Restaurants begin push to make alcohol-to-go permanent in Texas

by Maritza Salazar

Fri, June 19th 2020, 3:30 PM UTC

NEW YORK, NY - MARCH 19: Cocktails are for sale to go at Dudley's bar and restaurant in Manhattan as the Coronavirus, COVID19, outbreak continued unabated on March 19, 2020 in New York City. Bars and restaurants were closed by the city days ago but are allowed to sell food and now alcohol to go. The economic situation in the city continued to decline as more businesses closed their doors and New York weighed a shelter in place order for the entire city. (Photo by Victor J. Blue/Getty Images)

SAN ANTONIO — Texas restaurant leaders say they've started the campaign to make alcohol-to-go permanent in Texas.

The Texas Restaurant Association announced in a letter on Thursday that it has submitted a proposal to Governor Greg Abbott's office to expand the current waiver that allows customers to get alcoholic drinks when they order food in the drive-thru or at curbside.

The current waiver, however, is temporary. It was put in place to help restaurants drum up business at the drive-thru and at curbside when they were forced to shut down over the COVID-19 pandemic.

Governor Abbott has previously said he would support a permanent alcohol-to-go measure, tweeting in late April, "We may just let this keep on going forever. #txlege"

The Texas Legislature could very well consider alcohol-to-go when the next legislative session convenes next year.

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