Yes, most liquor stores are open on Juneteenth. The federal holiday designation doesn’t require any private business to close, so privately owned liquor stores almost always keep normal hours on June 19. The main exception is a handful of states where the government itself runs the retail liquor stores, and those outlets sometimes close for the holiday.
Private Stores Set Their Own Hours
No federal law forces a retail store, restaurant, or liquor store to close on any holiday, Juneteenth included.1U.S. Department of Labor. Holiday Pay Whether a privately owned liquor store opens is a business decision. Most choose to stay open, especially because Juneteenth falls in summer and often lands on a Thursday or Friday with strong sales.
State-Run Liquor Stores May Close
About 17 states and jurisdictions use a “control” model for alcohol, where a government agency handles wholesale distribution of distilled spirits. In roughly 13 of those, the state also operates or oversees the retail stores. Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, Virginia, Utah, Alabama, and Vermont all sell spirits through government-run or government-contracted outlets rather than fully private shops.
Because these stores are staffed by state employees, they tend to follow the state government holiday calendar. If your state recognizes Juneteenth as a paid state holiday, its liquor stores are likely closed on June 19. About 28 states plus Washington, D.C. currently designate Juneteenth as an official state holiday, and that number has been growing since the federal designation in 2021.2GovInfo. Public Law 117-17 – Juneteenth National Independence Day Act Utah’s state-run liquor stores, for example, close on Juneteenth. Practice varies among the other control states; some keep normal hours even when the state broadly recognizes the holiday.
If you live in a control state, check with your state’s alcohol agency before heading out. If you live in a license state where liquor stores are privately owned, the store is almost certainly open.
Do Blue Laws Block Juneteenth Sales?
The Twenty-first Amendment gives each state broad power to regulate alcohol within its borders.3Cornell Law School. 21st Amendment, U.S. Constitution Many states use that authority to ban liquor sales on specific holidays through what are sometimes called blue laws. Those laws overwhelmingly target Christmas, Thanksgiving, New Year’s Day, Sundays, and in some places Easter or election days. Juneteenth almost never appears on these lists.
The reason is timing. Most state alcohol codes were written decades before Juneteenth became a federal holiday in 2021, and legislatures that wanted to restrict holiday sales wrote specific lists of days. A few states frame their restrictions around “state-recognized holidays” more generally, and in those places a newly recognized holiday could theoretically trigger a sales ban. That’s uncommon. In most of the country, no state law prohibits a private store from selling alcohol on June 19.
Local governments can also impose their own alcohol rules in many states. A county or city could restrict sales on days the state doesn’t. This is rare for Juneteenth, but it’s another reason to check local rules if you want certainty.
How to Check Your Store’s Hours
The fastest way to confirm depends on who owns the store:
- In control states, check the website of your state’s Alcoholic Beverage Control board or equivalent agency. These agencies post holiday closures in advance. A search for your state’s name plus “ABC” or “liquor control” will get you there.
- In license states, check the specific store’s website, Google listing, or social media page. Many stores post holiday hours a week or two ahead. Calling the store directly is still the most reliable option.
Planning a Large Purchase
Even when retail stores are open, the supply chain behind them may take the day off. Alcohol wholesalers and distributors sometimes skip deliveries on federal holidays, which can affect inventory at smaller stores. State laws governing wholesale delivery hours typically restrict deliveries on a short list of holidays, and Juneteenth usually isn’t among them. Still, if you’re buying a lot for a Juneteenth gathering, picking it up a day or two early avoids any risk that a store ran low on a specific product because its distributor skipped the week.