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BOSTON (WBZ NewsRadio) — The pandemic-era rules that allow outdoor dining at restaurants and getting cocktails-to-go in Massachusetts are set to expire this spring, but the state legislature could save them.
The rules are being debated as part of Governor Charlie Baker's $1.6 billion budget bill.
If the rules make it though the legislative process unscathed, outdoor dining and cocktails-to-go would be extended through the spring of 2023.
House Budget Chairman State Rep. Aaron Michlewitz said many restaurant owners have been helped by the measures.
"I've heard from many of my colleagues...that this has been something that has been an important piece to keeping restaurants alive during the pandemic," he said.
Michlewitz also said the legislature was considering making the changes permanent.
Right now, outdoor dining will expire on April 1, and to-go cocktails will lapse on May 1.
WBZ's James Rojas (@JamesRojasNews) has more:
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