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Hickenlooper signs new bill into law allowing grocers to sell full strength liquor by 2019

Hickenlooper signs new bill into law allowing grocers to sell full strength liquor by 2019

It’s 3 o’clock on a Tuesday afternoon and Colorado’s rich craft beer culture is in full swing. I’m sitting in a pub that sells local brews. It’s dark and noisy; a cool escape from the midday sun. Ironically, It’s 5 O’clock Somewhere is blasting from the corner jukebox. I say ironic because the crowd is drinking as if the sun has already set on a weekend night. Coloradoans don’t need an excuse to drink one of the more than 300 locally crafted beers. It’s part of our fabric. Such a big part that we rank third in the nation in the number of breweries per capita.

Today Governor John Hickenlooper, a former brewpub owner himself, signed into law a bill that could turn the state’s alcohol industry on its head. Senate Bill 197 swept through both the State House and Senate this month – on the final day of the 2016 session. The measure was brought by the Colorado Licensed Beverage Association and it’s designed to provide a compromise between grocery store chains that want to sell full strength liquor and liquor stores that fear the added competition would put many out of business.

Right now Colorado is one of only five states that does not sell full strength beer or wine in grocery stores. This measure would allow grocery stores to begin selling alcohol in 2019. They say it’s what consumers want – one-stop shopping. They’re so confident that they’re fashioning a ballot initiative for voters to decide for themselves this November. All sides agree the measure would likely pass.

Representatives for state liquor stores and micro-breweries are pushing for limited growth so they can have a chance to adapt. That’s exactly what this new bill would do. It lays out a 20-year plan for grocery and convenience stores to slowly add liquor licenses, while giving liquor stores the opportunity to buy more. If grocery chains want to expand beyond the 20 liquor licenses they will each initially be granted, they’ll need to buy them from existing liquor stores. This would allow liquor stores to either sell and move on, or have added time to position themselves to compete. By 2039, all sides would be able to own as many licenses as they want.

Independent research done by economics professors at Colorado State University show that states with grocery store liquor sales do have lower prices because of greater competition. A study out of Cornell University also shows the potential for a significant increase in tax revenue. At the same time, it estimates liquor store revenues may fall by an estimated 28%.

Paul Gatza is the director of the Boulder-based Brewers Association. While he says the association has not been asked to officially weigh in on this measure, he tells OUT FRONT Colorado that “The bill for a phased-in change is a compromise that may make no one happy, but would at least not give either side a total loss in fall.” The big question for craft brewers is what it could mean for them. Paul says right now consumers do not have “the greatest potential for choice diversity,” and he says smaller brewers may have “greater difficulty with market access.” He does, however, say that “Colorado’s vibrant craft brewer scene may not be as strong, but overall volume sales may grow slightly,” under the new legislation.

Many locally crafted beers aren’t sold in liquor stores, anyway. And some find themselves unable to keep up with demand as it is. For Broomfield resident, Steve Stroh, changes in the liquor laws won’t stop him from visiting local breweries. Sitting next to me in the increasingly crowded pub, Steve says that even with alcohol in grocery stores “I would still go out and get what I want because it’s what I prefer.” His friend, Wade Robinson agrees. While both say they would like to see full strength beer and wine in grocery stores, they say nothing can replace the hundreds of Colorado craft beers we’ve come to enjoy. Plus, Wade says, he goes to pubs to meet up with friends and “you can’t sit and have a beer with friends in a grocery store.”

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