SOUTH JERSEY (KYW Newsradio) — Breweries currently operating under new regulations in New Jersey may soon get relief from a group of senators who have introduced a bill to scale the policies back.
The new rules for special brewery licenses went into effect July 1, limiting the number of events breweries can host and prohibiting any sort of collaboration for food service. The latest legislation would reverse both of these rules, among others.
State Sen. Vin Gopal (District 11) and several other Democrats, as well as a few Republicans, agree that these new conditions made business worse for breweries.
“Again, a brewery can only serve the beer they’re making on-site,” he explained of the current state of the rules. “They can’t serve a Heineken or Coors Light or wine or cranberry vodka or anything.”
He said the limit on the number of special events — a maximum of 25 per year — was arbitrary.
Patrons speak with their wallets, he said, and the state doesn’t need to get in the way by limiting events like open mic night, trivia and the like.
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Being able to coordinate with food trucks or restaurants is also an important part of a brewery’s business model, Gopal added, a practice that is currently restricted. He said beer-drinking customers should have more than just a few pretzels and peanuts to eat.
Republican state Sen. Michael Testa (District 1) said the restrictions don’t make a lot of sense, and he looks forward to solving this with a vote.
“We need to make it a lot more business-friendly in the state of New Jersey,” the South Jersey senator said. “We should be trying to attract more people to these businesses.”
There’s no date set yet for a vote on the bill.
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