Legislature(2003 - 2004)
05/13/2003 02:20 PM Senate L&C
| Audio | Topic |
|---|
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
HB 234-BREWPUBS; ABC BOARD
CHAIR BUNDE announced HB 234 to be up for consideration.
MR. KEITH HILLIARD, staff to Representative Lesil McGuire,
sponsor of HB 234, said it does basically three things and that
there was a blank CS before the committee.
SENATOR SEEKINS moved to adopt SCSCSHB234 (L&C), version B, as
the working document. There were no objections and it was so
ordered.
MR. HILLIARD explained that the committee substitute they just
adopted establishes that the Alcohol Beverage Control (ABC)
Board under the Department of Public Safety for administration.
The department felt that the investigative responsibilities of
the ABC Board needed to be under their direction rather than the
Department of Revenue.
Second, it addresses current inconsistencies in Alaska
statute found in AS 04.111.135(d) regarding the sales
of beer by brewpubs in quantities of not more than
five gallons per day, so-called growlers.
Under current statutory language, sales of growlers
are limited to brewpubs that brew their beer on the
premises, but this restriction unfairly disadvantages
Alaskan brewpub operators who may brew their product
in one location of the state and dispense it at
another. So, we're going to remove that arbitrary
restriction. Lastly, SCSCSHB 234(L&C) extends the life
to the Alcoholic Beverage Control Board to June 30,
2007.
MS. PAT DAVIDSON, Legislative Auditor, said their report
contained eight recommendations and two of them were for
legislative changes; five were operational improvements; one was
to the Governor's Office recommending that they move faster in
keeping the board filled. There was general concurrence by the
ABC staff with the recommended operational improvements.
MS. DAVIDSON said she recommended a three-year rather than a
four-year extension that would provide for timely follow-up of
issues identified during the course of the audit. The two
statutory recommendations are first to have the ABC Board
determine the need to get investigative responsibilities for
gambling and prostitution. While the idea that when the
investigators are in the bars, they be looking for other illegal
activity is appealing from a synergistic standpoint, anytime
there is an investigation, it takes time and energy. Right now,
there was more than enough work for the ABC investigators
focusing on issues critical to the state for controlling
alcohol. Investigating prostitution and gambling expands the
scope of the work assigned to the ABC investigators, but there
was no additional funding for additional investigators and no
more time to do their job. The audit recommended that the
legislature refocus any violations on the alcohol laws of the
state.
The second recommendation was to consider whether or not the ABC
Board should be given the authority to do summary suspensions.
Those are powers that are allowed on a great many boards, like
occupational boards. In recommending that, she recognizes that
there needs to be a clear presence of an emergency, because a
summary suspension has significant economic impact on the owners
and employees of the establishment. Careful consideration would
have to be given to what constituted the emergency and be put in
regulation.
SENATOR STEVENS asked if she had seen the letter from Homer
Brewing Company.
MS. DAVIDSON answered that she had not.
SENATOR STEVENS said his concern was over verbiage regarding
brewpubs.
CHAIR BUNDE commented that the turf battles would continue on.
MR. MATT JONES, Moose's Tooth in Anchorage, said this bill seeks
to amend a drafting oversight that was made in the 1999 bill
that singled them out as the one brewpub that cannot sell
growlers.
All other brewpubs are allowed to sell growlers, but
because our brewing facility is not co-located with
our restaurant facility and the language of the 1999
bill said that growlers had to be sold where the beer
is manufactured...
All other brewpubs that are covered under a separate
section were allowed to sell their growlers where a
customer was present on the licensed premises in the
retail area. We have been the one brewpub that can't
sell their growlers to a person who is present at the
restaurant...
Representative Rokeberg said this was never the
intended consequence when he drafted this legislation
back in 1999.
2:21 p.m.
SENATOR STEVENS said he was sure Mr. Jones didn't have the
letter from Homer Brewing that said this legislation would widen
the gap between brewpub licensees and brewery licensees and
would hurt present and future breweries. He asked if he had any
comments on that issue.
MR. JONES responded said he didn't think this legislation would
change the position between brewpubs and breweries. "All it
would do is put us back in having the same bundle of rights as
all other brewpubs currently have..."
CHAIR BUNDE asked if there was a maximum gallonage he could use
off premise.
MR. JONES replied yes, that they have a total production cap and
a [indisc.] cap.
CHAIR BUNDE asked if that cap wouldn't exist for a brewery.
MR. JONES replied there is no cap for a brewery.
SENATOR SEEKINS moved to pass SCS CSHB 234(L&C), version B, from
committee with attached fiscal note and individual
recommendations. SENATORS DAVIS, FRENCH, SEEKINS, STEVENS and
BUNDE voted yea and the motion carried.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|