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Senate committee approves bill letting restaurants in dry counties petition for entertainment districts
Summary
The Senate City, County & Local Affairs Committee passed House Bill 12-28, which lets restaurants that already hold private-club permits in dry counties petition local officials to designate entertainment districts; supporters say the measure preserves local control, while opponents warned it could undercut voter-approved 'dry' designations and raise public-safety concerns.
The Senate City, County & Local Affairs Committee voted to advance House Bill 12-28 after hearing testimony both supporting and opposing the measure.
Sponsor Senator Davis told the committee the bill simply lets restaurants in dry counties that already hold private-club permits petition their city councils to designate a contiguous outdoor area as an entertainment district. "This does not create new alcohol sales," Davis said, adding the measure does not change the liquor-license process or preempt local control.
Opponents who testified during public comment said the bill would erode the results of past local-option elections. Larry Page, director of the Arkansas Faith and Ethics Council, said the proposal ‘‘stacks one wrong on top of another’’ by enabling entertainment districts tied to private clubs and argued it would ‘‘usurp’’ county voters’ decisions to remain dry. Toni Rose of American Speaks warned that changes can come "under the radar" via council action and noted a high signature threshold to get alcohol on the ballot in some counties, which she said is 38 percent.
Theresa Baloo, who chairs the Arkansas impaired driving prevention task force and serves on the Arkansas Alcohol and Drug Abuse Coordinating Council, urged a no vote, calling the policy change "premature." Baloo cited research she said links entertainment districts in other states to increased demands on police and more alcohol-related incidents, and she told the committee the state has more than "700" private clubs that could be relevant under the bill's expansion.
Senator Davis and other supporters stressed that counties without private clubs would not be affected because there would be no entity able to petition for a district; Davis also told members that experience with entertainment districts in wet counties has not produced reported problems to date.
The committee took a motion to pass the bill and voted to advance it out of committee.
What happens next: The bill passed the committee and will move to the next stage of consideration. If enacted, local petition and city-council approval would remain necessary to create an entertainment district in a community, and the measure would not, by itself, authorize new liquor licenses.
