Restaurants are the lifeblood of our communities. They contribute more than just good food and great experiences, they are also a key pillar of California’s economy. Local restaurants employ one in ten workers and are responsible for more than $220 billion a year in sales. But we hear from restaurant owners around the state just how difficult it is to be in this industry. Fewer Californians are working in restaurants today than in 2019, and one report found California was the hardest state to open a restaurant in the country.
The fact is that onerous regulations make it harder and more expensive to open and run a restaurant in California. Every day spent waiting for a permit makes it more costly to get started and hire new workers. Every layer of unnecessary red tape makes it more difficult to run day-to-day operations. Every dollar restaurants spend on compliance ultimately means higher prices for consumers at checkout.
To help local restaurants and turbocharge job creation, we need to cut the red tape that’s holding back too many of the Golden State’s entrepreneurs. We need the legislature to urgently pass AB 671, introduced by Assemblymember Buffy Wicks. The bill would streamline the permit process and ensure restaurants can open within 20 business days after applying. It would also make it easier for existing restaurants to quickly update or improve their space without losing weeks or months to permitting delays. Whether it’s reconfiguring a kitchen to meet new safety standards, adding equipment to expand the menu, or refreshing the dining area to better serve customers, AB 671 ensures local health and building departments act within a clear, 20-day window and sets out a clear process to ensure that if a permit application is denied, a restaurant would be able to address any deficiencies and get a response within 10 business days. That means less downtime, lower costs, and more time keeping staff employed and customers fed—critical advantages in an industry where every day offline can make or break a small business.
At DoorDash, our mission is to empower local economies. We believe making it easier for entrepreneurs to start, run, and grow small businesses is key to creating vibrant, thriving local economies. That’s why we support these sensible reforms, and why we’re reaching out to merchants around the state to share information about this crucial bill. In partnership with industry leaders and restauranteurs, we’re calling on Sacramento to pass this commonsense bill and help our state’s restaurants thrive.
“Being an entrepreneur is hard enough without having to navigate layer after layer of red tape,” said Max Rettig, Vice President, Head of Global Public Policy at DoorDash. “We know that restaurants are a cornerstone of local economies throughout California and around the country. Common sense reforms that help make it easier to open and run a restaurant serve to benefit us all - more jobs, more businesses, more growth, even more vibrant communities. We’re urging policymakers to pass AB 671 to ensure that California remains open for business.”
“When you’re starting a restaurant, every extra week you’re waiting on permits is another week you’re paying expenses without serving a single customer. AB 671 would mean we can open our doors faster, hire sooner, and focus on what we do best–feeding our community.”
-Nayomie Mendoza, Cuernavaca’s Grill, Los Angeles
We believe it’s our responsibility to advocate for our communities, and that includes California’s restaurant industry.Small businesses are crucial to their local economies, and it’s our goal to help them make their voices heard and stand side by side with them by supporting sensible policies like this one.
