As of Sunday the taps will be flowing in bars across Iowa. In Texas, not so much.
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds has lifted her order keeping bars closed in Johnson and Story counties as of Oct. 4, Siouxlandproud.com reported. They were the last two counties in the state with bar-closure orders due to COVID-19.
In August, Reynolds closed bars in six counties - Black Hawk, Dallas, Johnson, Linn, Polk, and Story - as COVID-19 cases rose with the return of college students. She lifted the restrictions on four of those counties, leaving only Johnson and Story.
Story County has the 49th lowest two-week positivity rate in the state, the story said. Johnson County had the 82nd lowest positivity rate over the last two weeks.
“Restaurants in Johnson and Story counties, like bars and restaurants in all other counties, must also continue to follow other mitigation measures,” the governor said in a news release. “This includes the requirements to ensure 6 feet of physical distance between each group or individual dining or drinking; to ensure all patrons have a seat at a table or bar and consume alcohol or food while seated, and to limit congregating together closer than 6 feet.”
In Texas, Gov. Greg Abbott issued an order Sept. 17 that said, “Only restaurants that have less than 51% of their gross receipts from the sale of alcoholic beverages, and whose customers eat or drink only while seated, may offer dine-in services.”
It further said, “People shall not visit bars or similar establishments that hold a permit from the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission [TABC] and are not restaurants as defined above.”
Bars are allowed to the offer drive-thru, pickup or delivery options for food and drink, according to the governor’s order.
While Abbott allowed retail stores, restaurants and office buildings to expand to 75% capacity, he was not ready to reopen bars, saying they are “nationally recognized as COVID-spreading locations,” the Texas Tribune reported.
The COVID-19 shutdown severely damaged the Texas economy, possibly for the long term, according to a study by the Texas Recovery Alliance.
“Many Texas businesses face the prospect of permanent closure and, therefore, the prospect for our state to suffer longer-term economic and reputational damage under policies that allow less than full economic activity,” the group said.
