Title: An act relating to sports entertainment facility liquor licenses.

Brief Description: Regulating sports entertainment facility liquor license fees.

Sponsors: Senators Rockefeller and Kohl-Welles.

Brief History:

Committee Activity: Labor, Commerce, Research & Development: 1/17/06, 1/24/06 [DP].

SENATE COMMITTEE ON LABOR, COMMERCE, RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT

Majority Report: Do pass.Signed by Senators Kohl-Welles, Chair; Franklin, Vice Chair; Parlette, Ranking Minority Member; Brown, Honeyford and Keiser.

Staff: Jennifer Strus (786-7316)

Background: Currently, sports entertainment facilities must have an appropriate liquor license to sell beer, wine or spirits at retail to be consumed on the premises. The appropriate license is called a sports/entertainment facility license. The cost of the license is $2500 per year.

Summary of Bill: An entity which provides food and beverage service for a small public or private sports entertainment facility in which baseball is played and which seats fewer than 5000 persons and is operational for not more than 3 months a year shall pay $350 per year for a sports/entertainment facility license.

Appropriation: None.

Fiscal Note: Available.

Committee/Commission/Task Force Created: No.

Effective Date: Ninety days after adjournment of session in which bill is passed.

Testimony For: There are a number of semi-professional baseball teams around the state that are comprised of college baseball players who want the opportunity to play semi-pro baseball. These teams put on baseball games just like the minor leagues do. It costs about $70,000 to $80,000 a season to field the team and filling the stands is critical to keeping these teams viable. Being able to obtain the proper liquor license at a lower fee to sell beer in the stands for the short time these teams operate would be helpful to their continued viability.

Testimony Against: None.

Who Testified: PRO: Senator Phil Rockefeller, Prime Sponsor; Rick Smith, Part-owner and General Manager of the Kitsap Blue Jackets; Charles Cates, Concessionare/Director, Kitsap Blue Jackets.

CON: No one.