A legislative committee said “cheers” to a bill that would allow bars to stay open later, despite concerns that the measure could lead to more drunks being on the streets in the early morning hours.

House Bill 1132 would allow cities and counties to determine for themselves whether to allow bars to stay open until 4:30 a.m - two and a half hours past the current statewide bar cutoff time of 2 a.m. Rep. Crisanta Duran, D-Denver, the bill sponsor, pointed to violent crime that occurs in downtown Denver at bar closing time, as motivation behind her bill.

Duran said that when all bars close at the same time, “drunks spill into LoDo streets.” She said that by allowing bars to stay open later, patrons will leave at 2, 3 or 4 in the morning, instead of the mass exodus that happens now.

“This has been an issue that has been ongoing in the City of Denver for a long time,” Duran told the House Local Committee.

Duran's original drafting of the bill would have allowed bars to stay open until 7 a.m. However, the bill was amended to a 4:30 cutoff at the start of the hearing. Business groups and the Colorado Restaurant Association backed the bill after Duran filed an amendment that allowed local governments to let bars stay open later, but would not give cities and counties permission to reduce bar business hours.

Duran and legislation supporters said that the 2 o'clock bar closings put a strain on police who are doing their best to patrol downtown areas. Allowing bars to stay open later could help police with crowd control, supporters said. LoDo business owner Paula Grey said that that the “2 a.m. dump of thousands of people” into downtown streets needs to come to an end.

“This bill is addressing public safety,” she said.

Not everyone agrees. Fran Lanzer, of Mothers Against Drunk Driving, said the bill could increase the number of drunks getting behind the wheel, through all hours of the night. Hannah Kenny, of Centennial, also worried about the possible dangers associated with people being able to party into the early morning hours.

“That's just terrifying to me,” she said. “I just don't see the sense from the safety perspective why they should be open later.”

The committee voted 12-1 to move the bill to a full vote in the House. The lone dissent came from Rep. Tim Dore, R-Elizabeth, who worried about people leaving bars after they close in one town, and then driving across city lines to bar hop at other watering holes that stay open later. Dore also wondered why the bill was being taken up at the Legislature, when this seems to be a problem unique to Denver.

“We've been asked here to act as the Denver City Council,” Dore said.