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A 1019NEW JERSEYSession 222State Billin committee

High Impact

New Jersey bill caps third-party food delivery service fees charged to restaurants at 20 percent

Original title: Limits service fees charged to restaurants by third-party food takeout and delivery applications.

Last action · January 13, 2026: Introduced, Referred to Assembly Consumer Affairs CommitteeSponsor: Balvir Singh

Bill progressHistory & official text ↓

Introduced

Committee

Floor Vote

Passed

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What This Bill Would Do

Third-party food takeout and delivery apps are prohibited from charging restaurants service fees exceeding 20 percent of an individual order's cost, or 10 percent if the order is delivered by the restaurant's own employee or direct independent contractor. The bill supersedes local municipal and county regulations and remains in effect for 24 months from enactment.

Why it matters

Local restaurants face binding fee ceilings on online delivery orders, shifting operating costs away from dining establishments and toward delivery app platforms under threat of consumer fraud penalties.

Background

Similar service fee caps were temporarily enacted during the COVID-19 pandemic under P.L.2020, c.42, but became inactive when the state of emergency ended in March 2022. context

Who It Would Affect

Groups the bill's text would affect if enacted, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.

Directly affected

restaurants

Restaurants are subject to statutory limits on the service fees third-party delivery apps can charge them.

Directly affected

third-party food takeout and delivery service applications or Internet websites

Delivery platforms are prohibited from charging service fees exceeding 20 percent or 10 percent depending on who performs the delivery.

Key Facts

Third-party food delivery apps cannot charge restaurants a service fee greater than 20 percent of the individual order's cost.
When an order is delivered by a restaurant employee or direct independent contractor, the third-party delivery service fee is capped at 10 percent of the individual order's cost.
Restaurants may voluntarily choose to pay up to 25 percent of an individual order's cost for additional advertising or other optional services.
The statute preempts and supersedes all county or municipal laws, ordinances, resolutions, or regulations regarding restaurant and third-party app relationships.

Show all 7 facts

The Director of the Division of Consumer Affairs must report to the Governor and Legislature within 24 months on the act's impact and recommend whether to make it permanent.
Violations constitute an unlawful practice under the consumer fraud act, punishable by monetary penalties of up to $10,000 for a first offense and $20,000 for subsequent offenses.
The act takes effect immediately and expires on the first day of the twenty-fifth month following the date of enactment.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the maximum service fee a third-party delivery app can charge a restaurant?

The fee is capped at 20 percent of the individual order's cost, or 10 percent if the order is delivered by the restaurant's own employee or direct independent contractor.

Can restaurants still pay more for extra advertising services?

Yes, a restaurant may choose to pay up to 25 percent of an individual order's cost to access additional advertising or other optional services offered by the application.

How long will these fee limits remain in effect?

The act takes effect immediately and expires on the first day of the twenty-fifth month following the date of enactment.

What else do you want to know?

News Coverage

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Where This Stands

Currently in committee. The next step in the legislative lifecycle is Floor Vote.

Procedural history

1 action

Jan 13, 2026HouseIntroduced
Introduced, Referred to Assembly Consumer Affairs Committee

Version history

Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.

View official text →

Lobbying Activity

No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.

Full breakdown

Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.

Discoveries

1 pattern noticed across the record

Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.

policy shift95% confidence

Re-establishment of Temporary Pandemic Regulations

This bill revives and codifies temporary fee caps that were previously tied to the COVID-19 state of emergency and expired in March 2022.

Division of Consumer Affairs

Connected Entities

Legislature, Governor, Division of Consumer Affairs and 1 more

OrganizationLegislature“Receives the impact report from the Director of the Division of Consumer Affairs”Map →

PersonGovernor“Receives the impact report from the Director of the Division of Consumer Affairs”Map →

OrganizationDivision of Consumer Affairs“Director required to report on the impact of the act within 24 months.”Map →

PersonAttorney General“May issue cease and desist orders for violations of the consumer fraud act.”Map →

Sources

Open source document

njleg.state.nj.us

Analysis Score

0–100

Significance75
How much this matters to a regular citizen
Controversy60
Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
Entertainment10
Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
Buzz40
Current news / social attention level

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