LEGISLATIVE NEWS

On Tuesday, Jan. 17, NFA Secretary Matt Herridge had dinner with Rep. Alex Mooney who represents the state of West Virginia and will be running for Sen. Manchin’s seat in the next election. Herridge and Mooney met at one of Herridge’s BURGER KING® restaurants for a meal and conversation.

“Alex and I made a connection over the last election cycle,” Herridge said. “Prior to the last election, West Virginia lost population, so we went from having three House members to two, and Mooney began campaigning in my area of the state for the Republican seat. By chance, we met each other at the Capitol while I was attending a Government Relations Committee meeting. Once he learned I’m based in West Virginia, he immediately was interested in visiting my restaurants and speaking with me more.”

Mooney reached out to Herridge personally to set up the dinner, and that night, they met at Herridge’s Parkersburg restaurant.

“We shared a WHOPPER® meal, and he loves BURGER KING. We talked a lot about small business and some issues that business owners are currently facing, including the labor crisis and inflation,” Herridge said. “There are not enough workers out there, and that results in competition among the quick-service restaurant industry for the same workers. The back-and-forth furthers the inflationary income tax credit. This could incentivize people who might have taken themselves out of the workforce to rejoin, therefore expanding the pool of workers.”

“We need workers, whatever their age,” Herridge finished. “This is a bi-partisan bill, so we’re hopeful this will pass. Another issue we spoke about is the Credit Card Competition Act. I could tell this was a harder push, but I focused on the importance of competition in the free market, and he agreed with my position.”

When asked how Mooney can be a help to franchisees and small-business owners, Herridge said, “He is a free market advocate, and I believe he would be a great ally for franchisees should he win this next election and assume the Senate seat.” n

With the book