Wine and liquor may soon be sold in package and grocery stores on Sunday. If passed by lawmakers, "Seven Day Sales" could become active on July 1, 2018.
If passed, it would also allow for the sale of liquor and wine on holidays. In other words, the government would not longer be able to tell package stores when they could or couldn't sell liquor or wine, according to Senator Ketron.
Under present law:
(1) No retailer may sell or give away any alcoholic beverage between 11:00 p.m. on Saturday and 8:00 a.m. on Monday of each week. Also, no retail store may sell, give away or otherwise dispense alcoholic beverages except between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 11:00 p.m. on Monday through Saturday. The store may not be open to the general public except during regular business hours. Likewise, all retail liquor stores must be closed for business on Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day;
(2) No retailer may sell or give away any alcoholic beverages on the following holidays: Christmas, Thanksgiving, Labor Day, New Year's Day and the Fourth of July; and
(3) The above provisions also apply to the sale of wine in licensed retail food establishments.
This bill deletes the above provisions and instead provides that a retailer or retail food establishment licensed to sell wine may sell, give away, or otherwise dispense alcoholic beverages or wine, as applicable, only during the hours during which beer may be sold, given away, or otherwise dispensed for off premises consumption in the jurisdiction where the retailer or retail food store is located. Present law sets out general time frames for the sale of beer but authorizes a county, by resolution of the governing body, to extend the hours for the sale of beer.
