Jack in the Box franchise owners filed a complaint with California regulators over fears the company’s restructuring could make them vulnerable to losing their leases.

The National Jack in the Box Franchisee Association said Monday it brought its concerns to the California Department of Business Oversight. The complaint asks regulators to look at Jack in the Box’s restructuring proposal to ensure franchisees rights are protected.

“The intent behind filing this complaint is to protect the tenant rights of franchisees who have invested their life savings in these buildings,” said Dan Watkins, lawyer representing the franchisee association.

The filing is the latest in an ongoing dispute between the San Diego fast food chain and the Franchisee Association, which represents 2,000 of the chain’s more than 2,200 restaurants.

Earlier this year, the association called for the ouster of Jack in the Box Chief Executive Leonard Comma over spending cuts and staff exits, particularly in marketing. The group is seeking at least one seat on the company’s board of directors.

Jack in the Box didn’t respond to an email seeking comment.

The company reported Monday that fiscal fourth quarter same store sales — a key metric in the fast-food restaurant industry — increased 0.5 percent for the quarter systemwide.

That lagged gains of other quick service sandwich restaurants by 1.5 percentage points, according to NPD Group.

In October, Jack in the Box filed a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN) notice with state officials of plans to lay off 66 workers beginning in early January — mostly in information technology, human resources, legal and supply chain jobs.

The fears of franchise owners that led to filing a complaint are complicated. Jack in the Box doesn’t own the majority of its restaurant buildings. It leases them from Real Estate Investment Trusts and other owners.

The company then sub-leases the structures to franchisees, which operate the restaurants.

In October, Jack in the Box requested that building owners transfer its leases from Jack in the Box Inc. to a newly formed subsidiary, Jack in the Box Properties LCC., according to the Franchisee Association.

The move is part of a restructuring aimed at increasing credit worthiness and securing new financing, the association contends.

If building owners decline to transfer the leases to the new subsidiary for whatever reason, that could result in the termination of the lease with Jack in the Box.

In turn the franchisee “who is running the store and who has put a bunch of money into the store” could end up losing their sub-lease, said Watkins.

“It is the approach by Jack in the Box that has franchisees concerned that they are just going to be collateral damage to any landlord who says I am not doing this,” he said.

“We are asking the state who licenses and regulates franchising and Jack in the Box Inc. to insure the franchisees are protected from losing their livelihood as well as their employees.”

For its fiscal fourth quarter, Jack in the Box posted revenue of $177.4 million and net income of $16.2 million, or 60 cents per share, under generally accepted accounting principles.

That compares with sales of $232 million and $30 million in profit for the same quarter last year. The decrease stems in part from the sale of its Qdoba Mexican restaurant chain in March 2018.

For its full fiscal year, Jack in the Box reported $870 million in revenue and net income of $121.2 million, or $4.21 per share — down from sales of $1.1 billion and earnings of $135 million the prior year.

Jack in the Box reported earnings Monday after markets closed. Its shares ended trading down 1.2 percent at $79.64 on the Nasdaq exchange.