Business & Tech
City Council Could Be Looking to Reduce Restaurant Fines
Legislative body is drafting legislation to give restaurant owners a break from the strict grading system, source says.
City Council Speaker Christine Quinn wants to reduce the hefty fines doled out to the city’s eateries under the restaurant grading system, according to the Daily News.
“There’s a universal feeling among the City Council that something must be done to rein in the Health Department,” said Robert Bookman, a lawyer for the New York City Hospitality Alliance.
Sources told the paper that Quinn’s legislation would likely shrink penalties for citations that don’t involve food, such as broken tiles and dented cans, and is expected to waive fines for restaurants that score an 'A' after appealing a lower grade.
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If the bill makes it through the City Council, it would then need approval from Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who doesn’t appear to want to make changes to the restaurant grading system – after all, the city is looking to bring in a record $48 million in restaurant fines this fiscal year.
Last month, Public Advocate Bill de Blasio , which he says has doubled over the past decade to an stronomical $850 million, putting undue strain on small businesses trying to survive the economy.