Lawmakers May Scotch Booze Plan

Lawmakers are taking a wait-and-see approach while the Liquor Control Board considers whether to allow sports fans to consume liquor in their seats in Washington’s major sports arenas.

Lawmakers have mixed feelings about mixed drinks, with some opposing any rule that increases boozing while others question the current practice of distinguishing between beer and spirits.

But for the most part, they’re content with letting the liquor board continue to gather public comment at hearings scheduled in Spokane, Tacoma and Yakima in the next six weeks.

“I know the Liquor Control Board is uneasy with the proposal, and I think I’d wait for them to study the issue and decide if they need the Legislature to clarify the intent,” House Majority Leader Barbara Lisk, R-Zillah, said Friday.

The liquor board, acting on legislation approved in 1996, is creating a special “Class R” license that applies to “sports entertainment” stadiums. The law allows the board to impose reasonable restrictions and requirements, such as when and where alcohol may be sold and consumed and whether food must be available as well.

Stadiums already can sell spirits in enclosed clubs and private boxes, while beer is hawked by vendors roaming the stands.

But stadium operators and sports teams have asked the board to allow fans to enjoy spirits at their seats as well. They aren’t seeking permission to have vendors peddle spirits in the stands as they do beer and other refreshments.

The proposed changes would allow liquor to be consumed in the stands at the Kingdome and KeyArena and in the new baseball and football stadiums in Seattle. It also would affect the sale of liquor at the Tacoma Dome, Emerald Downs Race Track in Auburn, the Yakima Sundome, the Spokane Arena and the Tri-Cities Coliseum in Kennewick.

Although the licensing bill cleared the Legislature on votes of 45-0 in the Senate and 93-3 in the House, some lawmakers said it was never their intent to expand access to alcohol at such family events as a Seattle Mariners baseball game.

“I don’t believe it was the Legislature’s intent to allow open stadium liquor sales,” said Senate Law and Justice Committee Chairwoman Pam Roach, an Auburn Republican who’s pushing a package of bills aimed at curbing drunken driving. The horse track was the only exception she could think of.

Sen. Margarita Prentice, D-Seattle, is adamantly opposed to the rule and said she wouldn’t mind taking another look at the 1996 legislation “and seeing if we goofed.”

“Any one of us who attends events at these arenas knows traffic is horrible, and the last thing you want is an increased number of drunks on the road,” Prentice said. “I’ve sat and watched people have more beers than they really ought to have, and I’ve wondered about them driving home.”

However, two committee leaders said they have no plans to intervene in the liquor board’s work, despite personal concerns.

“I don’t think they need liquor in stadiums. Beer is bad enough,” said Sen. Bob McCaslin, a Spokane Valley Republican and chairman of the Senate Government Operations Committee. He said he might look into the issue next year, if necessary.

The following fields overflowed: CREDIT = Hunter T. George Associated Press