WA Hospitality Association, Lawmakers Call For Coronavirus Relief

OLYMPIA, WA — The Washington Hospitality Association and a bipartisan group of local legislators held a news conference Monday to call for greater financial support for local businesses impacted by the state's coronavirus restrictions.

Anthony Anton, CEO of the Washington Hospitality Association kicked off the conference by noting that many businesses were already in dire straights before the latest batch of pandemic regulations.

"Before this shutdown we were estimating that 35 percent of our state's hospitality businesses would close permanently, and this recent closure is only going to make that number worse," Anton said. "The time has come where we really need to start rallying our state to work together, and start finding solutions together."

On Nov. 16, Gov. Jay Inslee announced a batch of new, stricter coronavirus safety regulations which began the 17th and will remain in effect through at least Dec. 14. The governor's office says the restrictions are necessary to combat the recent record-breaking surge in new COVID-19 cases. Among the restrictions, was a statewide ban on indoor dining at bars and restaurants.

"It's devastating in the hospitality industry. Tourism and hospitality, small businesses are the heartbeat of these communities and these shutdowns have just destroyed them," said Rep. Gina Mosbrucker, representative for Washington's 14th district.

In an attempt to curb financial fallout, Inslee has since announced a $135 million package to support local businesses and families during the four-week lockdown. Of that package, $70 million will be used for business support grants, $30 million will go to business loans helping businesses recover from pandemic losses.

Read more: Inslee Announces $135 Million To Support Businesses, Families

At Monday's conference Washington Hospitality Association CEO Anthony Anton said businesses were thankful for that support, but that it isn't nearly enough to keep the industry afloat.

"The 70 million, while that is a big number, is only two days of a forty-day shutdown in covering what's going on in industry revenue," Anton said.

Anton says his group estimates restaurants alone will lose $800 million in revenue during the four weeks of lockdown. Meanwhile, hotels have suffered a 70 percent drop in revenue since the first pandemic restrictions began in spring.

Legislators speaking at Monday's conference said they believed they could work out a solution with the state that would minimize some, but not all, of the shutdown's negative impacts. Larry Springer, who represents Washington's 45th district, noted that they had had some success helping some businesses safely reopen after the initial wave of shutdowns.

"Because we were able to find ways to get certain industry segments back on their feet, at least to some degree, I'm cautiously optimistic that we can do it again," said Springer.

Others, however, will need emergency funding.

"At the end of the day, we need financial support," Springer said.

Speakers at Monday's conference called for support from all levels of government, but noted that truly comprehensive aid would need to come from the federal government.

"Congress and the White House, and what's going in DC have got to step up," said Springer. "There is no amount of state revenue that will come anywhere close to the kind of financial needs this industry has."

In late March, Congress passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security, or CARES, Act, a $2 trillion economic relief package to support American businesses during the pandemic. However, in the nearly 8 months since the CARES Act, the federal government has failed to pass any significant follow-up relief efforts, and those funds are drying up.

"What we're hoping to start today is have legislators like this who have these connections across our state, across party lines, calling on all their colleagues to start working together now, because we know these things will be challenging, and we know these things will be difficult, and we can't afford to wait months and months in negotiations," Anton said.

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