Indiana House, Senate finally pass alcohol reform bills

A batch of alcohol-law reform legislation, including allowing Sunday carryout sales for microbreweries, will go to Gov. Mitch Daniels’ desk for final approval this week.

The Senate approved amendments added by the House to Senate Enrolled Act 75 with a 28-17 vote Monday.

The legislation would give more than 30 microbreweries in Indiana the same right as farm wineries to sell their product for carryout Sundays, with a limit of 576 ounces, or 48 12-ounce beers.

Charles Stanley, marketing operations manager for Bloomington’s Upland Brewing Co., said that because Upland is mainly a wholesale brewer, it would not benefit that much from the legislation.

“As far as actual profits are concerned,” he said, “it’s not as big to us.”

Still, Stanley said he believes the bill could be positive “from a publicity aspect” and will certainly help out breweries that don’t rely on distribution as much as Upland does.

State Sen. Phil Boots, R-Crawfordsville, said the bill is a step in the right direction toward future alcohol law reform.

“It’s an expansion, but it’s not a significant expansion,” he said.

Boots authored legislation during the current General Assembly session to allow for all Sunday sales of alcohol, but his bill didn’t receive an endorsement from the Senate Public Policy Committee and never received a hearing.

Boots said he will push to allow Sunday sales again during next year’s session and plans to move his bill along with the same arguments that got Sunday sales for microbreweries to this point.

“If that’s a good economic development tool for (microbreweries), it should be a good economic development tool for retailers as well,” he said. “I think this bill helps me in trying to pass Sunday sales overall.”

Other provisions in the bill include allowing bars to stay open until 3 a.m. Monday morning instead of the current mandatory closing time of 12:30 a.m..

While changing the closing time would have a large impact on casinos and Indianapolis bars, especially during football season, it’s unlikely to affect Bloomington bars as much.

Nick’s English Hut owner Gregg Rago said his bar will not be staying open until 3 a.m. Mondays.

“We don’t even stay open until 3 a.m. on a Friday or Saturday,” he said.

While the legislation is giving Hoosiers more accessibility to alcohol, patrons should have their IDs ready.

Another provision in the bill mandates that anyone who appears to be under the age of 50 show identification.

“It’s difficult to tell whether someone is 21 or 26, so we’re just going to remove all doubt,” Boots said in a previous IDS interview. “It shouldn’t be a defense for the clerk to say, ‘I thought he looked 21.’”

The bill also repeals a law, believed to be antique by many, that prohibits the sale of alcohol while polls are open on Election Day.

Although Daniels still has the power to veto the bill, Boots said there is no indication that he will take such action.