Articles
December 31, 2024
Association’s chief lobbyist talks policy wins and goals
Public Affairs exec VP says tax legislation and grassroots efforts top agenda in 2025.
The Association's Sean Kennedy addresses attendees at this year's Public Affairs Conference.
The National Restaurant Association’s policy team had a successful year in 2024, and 2025 is shaping up to be as strong or even better, says Sean Kennedy, executive vice president of Public Affairs. Some of the policy wins they racked up include:
In 2025, Kennedy says his priorities include fighting for tax legislation that supports industry growth, engaging with lawmakers on more grassroots efforts, and helping the industry take advantage of state restaurant association membership and have their voices heard. Recently, Kennedy discussed his team’s wins and goals for 2025. Here is some of what he said.
It was an eventful year for your advocacy team. What were your biggest wins and what do they mean for the industry going forward?
With a lot of work—both on defense and offense—2024 was an incredibly eventful year. Working with our state partners, we defeated a record-breaking number of plays to eliminate the tip credit at the local level, had a come-from-behind win that prevented the creation of a FAST Act-like labor standards board in Minnesota, and prevailed in our 15-month effort to get the Biden Administration to scale back a proposal banning restaurant owners from using common sense fees.
Collectively, those wins show the Association and its state partners are well-positioned to continue working with our members, grassroots network, and policymakers to promote pro-growth policies that advance the restaurant industry.
Explain why protecting the tip credit compensation model is so important—not just for restaurant operators but for servers and other members of a restaurant team.
Restaurants are the most labor-intensive small businesses on Main Street, and often face challenges that traditional customer-facing businesses don’t. The tip-credit system has worked incredibly well for servers, owners, and customers, but Washington, D.C. and Chicago eliminated it as an option in the last couple of years and full-service jobs were lost in both cities as a result.
Our success protecting the tip wage came down to tipped workers, restaurant owners, and state restaurant associations working together to engage with local lawmakers, telling their stories, and educating them about how important the tip wage is to their earning potential and businesses. Our state team supported every one of the efforts from Washington and, in some cases, in state houses.
We believe restaurant owners should have the flexibility to use the tip credit as a compensation model; that will continue to be a priority for us.
What are some of the issues you’ll be working on with the new Administration?
President-elect Trump has an ambitious agenda and will partner with a Republican-led Congress. We’re working with his transition team to offer ideas on how the government can promote more private investment in our industry, an expanded workforce, and an even better experience for our customers.
Do you expect positive outcomes regarding tax reform legislation over the next 4 years?
We’re always pressing for Congress to get the balance right and implement tax policies that will strengthen the restaurant industry. A number of pro-growth tax laws are being phased out over the coming years, which is why we’ve spent two years educating lawmakers on how they should proceed. We think 2025 will be the year that Congress and the White House negotiate a comprehensive plan, and we’ll be at the table with our priorities.
What do you expect will be the biggest policy challenge for the industry next year?
Most restaurants have razor-thin profit margins, so even small changes in regulations or legislation could push a restaurant into the red. We spend a lot of time educating lawmakers on the challenging business model that every restaurant deals with. Working with our Board, SRA partners, and groups like our Hill Runner advocates, we’ll continue to explain how government policies could help or hurt the industry.
What policies are you most hopeful for, and what goals do you expect to achieve?
We want to lock in wins on the tax front, continue to engage our grassroots network to advocate with their elected officials, and drive even more restaurant owners to view state restaurant association membership as a must-do part of their business!
- Prevailing in a 3-year legal effort to vacate the “Dual Jobs” regulation
- Protecting the tip-credit compensation model in 14 states and 3 municipalities
- Defeating the 2023 Joint Employer Rule in court
- Keeping restaurants out of the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) “junk fee” rule
- Increasing support for the Credit Card Competition Act of 2023
- Prevailing in a lawsuit to strike down the Department of Labor’s 2024 Overtime Rule
- Passing the Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act in the House
In 2025, Kennedy says his priorities include fighting for tax legislation that supports industry growth, engaging with lawmakers on more grassroots efforts, and helping the industry take advantage of state restaurant association membership and have their voices heard. Recently, Kennedy discussed his team’s wins and goals for 2025. Here is some of what he said.
It was an eventful year for your advocacy team. What were your biggest wins and what do they mean for the industry going forward?
With a lot of work—both on defense and offense—2024 was an incredibly eventful year. Working with our state partners, we defeated a record-breaking number of plays to eliminate the tip credit at the local level, had a come-from-behind win that prevented the creation of a FAST Act-like labor standards board in Minnesota, and prevailed in our 15-month effort to get the Biden Administration to scale back a proposal banning restaurant owners from using common sense fees.
Collectively, those wins show the Association and its state partners are well-positioned to continue working with our members, grassroots network, and policymakers to promote pro-growth policies that advance the restaurant industry.
Explain why protecting the tip credit compensation model is so important—not just for restaurant operators but for servers and other members of a restaurant team.
Restaurants are the most labor-intensive small businesses on Main Street, and often face challenges that traditional customer-facing businesses don’t. The tip-credit system has worked incredibly well for servers, owners, and customers, but Washington, D.C. and Chicago eliminated it as an option in the last couple of years and full-service jobs were lost in both cities as a result.
Our success protecting the tip wage came down to tipped workers, restaurant owners, and state restaurant associations working together to engage with local lawmakers, telling their stories, and educating them about how important the tip wage is to their earning potential and businesses. Our state team supported every one of the efforts from Washington and, in some cases, in state houses.
We believe restaurant owners should have the flexibility to use the tip credit as a compensation model; that will continue to be a priority for us.
What are some of the issues you’ll be working on with the new Administration?
President-elect Trump has an ambitious agenda and will partner with a Republican-led Congress. We’re working with his transition team to offer ideas on how the government can promote more private investment in our industry, an expanded workforce, and an even better experience for our customers.
Do you expect positive outcomes regarding tax reform legislation over the next 4 years?
We’re always pressing for Congress to get the balance right and implement tax policies that will strengthen the restaurant industry. A number of pro-growth tax laws are being phased out over the coming years, which is why we’ve spent two years educating lawmakers on how they should proceed. We think 2025 will be the year that Congress and the White House negotiate a comprehensive plan, and we’ll be at the table with our priorities.
What do you expect will be the biggest policy challenge for the industry next year?
Most restaurants have razor-thin profit margins, so even small changes in regulations or legislation could push a restaurant into the red. We spend a lot of time educating lawmakers on the challenging business model that every restaurant deals with. Working with our Board, SRA partners, and groups like our Hill Runner advocates, we’ll continue to explain how government policies could help or hurt the industry.
What policies are you most hopeful for, and what goals do you expect to achieve?
We want to lock in wins on the tax front, continue to engage our grassroots network to advocate with their elected officials, and drive even more restaurant owners to view state restaurant association membership as a must-do part of their business!
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