Florida restaurants must begin disclosing mandatory operations charges to customers starting Wednesday.
The rule mandates all public food service establishments in the state to include a notice disclosing the amount or percentage of any operations charge that a customer is required to pay, along with an explanation of the purpose of the operations charge.
The rule was part of the Public Lodging and Public Food Service Establishments law which was passed last year, with this final section going into effect Wednesday.
It makes Florida one of the few states with a law on the books requiring such a level of bill transparency.
Starting July 1, restaurants that include an operations charge must provide a written notice of it on the food menu, written contract, website, or mobile app wherever food and beverage orders are placed. Additionally, the font must be at least the size of the menu item descriptions.
If the food establishment does not have a menu or provide table service, the notice then must be in an obvious place and clearly readable.
When customers are given a receipt, the operations charge must appear on a separate line from gratuity or sales tax “so that it is clear to the customer what is being charged.”
The few exceptions to the rule are dining plans and fixed price meals.
Uniquely, the law states that a violation does not create a private cause of action, which means a customer does not automatically get the right to sue a restaurant that fails to provide sufficient disclosure of its operations charge.
The law distinguishes operations charges from gratuities or tips. Unlike tips, which customers choose whether to leave, operations charges are mandatory fees added to the cost of food and beverages.
While other provisions of the bill related to public lodging went into effect last year, this section was put off until now giving restaurants and other food establishments a year to prepare. The other part of the law required written notice when a public lodging establishment notifies a guest they must leave for failure to checkout or pay by check-out time.