We sit down with Aaron Frazier, Vice President of Public Policy at the National Restaurant Association, to discuss the pending tax bill, reconciliation, and what operators should expect at the end of the process.

And Republicans across the country seem to be taking aim at voter-passed initiatives on minimum wage and paid leave among other issues. The problem is that despite large majorities in Florida, Missouri and Nebraska, they have been stymied. We’ll discuss why that is happening and if Republicans are ultimately pivoting on key business model issues.

We’ll talk about those issues and wrap it up with the legislative scorecard.

Despite a terrible winning record the last few years, One Fair Wage seems to be making a stand in one of the last few big blue states, this time New Jersey. Is it their swan song or the beginning of a comeback? We’ll discuss.

And then we’ll talk about tariffs and the 90- day window of breathing space the Administration gave us. Is it a given that the small guys are the most vulnerable or do the big ones have unique exposures themselves? We’ll take a look.

We’ll talk about those issues and wrap it up with the legislative scorecard.

It looks like the MAHA train has pulled into Baton Rouge and offloaded one of the most expansive food policy reform bills we have seen to date. The legislation covers ingredients, oils, sugary beverages and even SNAP eligibility and appears to be a huge priority of the governor. We’ll unpack what it means not only in Louisiana but elsewhere across the country.

We’ll talk about those issues and wrap it up with the legislative scorecard.

Tariffs, tariffs, tariffs. This week the President laid out some of the most aggressive tariff policies in recent American history causing instability in corporate boardrooms, workforces, world markets and with our trading partners themselves. But how should industry leaders look at this? Well, to answer that question, we sat down with one. We had a conversation with Fat Brands Founder and Chairman Andy Wiederhorn who walked us through the challenges that these tariff policies are creating for their business model, their supply chain, their growth plans, and their relationship with current or prospective franchisees.

We’ll talk about those issues and wrap it up with the legislative scorecard.

We’ll take a stab at answering a question that likely has never been asked before - namely what do California and West Virginia have in common? The answer: They have both enacted strict laws regarding food additives, dyes and preservatives. But while California’s laws were largely targeted at kids and school meals, West Virginia has taken aim at all products produced or sold in the state making them officially the first state to enact RFK Jr.’s Make America Healthy Again aagenda.

We are joined once again by Maggie Gentile, a partner at Food Directions and a consultant to the National Restaurant Association to help us sort it out, what it means in the short term for suppliers and restaurants, and what else may be coming down the pike.

We’ll talk about those issues and wrap it up with the legislative scorecard.

We sit down with the Independant Restaurant Coalition’s Erika Polmer and Robert St. John to get a status report on the organization, the role it’s playing in the industry and their agenda for 2025.

And Gywnne Wilcox is back on the job at the NLRB bit with a huge asterisk hanging over her head. We’ll take a look at that.

We’ll talk about those issues and wrap it up with the legislative scorecard.

We’re going to talk swipe fees with the NRA’s Brennan Duckett to update you on the status of the industry’s national effort to push back on the Visa and Mastercard payments duopoly that is bleeding restaurant owners dry.

And then we’ll take a look at a national boycott of Target, Amazon and Walmart over their DEI practices and discuss whether they are an effective tool and should restaurant brands be nervous?

We’ll talk about those issues and wrap it up with the legislative scorecard.

The Independent restaurant Coalition has remade its Board Leadership and is looking to reingage in conversations Important to the industry. Is this a help or a hindrance to the industry’s national issue agenda? We’ll take a look.

And this week the President released a target list - his words - of companies that his administration will be going after over their DEI-related policies and a couple of major restaurant and supplier brands ended up on that list. We’ll assess the landscape for those companies and the broader industry going forward.

We’ll talk about those issues and wrap it up with the legislative scorecard.

We sat down with Davis Bae, the Managing Partner of the Seattle Office of Fisher & Phillips to talk about the immigration issue and how operators need to prepare for the foreseeable future. Is this a passing fad or the new normal? We’ll discuss.

And we take a few minutes to discuss a future business model that includes cloud kitchens and what Travis Kalanick of Uber fame is up to in that area.

We’ll talk about those issues and wrap it up with the legislative scorecard.

We sat down with Jonathan Gold, the Vice President of Supply Chain & Customs Policy at the National Retail Federation to talk about the President’s tariffs policy and its impact on the industry and the broader economy going forward.

We’ll talk about those issues and wrap it up with the legislative scorecard.