AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 30 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO RESTAURANT RETAILER LICENSE REQUIREMENTS AND LICENSE FEES.
Summary
HB417 amends Delaware’s restaurant retailer license fee provisions in Title 30 by increasing the deduction restaurants may claim against the additional license fee imposed on aggregate gross receipts. Under current law, restaurants may deduct $100,000 each month when calculating the fee; the bill raises that monthly deduction to $250,000. For restaurants that qualify for quarterly filing because their taxable gross receipts in the lookback period do not exceed the applicable threshold, the bill similarly increases the quarterly deduction from $300,000 to $750,000.
The bill does not change the underlying license fee rate of 0.6472% or the filing structure itself, but it substantially reduces the amount of gross receipts subject to the fee for many restaurant retailers. It also preserves the rule that businesses with common ownership or common control are limited to one deduction per enterprise, and it keeps the Department of Finance’s authority to require certified statements and prescribed forms. The act takes effect January 1, 2027.
Impact
HB417 would amend § 2906 of Title 30 of the Delaware Code, directly affecting restaurant retailers subject to Delaware’s gross-receipts-based license fee. By increasing the monthly and quarterly deductions, the bill lowers the fee burden for restaurants, especially smaller and mid-sized operators whose taxable receipts fall within the deduction range. The change would reduce revenue collected under the restaurant retailer license fee provisions and would apply prospectively beginning January 1, 2027.
Sentiment
Based on the bill text and available context, the measure appears generally supportive of restaurants and small business relief, with no recorded committee transcript or vote history indicating opposition or debate. The synopsis frames the bill as a straightforward increase in deductions rather than a broader tax overhaul, suggesting a technical but favorable adjustment to existing law. Because no votes or hearing remarks are provided, there is no documented public controversy in the available record.
Contention
The main policy issue inherent in HB417 is the tradeoff between reducing tax-like fees on restaurants and decreasing state revenue from the restaurant retailer license fee. Potential points of contention would likely center on whether the larger deductions disproportionately benefit certain businesses, how the change affects state collections, and whether the common-ownership rule should continue to limit deductions to one per enterprise. However, the provided materials do not show any specific objections, amendments, or competing viewpoints.