North Carolina Alcohol Social Districts
What are alcohol social districts?
In September of 2021 , NC passed a law (HB890) that allowed local city and county governments to
create alcohol social districts. Alcohol social districts loosen restrictions for pedestrians carrying open
alcohol containers away from on-premises alcohol outlets (bars and restaurants) where the beverage was
purchased. Alcohol social districts require signage denoting boundaries, responsible consumption messages
on cups, Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) licensure, clearly defined days and hours of operation, and posted
maps and signage at boundaries. While alcohol social districts must create management and maintenance
plans, enforcement in practice may vary widely. They are typically a few blocks within a city but vary widely in
size and structure.
Potential public health concerns include the possibility that over time these alcohol social districts could
indirectly impact other alcohol environment dynamics, including increasing the number or concentration of
places that sell alcohol, expanding hours of sale, more alcohol promotions, and increasing exposure of youth
and adults to advertising and cultural normalization of alcohol use. However, there are not currently data
available to confirm or refute these concerns.
According to our recent assessment 25% of NC counties already have alcohol social districts in one or
more of their cities (see map) as of February 2023.
Alcohol Social Districts in North Carolina
County has social district
Has social district
No social district
Includes n=31 social districts, representing 25 counties. Cities with social
districts in red, 100 largest NC cities as black dots.
(Also see: https://impactcarolina.ora/alcohol/)
Why should we care?
Changes to alcohol policy can have immediate and long-term measurable public health impacts. Changes like
increasing hours of sale, increased street level advertising, or adding more alcohol selling businesses in an
area can lead to increases in alcohol-related car crashes, chronic diseases, violent crime, and deaths. These
changes enable greater access and easier excessive alcohol consumption by adults and youth. These health
impacts also have high social costs. Excessive alcohol use costs1 North Carolina nearly $10 billion dollars at
the last estimate in lost productivity, healthcare costs, criminal justice expenses, and motor vehicle crash costs.
1 Gora Combs, K., Fliss, M. D., Knuth,
К. В.,
Cox, M. E., & Trangenstein, P. J. (2022). The societal cost of excessive drinking in North
Carolina, 2017. North Carolina Medical Journal, 83(3), 214-220. https://doi.Org/10.18043/ncm.83.3.214
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