeat of a mandatory smoking ban in Michigan restaurants. The bill puts the state in the position of dictating to you what is best for your business and eliminates your freedom to accommodate your guest and dining choices.
  
• Eliminated a 20-year state Treasury practice of taxing meals that operators provide at no cost to their employees during work periods. And in 2004, we successfully defended it when Treasury attempted to undo our efforts!
  
• Successfully created a new vertical driver license for minors that can easily be identified by servers and clerks.
• Created two new state Lottery games called “Club Games” to increase customer enjoyment at Class C licensed liquor service establishments. Members can call the MRA for information on “Club Keno” and “Pull Tabs” games.
  
• Successfully repealed a ridiculous rule that prohibited the display of illuminated signs advertising alcoholic beverage brands. MRA was the only organization that initiated and encouraged the action of the Michigan Attorney General to throw this rule out. Other groups claiming to represent bars and restaurants actively urged MRA to not pursue this action, and the same groups have since urged the Michigan Liquor Control Commission to adopt new rules making the signs practically impossible to obtain.
  
• Successfully passed a bill bringing Kent County in line with the rest of the state to allows the transfer of an escrowed on-premises liquor license within the county.
  
• Successfully ensured the new drunk driving standard did not drop below .08 or create a new impairment standard below .08, which would have criminalized responsible social drinkers.
  
• Successfully defeated legislation curtailing access to billboard advertising and raising fees on those who advertise their businesses on billboards.
  
• Successfully defeated a Ferndale proposal that sought to allow law enforcement officers to use alcohol breath tests on customers while they were still in a restaurant or bar.
  
• Successfully overturned a Marquette ordinance that sought to ban smoking in restaurants. The Michigan Supreme Court upheld a Court of Appeals ruling in our members’ favor.
  
• Successfully provided uniformity of alcohol sales times on Sundays for four counties in the Upper Peninsula.  These counties are located in the central time zone and, on Sundays, are less able to compete for customers who can simply cross the state border into Wisconsin, which has less restrictive Sunday sales laws.    

… and here’s what MRA successfully got through the Legislature, only to be vetoed by Governor Jennifer Granholm

• Governor Granholm vetoed a bipartisan youth employment reform bill that extends the hours that sixteen and seventeen year-olds can work, allowing them to work up to 22 hours per week while they are in school, and getting rid of the current confusing system that sets the maximum number of hours on a district-by-district basis. The bill had strong bipartisan support and even had the support of the Michigan Education Association.
  
• Governor Granholm vetoed a bill prohibiting townships, cities and counties from enacting local minimum wage laws.  The minimum wage is a state issue – not a local one – and legislation should be passed that bans local minimum wage ordinances. Despite their burdensome effect on job growth, the governor vetoed the bill and allowed the problem to continue to worsen.
  
• Governor Granholm vetoed an MRA-supported bill cutting the SBT rate in half for more than 30,000 Michigan small businesses that are eligible to pay the alternative tax rate.  The bill also would have expanded the criteria so that more small businesses would be eligible to pay the alternative rate.
  
• Governor Granholm killed an MRA-supported bill which would have ended the state tax on employer-provided health care.  Under the SBT, if an employer provides health care to employees, the employer-paid costs are included in the employer’s SBT base as “payroll.”  In other words, if you provide health care to employees, you are taxed for it.  The bill would have ended this tax.
  
• Governor Granholm vetoed an MRA-supported bill that would have prohibited the development of a statewide mandatory workplace ergonomic standard enforced by MIOSHA.  A mandatory ergonomic standard – currently under development by the Granholm administration – would be among the most complex, confusing and costly regulatory burdens placed on the backs of Michigan employers.
  
• Governor Granholm vetoed a bipartisan MIOSHA reform bill that gives business owners greater understanding and certainty of what constitutes a “willful” violation of workplace safety standards. Currently, there is no statutory definition of a “willful” violation is as it is left up to state bureaucrats to decide. As many business owners know, a “willful” MIOSHA violation on their record could have significant negative effects on their operations.  The bill also contained language prohibiting the Granholm administration from pursuing a mandatory statewide workplace ergonomic standard, which would be very costly for restaurant owners.