On Monday, May 4th, the Assembly Appropriations Committee will consider a list of bills that seek to mitigate issues that have arisen during the COVID-19 pandemic, including a directive for hospitals to permit expectant mothers to have someone accompany them during childbirth, a bill that eases restrictions on prescription drug refills, and a bill that provides relief for those who need student financial aid as a result of the coronavirus.
Included among these emergency measures is A3966 (Sponsored by Asm. Burzichelli & Asm. Freiman). The bill is not available to read online yet (as of 11:15am–I’ll keep checking) but according to the summary description, the bill authorizes premixed cocktail growlers, permits growler sales by all bar owners, and will permit home delivery of alcohol. For those who aren’t familiar: growlers are jug-sized bottles, typically holding 64 ounces of beer or some other alcoholic beverage.
The State of New Jersey sure does have some interesting priorities.
UPDATE: The bill is now available online. You can read the full text HERE. A3966 would allow NJ bars to sell distilled spirits in amounts of 16 oz or less, and mixed drinks in a container of any size, for the duration of the State of Emergency Executive Order, and for six months following the cessation of that order. In short: if Governor Murphy signs this into law, New Jerseyans can expect to enjoy home delivery of Bloody Mary’s, Cosmopolitans, and Dirty Martinis for most of what remains of 2020. Welcome to New Jersey!
