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Expect to see happy hours and the option to add a cocktail to your carry-out restaurant order as soon as July, under finalized legislation approved Thursday. It now goes to the governor.
House and Senate Hoosier lawmakers were briefly at odds over the prospect of legalizing take-out alcohol — which comes in regulated to-go beverage containers — but settled their differences in a final draft both chambers overwhelmingly approved.
The bill now goes to Gov. Eric Holcomb.
Restaurants and craft manufacturers say House Bill 1086 would enable them to boost traffic during off-peak hours and cater to increasingly common consumer preferences. Opponents cautioned against an alcohol expansion, noting potential impacts on substance use disorder.
The House legislation originally included both provisions, but even members of that chamber had concerns about how the tamper-evident to-go bags, dubbed “qualified containers,” would work.
A Senate committee later ditched the language.
When the House dissented from those changes, lawmakers of both chambers headed to conference committee to negotiate a final version — which closely resembles earlier drafts.
The bill legalizes happy hours — currently, retailers must hold all-day promotions — and requires that retailers get liquor liability insurance worth at least $500,000 to obtain or renew a permit after July 1.
It revives the carry-out drink provision, but with a stipulation that the qualified containers restaurants use must be new.
Conference Committee Chair Jake Teshka, R-North Liberty, said he made the change so customers can’t bring containers back to be refilled.
And it maintains bans on retailer-hosted games that are determined by the quantity of alcohol competitors consume and on drinks as prizes — except, as added in conference committee — for drinks won in charity gambling or sold in charity auctions.
Teshka said that edit would avoid a conflict with charity-related alcoholic beverages allowances already on the books.
The House approved the finalized bill on an 80-12 vote, and the Senate on a 39-9 vote. Most votes in opposition came from Republicans breaking with their caucuses.
The Indiana Capital Chronicle is an independent, not-for-profit news organization that covers state government, policy and elections.
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