Lawmakers Want To Change Ind. Booze Laws

(Indianapolis, Ind.) – Some Indiana lawmakers are taking another shot at repealing Indiana’s law barring alcohol sales on Sunday.

State Representatives Phil Boots (R-Crawfordsville) and Cindy Noe (R-Indianapolis) say they will introduce two pieces of legislation next month - one for Sunday sales and another to allow cold beer sales of Indiana-brewed beer.

They each call Indiana’s alcohol laws “outdated.”

“I have listened to Hoosiers who want greater shopping convenience, expanded buying choices and more competitive pricing,” Boots said.

“These bills are a win for consumers and a win for small business since they would be able to sell their Indiana brewed beer in more retail locations,” said Noe.

The bills are part of a new push for reforms by the Alliance of Responsible Alcohol Retailers, an organization comprised of convenience, drug, and grocery stores.

A similar effort to allow Sunday sales failed during the 2011 legislative session. A group representing smaller liquor stores lobbied to keep the status quo.

“In past years our legislation for the sale of all cold beer was vigorously opposed by the liquor stores interested in protecting their government enabled monopoly,” said Grant Monahan, president of the Indiana Retail Council. “What we have done this time is propose legislation that is both good for consumers and good for small business owners.”

Indiana is one of 13 states which do not permit carry-out alcohol sales on the Sabbath.

In southeast Indiana, Hoosiers have the option of crossing into Ohio or Kentucky to purchase alcohol on a Sunday. The ARRA claims Indiana loses about $129 million in retail gains and $9 million in tax revenue each year to those states.

The group claims to have gathered 53,000 signatures in support of changing the alcohol laws.