§ 56:8-225 — Findings, declarations relative to third-party food takeout, delivery applications relative to restaurants.

1. The Legislature finds and declares that due to the current state of emergency declared in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, restaurants have been prohibited from offering dine-in service and limited to delivery and takeout offerings only, which has placed a sudden and severe financial strain on many restaurants. This emergency has also resulted in an increased use of third-party food takeout and delivery service applications to place orders with restaurants for food takeout or delivery. While some companies have provided meaningful support to the restaurant community, other companies offering third-party food takeout and delivery services may charge restaurants a service fee exceeding 30 percent of the individual order price, thereby compounding the current financial strain on restaurants. Restaurants that are also small businesses, in particular, may have limited bargaining power to negotiate lower fees. The Legislature finds that it is in the public interest to take action to maximize restaurant revenue from takeout and delivery orders to enable restaurants to survive this crisis and remain sources of employment and community vitality in this State. L.2020, c.42, s.1.