Good afternoon,
In the past few days, we have seen a couple of silly state laws and regulations make their way into the news.
First, we had the state Division of Health opening up a can of dog food (can of worms doesn’t sound right) by noting that our canine friends (with the exception of service dogs) are banned from restaurant decks.
The regulation has been on the books for a long time but ended up being unenforced as outdoor dining became increasingly popular.
The division under the expansive umbrella of Delaware Health and Social Services waded into the issue with a social media post pointing out that dogs were banned from all areas of restaurants.
The predictable result was an outcry from dog lovers along with support from some cranky folks who want people to keep your pets at home. A personal note: Our dog in the accompanying photo is not crazy about public places and does not have fur suited to summer dining outings.
The Facebook post that drew a thousand responses trotted out the old arguments about sanitation. Never mind, that a bigger problem seems to be unruly children with unruly parents. In one case I witnessed little tykes eating directly from the table, minus plates.
The second inexplicable piece of legislation limits the number of breweries under one owner to three.
The law means Iron Hill Brewery is now looking at Pennsylvania for a production brewery that would serve its more than two dozen restaurants in the area.
Delaware is out of the running because Iron Hill has three brewery-dining establishments in Delaware.
A bill that would end the limit failed to gain traction in the General Assembly, which moved forward on a variety of other bills that created no jobs and addressed a host of real and imagined issues.
It is likely that the dog and liquor issues will be addressed, given the economic costs of these measures.
House Speaker Pete Schwartzkopf is no longer bringing his dog to an outdoor area of a Rehoboth restaurant and expressing his unhappiness on social media.
Whether any change helps Iron Hill remains to be seen. The company may not want to wait around.
Enjoy your Tuesday and keep your eye on the weather The greatest chance for severe storms has shifted to the south.
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