'Brunch Bill' Would Allow Sunday Morning Cocktails in Georgia

ATLANTA, GA — The mimosas and Bloody Marys would flow more freely under new legislation proposed by a Gwinnett County lawmaker.

The legislation — being called the "Brunch Bill" under the Gold Dome — would allow restaurants and bars to serve alcohol on Sunday mornings.

Currently, state law does not allow alcoholic beverages to be served on Sundays until 12:30 p.m. Senate Bill 17, by Sen. Renee Unterman, R-Buford, would allow local governments to push that time as early as 10:30 a.m.

The bill was introduced in the Senate on Thursday. It would not impact Sunday package sales of alcohol for off-property consumption.

Unterman, who says that personally she does not drink alcohol, and other supporters note that current law allows state-owned facilities to sell alcohol earlier than 12:30 p.m. on Sundays. Expanding that right to other businesses is a matter of fairness, they say.

But opponents of the bill — versions of which have been introduced in the past by several different lawmakers — say that the 12:30 start time strikes a delicate balance with Georgia's Christian community and pushing it any earlier would be offensive.

Last year, a similar bill passed the state House of Representatives but never made it to the floor of the Senate for a vote.

The Georgia Restaurant Association estimates 4,000 restaurants in the state would benefit from the bill, which would bring in roughly $11 million in new tax revenues for the state.

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