INDIANAPOLIS | Two state lawmakers hope 2012 is the year Hoosiers finally will be allowed to purchase alcohol from retailers on Sundays and buy cold beer at places other than package liquor stores.
State Sen. Phil Boots, R-Crawfordsville, and state Rep. Cindy Noe, R-Indianapolis, announced Wednesday they will sponsor legislation when the General Assembly convenes in January authorizing Sunday carry-out alcohol sales and permitting refrigerated sales of Indiana-brewed beer at grocery, drug and convenience stores.
Similar proposals have failed in prior legislative sessions, though limiting cold beer sales to Indiana-brewed beer is a new twist Noe believes could attract enough supporters to pass.
"These bills are a win for consumers and a win for small businesses since they would be able to sell their Indiana-brewed beer in more retail locations," Noe said.
But John Livengood, president of the Indiana Association of Beverage Retailers, a group of package liquor stores, said Hoosiers are satisfied with the state's current alcohol laws.
"This legislative initiative by the big box chain stores and gas stations delivered during the holidays is like re-gifting a four-year-old fruitcake; it's something that's been around for years and nobody wants it," Livengood said. "We know that Hoosiers want alcohol to be a controlled and regulated product."
Indiana is one of 13 states that prohibit the retail sale of alcohol on Sundays. Hoosiers are allowed to purchase and drink alcohol in restaurants and bars on Sundays.
Only Indiana gives liquor stores a monopoly on retail cold beer sales.