Wednesday, February 4, 2009
The Kansas House and Senate will soon vote on a new bill allowing supermarkets and convenience stores to sell beer with higher alcohol content.
A hearing for those supporting the bill starts today at 10:30 a.m. at the state capitol. The opposition will have a public hearing tomorrow at 10:30 a.m. at the same location.
Tim Webly, St. Louis senior, said the law would be a good change because some people didn’t realize they were buying weaker beer.
“They go to a gas station and think they’re getting full-strength beer,” Webly said, “when they’re really getting piss-water.”
The proposed bill would enable grocery and convenience stores to sell 4 percent beer by weight instead of 3.2.
Currently, Kansas allows supermarkets and convenience stores to sell only 3.2 beer, which is beer containing 3.2 percent alcohol by weight or 4 percent by volume. The origin of 3.2 beer comes from the Blaine Act.
Months before prohibition ended in 1933, the Blaine Act was approved by the U.S. Senate. The Blaine Act allowed the sale of 3.2 beer as a non-intoxicating liquor and was labeled a cereal malt beverage.
After prohibition ended, Kansas wanted to remain a dry state and continued to sell only 3.2 beer, which anyone 18 years and older could drink. Kansas later repealed its dry status in 1948, allowing full-strength beer and liquor to those 21 years of age and older, while those aged 18 to 20 could still purchase 3.2 beer. In 1985, the state raised the drinking age to 21 to prevent the loss of federal highway funding.
Ken Holloway, Miami junior, said no one would buy convenience store beer because liquor stores were allowed to sell full strength beer.
Holloway said he hoped the bill passed because it would be easier for him to get beer.
Alex Melville, Rochester, N.Y., junior, said he would still go to the liquor store for beer because it was closer to his house.
“With the state of the economy, you can’t go far on gas, you know,” Melville said.
Jon Smiley, owner of Cork and Barrel, 2000 W. 23rd St., said the bill was hard to take seriously because similar bills had been proposed each year.
“I’ll deal with it if and when it ever does happen,” Smiley said.
Jeff Jensen, owner of Jensen Liquor, 620 W. Ninth St., agreed that there had been many similar bills in the past, but said for bills to be proposed so many times, someone had to sponsor them.
“They will just keep sponsoring them until they win,” Jensen said.
Jensen said that if the bill were passed it would have an adverse effect on his business, but he said he could still compete because of the alcoholic selection liquor stores offered.
“You never get quite the selection that you do in a liquor store,” Jensen said. “People looking for interesting beers would still have to come to a liquor store.”
Joe Hagger, Overland Park graduate student, agreed with Jensen’s logic.
“I primarily go to the liquor store just for selection purposes,” he said. Hagger said he preferred imported beers, which were not carried by many convenience or grocery stores.
— — Edited by Chris Hickerson
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Bill may make grocery beer stronger
I don't think the bill will make the beer stronger...
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