Texas currently requires bars to limit their indoor customer capacity at 50% and have customers socially distance with at least 6 feet between groups. The commission, however, found in an undercover investigation dubbed “Operation Safe Open” that a dozen bars were not enforcing the rules.
“Protecting the health and safety of Texans during this pandemic is our top priority,” TABC Executive Director Bentley Nettles said in a statement. “We warned businesses TABC will have no tolerance for breaking the rules, and now, some bars are paying the price. I hope other establishments will learn from these suspensions.”
The bars that have had their alcohol permits suspended for 30 days include bars in Houston, Dallas, Austin and El Paso. Others include establishments in the cities of Seabrook, Fort Worth, Lubbock and McAllen.
If the bars violate the protocols a second time, they will have their license suspended for up to 60 days, the commission added.
