$5 beers? Not next year.
State lawmakers appear set once again to reject an effort to allow discounted drink promotions in Massachusetts, after they left a proposed “happy hour” measure out of a $4 billion economic development package set for a final vote soon.
The amendment could have allowed specials on beer, wine, and cocktails before 10 p.m., so long as beverage prices do not change during the discounted period, and any promotions are advertised at least three days in advance. It would not have automatically permitted happy hour statewide but rather left it up to cities and town to opt in and design their own rules.
The amendment could have been a boon for some restaurants, which are struggling with skyrocketing labor and food costs, supporters of the notion say. But Nancy Caswell, treasurer of Mass Restaurants United and owner of the Caswell Restaurant Group, said that not enough business owners were vocally in support for lawmakers to rally around the measure.
“We’re open to having the conversation [about happy hour] in a more robust way, especially for some neighborhoods that could benefit,” she added. “But we understood the nuances would be from the perspective of liability and insurance when it comes to alcohol consumption.”
While happy hour specials are common in many parts of the country, Massachusetts in 1984 outlawed them amid heightened concerns about drunk driving. Critics argued that two-for-one beers or half-off shots had a “deleterious impact” on public safety in the Commonwealth, though the tide has begun to turn in the last decade amid growing concern about both the health of the restaurant industry and Greater Boston’s appeal to young people.
Senator Julian Cyr, a Provincetown Democrat, has sponsored bill after bill to repeal the 40-year hiatus to support restaurants and buck Massachusetts’ lackluster nightlife reputation.
“Millennials are really looking at the reality that they can’t afford a life here, and maybe they can’t have some fun either,” he told the Globe in July. “Happy hour is not a panacea, it’s not going to solve all these challenges, but it’s a good tool to help in the right direction.”
Many of the fears about drunk driving have scaled back. Since 1982, drunk driving fatalities across the country have decreased 36 percent, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
Dixon Leung, an operational partner at Wakuwaku Ramen, said happy hour could transform his restaurants in Chinatown, Harvard Square, and Waltham during the slow hours between 3 and 5 p.m.
“It would promote people coming in, attract them in the quiet hours, and boost our alcohol sales,” he said. “It would be great.”
But some businesses fear that allowing happy hour would force them to compete with bigger restaurants that can afford dizzyingly low discounted prices, said Steve Clark, president of the Massachusetts Restaurant Association. Others scarcely care about the issue.
“We’ve been having the same conversation now for probably 10 years,” he said. “It’s generally not a high priority for most restaurants, even though it gets a lot of attention when it gets brought up.”
The final version of the economic development bill does create a commission to study credit card fees, and processing particularly in the restaurant and retail industry. (Massachusetts is one of two states — alongside Connecticut — that do not let businesses pass credit card fees onto consumers.)
It all caps a busy year around all things liquor on Beacon Hill: The economic development package does now include a provision to allow noncitizens to serve as managers of record on liquor licenses across the state — a “technical change that will make a difference for a small but important group of people,” Clark added.
The State House also waived its wand over the Boston liquor landscape in the summer, electing to expand the pool of available alcohol permits in the city by 225 licenses. Most of the licenses are reserved for lower-income neighborhoods, including Mattapan, Hyde Park, and East Boston. They will be distributed starting on Dec. 6.
Diti Kohli can be reached at diti.kohli@globe.com. Follow her @ditikohli_.