'Cocktails To Go’ Policy Gets Extended In Virginia Until 2024
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RICHMOND, VA — Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin signed two bills Monday that will extend the state’s “cocktails to go” policy until July 1, 2024. The policy allows customers to take out alcoholic beverages from restaurants and bars, or have them delivered to their homes.
At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, Virginia started allowing restaurants and bars to sell alcoholic beverages for takeout as an economic relief measure. The two bills signed by Youngkin — HB 426 and SB 254 — extend the cocktails to-go policy for another two years.
“Virginia’s bars and restaurants can rest a bit easier knowing cocktails to-go are here to stay for another two years,” David Wojnar, senior vice president and head of state public policy for the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States, said in a statement Monday.
“This revenue-generating measure has provided much-needed support for local hospitality businesses and increased convenience for Virginia’s consumers,” Wojnar said.
During the pandemic, more than 35 states, including Virginia, began allowing restaurants and bars to sell alcohol to go. Since then, 18 states and the District of Columbia enacted laws to permanently allow cocktails to-go.
Along with the District of Columbia, the states that passed legislation to make cocktails to-go permanent were Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, Iowa, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Kentucky, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Rhode Island, Texas, West Virginia and Wisconsin.
In April 2020, at the start of the pandemic, former Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam approved the delivery of mixed drinks in an effort to reduce the economic hardships felt by restaurants and other parts of the hospitality industry.
The Virginia General Assembly then passed a bill in early 2021 allowing restaurants to sell to-go alcoholic beverages and cocktails. The measure was set to end July 2022.
The bills signed by Youngkin on Monday outline several regulations that are required for both restaurants and deliverers. These include container requirements that are clearly labeled, ounce limitations, storage in a sealed container or the trunk of a car, and compliance with the Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control Authority.
This article originally appeared on the Falls Church Patch
