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Committee advances bill allowing independent theaters to serve limited beer and wine
Summary
A committee substitute for Senate Bill 159 would permit independent theaters to obtain a special dispensing license to sell limited quantities of beer and wine during events. Sponsors removed a $100 fee and one-year license duration from the draft and removed a requirement that alcohol be served with food.
A Senate Judiciary Committee substitute for Senate Bill 159, which would create a special license permitting independent theaters to sell beer and wine in limited amounts during screenings and events, cleared committee action after sponsors and owners described the economic benefits for small downtown theaters.
Sponsor Senator Jaramillo said the committee sub removes the earlier $100 fee and the one-year license validity requirement. “We struck out the $100 and the 1 year validity,” the sponsor said while explaining the committee substitute. The substitute also removed a requirement that service of beer or wine be tied to food sales and instead limited servings to two 12-ounce beers or two 6-ounce servings of wine per customer per event.
Alan Saniz, owner of SALA Los Alamos, described his venue as a community hub that hosts films, festivals and live performances. “It is an old movie theater ... we reopened it, did some renovations. We have a place to show new movies, but we also use the space to host multiple events,” Saniz said. He told the committee having the ability to sell beer and wine would help small venues operate events without relying on outside vendors.
Committee members reviewed the substitute language and adopted a technical amendment that strikes the licensing-fee and one-year validity lines while inserting clarifying language about who may dispense. After no objections the committee recorded a do-pass motion on the committee substitute.
Action: committee adopted the substitute with sponsor amendments and gave the bill a do-pass recommendation to the next stage of the legislative process.
