INDIANAPOLIS — Happy hour could be coming to Indiana bars and restaurants.
Currently, if an establishment wants to offer drink specials, they have to offer them all day long. But happy hour supporters say it would be a way to help retailers boost sales, specifically during slow hours.
If House Bill 1086 is passed, businesses could reduce drink prices for up to four hours a day, but less than 15 hours in a week. Happy hours would not be allowed to take place between 10 p.m. and 3 a.m.
According to our partners at the Capital Chronicle, the bill also proposes to legalize carry-out alcohol.
The to-go beverages would have to be placed in containers of less than four quarts that can be sealed by bartenders or restaurant staff. The bags would also have to show when they've been tampered with and would have to have a label noting that they contain alcohol.
“We see this as a modern trend of how consumers want their products ready to go, including cocktails,” Blake Fogelsong of Clancy’s Hospitality told the Capital Chronicle.
HB 1086 also requires liquor liability insurance or an endorsement with coverage of at least $500,000 to obtain or renew a retailer's permit.
The bill, authored by Rep. Jake Teshka, R-District 7, passed out of committee with a 12-1 vote, moving on to the full House. The only vote against came from Rep. Matt Lehman, R-Berne, who said the bill’s language could allow retailers to pour half-drunk cocktails in to-go containers.
“I think we’ve got to be careful,” he said.
According to the Capital Chronicle, a representative from the Alcohol & Tobacco Commission confirmed the bill didn’t “expressly prohibit that possibility.”