After historic changes to the alcohol industry took effect in October, legislators and retailers are seeking additional changes.
Two concerns for the industry this legislative session are restrictions placed on who is allowed in liquor stores, as well as what can be sold at golf courses and marinas.
Minors currently are not allowed in liquor stores, a point of frustration for many liquor store owners. At the golf courses and marinas, the disappearance of 3.2 alcohol-by-weight beer in the state limits the quantity of beer a golfer or boater can purchase under current laws.
Some liquor store owners are frustrated because State Question 792, which passed in 2016, allowed for the sale of most full-strength beers and wine in convenience stores and grocery stores but did not amend the restrictions on minors entering a traditional liquor store. Business owners contend adults seeking wine or strong beer may opt to shop at a grocery store if they are accompanied by their children. This hurts business, and is the reason House Bills 2325 and 2404, as well as Senate Bill 820, include language allowing children to enter liquor stores in the company of adults.
“It does solve a bit of a problem for liquor stores because people come and leave their kids unattended in a car, and we have to remind them they can’t leave their kids unattended in the car,” Byron’s Liquor Warehouse General
Manager Blake Cody said.
Sen. Stephanie Bice, R-Oklahoma City, authored SB 820, but is also hoping the legislature can solve the golf and marina conundrum.
Under current legal definitions, beer that is not 3.2 ABW is considered an alcoholic beverage the same as spirits.
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