The New Mexico Restaurant Association is lobbying for the passage of Senate Bill 121, which would exempt restaurants from having to pay taxes for the food and drinks they serve.

Sponsored by state Sen. Michael Padilla, the bill is in the Senate Tax, Business, and Transportation Committee. Many restaurants support the passage of the bill as they work to recover from the pandemic and deal with rising inflation, according to a KOB report.

A recent NMRA survey found 80% of restaurants increased their menu prices and 49% reduced their hours of operation. Restaurants have also dealt with staff shortages and supply chain issues.

“Getting people to come back to work has been hard,” Marie Coleman, owner of Church Street Café, told KOB. “We’ve had to close one day a week. A lot of restaurants are either closed one or two days a week. We had to cut our hours, and a lot of restaurants did that too. Food is getting outrageous, I’m sure you’ve seen the cost of eggs at the grocery store.”

Some 600 restaurants in New Mexico received assistance from the Restaurant Revitalization Fund during the pandemic, KOB reported. The aid helped those restaurants stay open.

“Not all the restaurants here in New Mexico received that fund, and we’re still struggling getting people to work,” Coleman said. “I’m just hoping that maybe things will start to level out.”

The passage of Senate Bill 121 just may bring some aid to New Mexico’s restaurant community.