COVID 19 Tax Relief For Restaurants ?
Not so ---
In
a 4 PM press conference on Tuesday, March 17, Governor McMaster announced a
plan to help curb the spread of COVID 19 in South Carolina which included the involuntary
closure of all restaurants. In the same
press conference, he also required the South Carolina Department of Revenue to
extend tax deadlines until June 1st--- “That is
to file and to pay all state taxes, including income taxes, business taxes,
sales taxes for small, as well as large businesses”. Governor McMaster
said and further explained the intent, “The idea behind the extension is to
allow businesses to maintain their cash flow during the crisis and pay their
employees”. My interpretation
offered me the opportunity to continue to use the cash on hand to pay expenses
that are critical to continuing operation after the two week moratorium, expenses
such as liability insurance and equipment repair.
Today, on Thursday, March 19, two days AFTER the
Governors announcement, I received an email with a special announcement from
SCDOR regarding the COVID 19 Tax Relief.
One day before the monthly sales tax is due and two days after the
Governor’s announcement, the special announcement from SCDOR stated the following, “This tax relief does not affect returns and tax
payments that are due in March. These deadlines still apply.”
Seriously? March? As in March, 2020? During the two weeks that we are complying
with closure? Either the SCDOR has gone
rogue, totally ignoring the “requirement” not “request” (also in the words of
the Governor) to extend ALL tax deadlines to June 1, or one of these parties
has made a mistake. How does extending
deadlines for April and May help restaurants with cash flow NOW. It is NOW and for the next two weeks that
there will be no revenue. Surely this was
not the intent.
As an
independent small restaurant owner who is forced to comply with an order to
close, I did so without malice or hesitation knowing how critical the situation
is and praying for success. And it
was with relief that I heard the Governor’s requirement regarding tax filing
and payment --- a message of a tax extension that would help us all carry on. Specializing in “clean” food, alternative
proteins, tableside service and fine wine, it is highly unlikely that our
restaurant will have any revenue from take-out. So now, because SCDOR is choosing to ignore
the Governor’s “requirement” to extend the deadline on ALL taxes due, or the
Governor forgot to say all taxes due AFTER April 1, I have a difficult choice
to be made --- file and pay sales tax
due to SCDOR tomorrow or pay my loyal and irreplaceable employees tomorrow. Hmmm, what would you do?
Eat Smart, Feel
Good!
Chef Angela
Note:
According to
the National Restaurant Association, there are approximately 10,000 restaurants
and 200,000 restaurant employees in South Carolina. Those restaurants contribute sales tax on approximately
10 billion dollars in yearly sales. Tomorrow,
many of the 10,000 restaurants will be required to file and pay sales tax.
