A state lawmaker wants New York's open container laws repealed for the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Assemblyman Robert Carroll has proposed a temporary repeal of regulations that prohibit drinking alcoholic beverages in public.

Carroll - a Brooklyn Democrat - says it should be lawful for New Yorkers to possess open containers and to consume alcohol in public.

The assemblyman noted that open consumption of alcohol is permitted in many places around the world. He indicated enforcement of open container rules in New York is inconsistent.

Restaurants in New York are being permitted to sell alcoholic drinks to-go during the pandemic.

Carroll said it's "inevitable that the police will disproportionately enforce the open container laws on the young and black and brown New Yorkers" if the regulations aren't revised.