California restaurants ordered to remove ‘junk fees’ from customers’ bills

Thousands of California restaurants and businesses will no longer be able to add on service charges, resort fees, surcharges, or “junk fees.”

Restaurants will now be required to incorporate any fee they would have imposed into their menu prices on food, drinks, or other things being sold. Only fees that are optional, such as tipping, can be left out of the posted price. The new mandate will go into effect July 1. 

“The law is simple: the price you see is the price you pay,” California Attorney General Rob Bonta said in a statement.

If businesses are found in violation of the new mandate, customers may be entitled to “actual damages of at least $1,000.” Customer advocates are in favor of the new rule, while

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