Ten years ago, the Salisbury City Council passed the Culinary Bill, new legislation to protect the interests of local non-franchise restaurants. Of the 120 local non-franchise restaurants in Salisbury today, 85 opened during the last ten years. Clearly the Culinary Bill has caused a surge in the number of local non-franchise restaurants operating in Salisbury over the past ten years.

Which of the following is an assumption on which the argument depends?

A:The Culinary Bill provides no benefit to restaurants that are members of national franchise chains

B:Most of the consumers in Salisbury who patronize these local restaurants are aware of the provisions of the Culinary Bill and approve of them.

C:All economic indicators suggest that household incomes in Salisbury have risen substantially over the past ten years.

D:Of the local non-franchise restaurants in Salisbury ten years ago, fewer than 85 have closed.

E:Similar legislation in similar sized cities across the country has, in most cases, led to an increase in the number of local non-franchise restaurants.