Operations

Operating a restaurant involves a lot of moving parts – most controlled by you, but many controlled by laws, regulations, licenses and permits. Alcoholic beverages, food safety, labor practices and the implementation of the Affordable Care Act (the healthcare mandate) are significant – and then there is everything else.

Get to know the regulatory agencies that govern such things as sidewalk cafes, signage, noise, fire safety and more. And, get to know about the efforts being made by RAMW on your behalf to improve the regulatory environment.

Compliance with New Tip Credit Notice Rules

May 25, 2011

The DOL rules took effect May 5, 2011. They were released with only 30 days' notice and make major and significant changes to existing tip-credit-notice regulations. Failure to follow the new regulations could result in an employer losing the right to apply any tip income toward minimum wage obligations. The National Restaurant Association cannot give you legal advice but we urge you to take the following steps: 1) Understand the rules. Under the previous regulations, employers were able to provide a simple notice to inform tipped employees that the employer was applying a tip credit toward...Read more

New Disorderly Conduct Law Includes Noise Violation

February 8, 2011

New Disorderly Conduct Law Includes Noise Violation The new disorderly conduct law passed by the DC Council in December became effective citywide at midnight on February 1, 2011 . This includes the new "Noise at Night" violation that has been mentioned in the media. While MPD will continue to work with individuals and communities to appropriately balance the rights of each, the new law makes it clear that a person who makes an unreasonably loud noise between 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. that is likely to annoy or disturb one or more other persons in their residences is violating the law...Read more

PCI Assessment

October 26, 2010

For PCI Assessment document click here .Read more

PCI USI/RAMW Presentation

October 25, 2010

To view the Heartland/USI/RAMW presentation on PCI click here .Read more

PCI DSS - Compliance is the Key

September 28, 2010

RAMW provided to its members a special communication summary of PCI DSS. The document explains the key technology involved in payment card security, and highlights the serious risks that data breaches and PCI DSS poses for restaurants. While restaurants account for approximately 10% of Visa and MasterCard transactions, they account for the vast majority of alleged data breaches. Since 2005, the payment card industry has required all merchants - including restaurants - to comply with a technology standard to protect payment card transactions from computer hackers and electronic identity-...Read more

Credit/Debit Card Reform

August 30, 2010

Credit/Debit Card Reform On July 21, 2010, President Obama signed the Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (H.R. 4173) into law. A section of the bill authorizes the Federal Reserve to issue regulations that ensure interchange fees imposed on debit card transactions are "reasonable and proportional." It will allow merchants to set minimum amounts (not to exceed $10 per transaction) for credit card usage and offer customers discounts for use of cash, checks and debit cards, directly passing on the savings to consumers. Click here for Q&A on credit/debit card reform.Read more

IRS Aims to Get More Restaurants to File Tip Form

August 2, 2010

The Internal Revenue Service has announced a new compliance initiative to increase IRS Form 8027 filings in the restaurant industry. The IRS believes many tableservice restaurants don’t file IRS Form 8027 as required. The Employer’s Annual Information Return of Tip Income and Allocated Tips must be filed with the IRS every February by employers who operate large food and beverage establishments. If you have tipped employees, take a look at Form 8027 to determine whether you must file the form. Generally, Form 8027 must be filed by food and beverage establishments that meet three...Read more

IRS Employer Tip Reporting Compliance Program

May 13, 2010

The Internal Revenue Service is starting a new compliance program to assess the employer's share of Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA) taxes on tips reported on Form 4137. Employees who receive cash and charge tips of more than $20 per calendar month and do not report them have to report them on Form 4137, Social Security and Medicare Tax on Unreported Tip Income. The service will notify employers via notice and demand letter with the amount owed. The agency will ask employers to include the taxed on their next Form 91 and will not subject employers to interest or penalties if they...Read more

(HIRE) Act Employee Affidavit Released

May 13, 2010

The Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment (HIRE) Act Employee Affidavit, Form W-11 , was released April 7 by the Internal Revenue Service. The new form will help employers claim the special payroll tax exemption that applies to many newly hired workers during 2010, IRS said. The form will be used to confirm that the new hire is a qualified employee under the HIRE Act. Employers cannot claim HIRE Act benefits, including a payroll tax exemption or a new-hire retention credit, unless the employee completes and signs the affidavit or similar statement President Obama signed the HIRE Act (Pub. L...Read more

Food Prices & Credit Card Fees (Before U.S. House of Representatives)

October 15, 2009

RAMW Board Member Geoff Tracy testifies in front of the U.S. House Committee on Small Business about the impact of rising food prices on restaurants, and how Congress can help. Date: June 2008. PDF File RAMW Board Member Oren Molovinsky joins with Representative Peter Welch (D-VT) to introduce a bill that clarifies credit card interchange fees and provides retailers greater flexibility in accepting different types of cards. Date: June 2008. PDF FileRead more