Restaurant trade group spends $826,000 to lobby gov’t in 2nd quarter on food safety, taxes

Restaurant group spends $826K on lobbying

WASHINGTON — The National Restaurant Association spent $826,000 in the second quarter to lobby the federal government on taxes relating to restaurants, food safety regulations and other issues, according to a disclosure report.

That’s down slightly from the $840,000 that the trade group representing the nation’s restaurants spent a year earlier. But it’s up sharply from the $495,000 it spent in the first quarter.

The trade group, whose members include McDonald’s Corp. and California Pizza Kitchen Inc., also lobbied the federal government on nutrition, the budget, energy, biofuels, and immigration, according to the report filed on July 20.

In the April-through-June period, the group lobbied Congress, the Internal Revenue Service, U.S. Food & Drug Administration and the Departments of Treasury, Homeland Security, Agriculture and Health and Human Services, according to the report filed with the House clerk’s office.