Streatery Program and Protest Process Amendment Act of 2025

Full Bill Text

ENROLLED ORIGINAL AN ACT ___________________________ IN THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA _______________________________________ To amend Title 25 of the District of Columbia Official Code to allow a retailer with commercial street frontage at a location under the jurisdiction of the Washington Convention and Sports Authority to be licensed for a streatery, require that alcohol businesses obtain a streatery endorsement from the Alcoholic Beverage and Cannabis Board to operate a streatery, expand existing carry out and delivery license requirements to retailers with commercial street frontage at a location under the jurisdiction of the Washington Convention and Sports Authority, require streatery, summer garden, and sidewalk café endorsement and streatery license applications to undergo a 45-day public comment period, and expressly require notice and an opportunity to protest applications for streatery, summer garden, and sidewalk café endorsements and licenses. BE IT ENACTED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, That this act may be cited as the “Streatery Program Endorsements and Protest Process Amendment Act of 2025”. Sec. 2. Title 25 of the District of Columbia Official Code is amended as follows: (a) Section 25-101 is amended as follows: (1) A new paragraph (50A) is added to read as follows: “(50A) “Streatery” means the occupation of the parking lane of a roadway or use of designated parts of an alley network or travel lane used specifically for outdoor dining pursuant to a valid Streatery Permit issued by the District Department of Transportation and Certificate of Use issued by the Department of Buildings.”. (2) A new paragraph (55A) is added to read as follows: “(55A) “Washington Convention and Sports Authority food and alcohol business” means a retailer with commercial street frontage at a location under the jurisdiction of the Washington Convention and Sports Authority that sells food and is approved by the Washington Convention and Sports Authority to sell alcoholic beverages for on-premises consumption.”. (b) Section 25-113(a)(6) is amended as follows: 1 ENROLLED ORIGINAL (1) Strike the phrase “2022 and 2023” wherever it appears and insert the phrase “2022, 2023, 2024, and through December 31, 2025” in its place. (2) Subparagraph (A)(i)(II) is amended by striking the semicolon and inserting the phrase “annually with the fee for 2025 due by April 1, 2025; except, that an on-premises retailer licensee, class C/T, D/T, C/N, or D/N, or a manufacturer licensee class B, shall pay the fee for 2025 by September 30, 2025;” in its place. (3) A new subparagraph (F) is added to read as follows: “(F) After December 31, 2025, the provisions of § 25-113.01(c-1) shall apply to any establishment that wishes to sell, serve, or permit the consumption of beer, wine, or spirits to patrons on a streatery.”. (c) Section 25-113.01 is amended as follows: (1) Subsection (c) is amended to read as follows: “(c)(1) The licensee under a manufacturer’s license class A, B, or C holding an on-site sales and consumption permit or an on-premises license, class C/R, D/R, C/H, D/H, C/T, D/T, C/N, D/N, C/X, D/X, C/B, and D/B, shall obtain a sidewalk café endorsement or summer garden endorsement from the Board to be eligible to conduct business operations on a sidewalk café or summer garden, which may include the sale, service, and consumption of alcoholic beverages on outdoor public or private space. “(2) A Washington Convention and Sports Authority food and alcohol business shall obtain a sidewalk café license from the Board to be eligible to conduct business operations on a sidewalk café, which may include the sale, service, and consumption of alcoholic beverages on outdoor public space. “(3) If a licensee holding a sidewalk café or summer garden endorsement under this subsection fails to comply with the terms of this subsection or the endorsement, the Board may fine the licensee or suspend or revoke its license and may revoke the endorsement.”. (2) Subsection (c-1) is amended to read as follows: “(c-1)(1) Beginning January 1, 2026, no establishment may sell, serve, or permit the consumption of beer, wine, or spirits to patrons on a streatery without the appropriate endorsement or license provided pursuant to this subsection. “(2) The Board shall establish: “(A) A streatery endorsement for establishments licensed as on-premises retailers or manufacturers with an on-site sales and consumption permit and permitted hours for hours of operation and the sales, service, and consumption of alcoholic beverages; “(B) A streatery license for Washington Convention and Sports Authority food and beverage businesses and permitted hours for hours of operation and the sales, service, and consumption of alcoholic beverages; and “(C) A common application for establishments seeking to obtain the appropriate endorsement or license. 2 ENROLLED ORIGINAL “(3) An establishment seeking a streatery endorsement or license pursuant to this subsection shall: “(A) Demonstrate that it operates a streatery; “(B) Pay a $100 fee accompanying its application and annually thereafter by a date set by the Board; “(C) Demonstrate that the streatery is located in a commercial or mixed- use zone as defined in the District's zoning regulations; and “(D) Agree to maintain its own clearly delineated streatery that does not share tables and chairs with another business. “(4)(A) As of January 1, 2026, an establishment that registered with the Board pursuant to § 25-113(a)(6) shall be deemed to be in violation of this subsection if it continues to sell, serve, or permit the consumption of beer, wine, or spirits to patrons in outdoor spaces unless: “(i) If the establishment operates a streatery, it submits an application to the Board for the appropriate endorsement or license by December 31, 2025; or “(ii) If the establishment operates an outdoor space that qualifies as a summer garden or sidewalk café, it applies for a summer garden or sidewalk café endorsement or license, as appropriate, by December 31, 2025. “(B) An applicant that registered with the Board pursuant to § 25- 113(a)(6) and filed its application for the a streatery, summer garden, or sidewalk café endorsement or license by December 31, 2025, may continue to sell, serve, or permit the consumption of beer, wine, or spirits to patrons consistent with that registration until the Board renders a decision on its application. “(5) If a licensee holding a streatery endorsement under this subsection fails to comply with the terms of this subsection or the endorsement, the Board may fine the licensee or suspend or revoke its license and may revoke the endorsement. “(6)(A) The Board shall interpret settlement-agreement language that restricts sidewalk cafés or summer gardens as applying only to those outdoor spaces that are currently approved by the Board as sidewalk cafés or summer gardens. “(B) The Board shall not interpret settlement-agreement language that restricts or prohibits sidewalk cafés or summer gardens to apply to streateries.”. (3) Subsection (g)(1) is amended as follows: (A) Designate the existing text as subparagraph (A). (B) A new subparagraph (B) is added to read as follows: “(B) Effective January 1, 2026, a Washington Convention and Sports Authority food and alcohol business that is not already licensed pursuant to subparagraph (A) of this paragraph shall obtain a carry out and delivery license from the Board to be eligible to sell beer, wine, or spirits in closed containers to individuals for carry out, or deliver beer, wine, or spirits in closed containers to consumers in the District.”. 3 ENROLLED ORIGINAL (d) Section 25-421 is amended by adding a new subsection (a-1) is added to read as follows: “(a-1) For the purposes of subsection (a) of this section, an application for a streatery, sidewalk café, or summer garden endorsement or license shall be considered to be a substantial change in operation and subject to the notice requirements of this section.”. (e) Section 25-601 is amended by adding a new subsection (c) to read as follows: “(c) For the purposes of this section, an application for a streatery, sidewalk café, or summer garden endorsement or license shall be considered to be a substantial change in operation.”. Sec. 3. Fiscal impact statement. The Council adopts the fiscal impact statement in the committee report as the fiscal impact statement required by section 4a of the General Legislative Procedures Act of 1975, approved October 16, 2006 (120 Stat. 2038; D.C. Official Code § 1-301.47a). Sec. 4. Effective date. This act shall take effect following approval by the Mayor (or in the event of veto by the Mayor, action by the Council to override the veto) and a 30-day period of congressional review as provided in section 602(c)(1) of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, approved December 24, 1973 (87 Stat. 813; D.C. Official Code § 1-206.02(c)(1)). ___________________________________ Chairman Council of the District of Columbia _________________________________ Mayor District of Columbia 4