A Seattle City Council committee Wednesday will discuss a proposal to continue capping fees food delivery services can charge the city’s restaurants.
In early 2020, City Hall included a cap on the fees in restrictions hoped to provide economic protections to small businesses as the COVID-19 pandemic caused lockdowns and closures. The emergency order capped the commission charged to restaurants by services like Grubhub and Postmates at 15% and mandated that 100% of gratuities be paid through to drivers, bikers, and on foot delivery contract workers the apps depend on.
The new proposal under discussion at the Economic Development, Technology and City Light Committee would continue the cap and requirements and is part of a flurry of legislative movement expected as Mayor Bruce Harrell prepares to end the official civil emergency in Seattle.
A presentation on the proposal says Minneapolis, New York City, Philadelphia, and San Francisco have already enacted laws that permanently cap delivery service fees.
The Seattle restriction would include an option for restaurants to opt in to the fees if they are offered extra services by the company.
If it passes out of committee, the full council is expected to vote on the proposal in early August with the rules hoped to go into effect before or at the lifting of the emergency status in the city.
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Given how the city council’s meddling in landlord/tenant affairs has affected that business (hint: Seattle lost 2400 single-family rental homes in just the past year), I can’t help but think their intervention here will have unintended — probably negative — consequences.
It’s just extending a policy that’s already in place, which seems to be working fine (and seems to work fine elsewhere as well). I see no shortage of delivery services operating around here. There’s no economic justification for a 30 percent delivery fee, aside from pure free-market ideology.
If someone is willing to pay it, then there is economic justification !
Yes. Much better to have the Council setting prices on private services. This policy was instituted during a crisis and there is no reason to extend it now. Aside from pure socialist meddling. And if there is no economic justification for a 30 percent delivery fee, another company will come in and offer delivery services for less. It’s called competition! And it works for so many things, including restaurants.