Rows of wine bottles are pictured at a Utah Liquor and Wine Store at 300 W. Harris Avenue in Salt Lake City on Nov. 19, 2024. (Katie McKellar / Utah News Dispatch)
It came together fairly last-minute during the final days of the 2024 Utah Legislature , when lawmakers were putting the final touches on the budget.
Senate Budget Chair Jerry Stevenson, R-Layton, added a new provision into the omnibus alcohol bill for the year, HB548 , that established a new program at state liquor stores to ask customers whether they’d like to round up their purchases to donate to a state fund that supports homeless service programs across Utah.
On Tuesday, the Utah Department of Beverage Services officially launched that program in liquor and wine stores across the state.
Now, at checkout, liquor store cashiers will ask customers if they would like to round up their purchase to the nearest dollar. If they agree, their donation will go directly to the Pamela Atkinson Homeless Account , a fund named after a prominent homeless advocate . The state uses the fund to direct donations to a wide variety of homeless programs, according to state officials, including: