The hearing was scheduled to begin at 8:30 a.m. No decision has been announced yet.
A Denver district judge is hearing a case today from The Tavern League of Colorado, which is asking that a temporary restraining order be granted blocking Governor Jared Polis's "last call" order on alcohol service from continuing to be implemented.
The league, which represents 200 bars and restaurants across the state, filed a lawsuit last week against Polis and the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, shortly after the governor ordered that bars stop serving alcohol after 10 p.m., four hours earlier than what was previously allowed.
The lawsuit is still pending, but the Tavern League's first concern is this hearing, which they hope will restore last call to 2 a.m. in the meantime.
The hearing was scheduled to begin at 8:30 a.m. on Wednesday, but as of 4 p.m., no decision has yet been announced.
9News reports that several bar owners testified Wednesday morning, as well as the Tavern League's executive director, Stephanie Fransen, who testified that "upwards of 40 percent" of its members will have to permanently close within three months if no change is made.
With four fewer hours to serve alcohol to customers each night, bars and restaurants are worried about the toll that Polis's order is taking on their ability to break even, much less make a profit.
Bars and nightclubs that only serve alcohol are still completely closed, however, under Polis's order, which went into effect on July 23, restaurants and bars that serve both alcohol and food can continue serving food after 10 p.m., but not alcohol. His concern was that people in the 20-29 age group were increasingly becoming infected with COVID-19 because they were becoming inebriated and losing their inhibitions regarding social distancing. But the league says that there's no science proving that changing last call in Colorado to 10 p.m. would make a difference in COVID-19 infections.
While the order was initially expected to stay in effect for 30 days, Polis backtracked after the lawsuit filing, stating that if the infection rate in people ages 20-29 improves, he would consider adjusting the last call to midnight.
This article will be updated as soon as a decision or more information becomes available.
