Read first time 01/31/2007.   Referred to Committee on Labor, Commerce, Research & Development.

     AN ACT Relating to wine and beer tasting; creating a new section; and providing an expiration date.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   (1) The liquor control board shall establish a pilot project to allow beer and wine tasting in grocery stores licensed under RCW 66.24.360.
     (a) The pilot project shall consist of thirty locations with at least six tastings to be conducted at each location between October 1, 2008, and September 30, 2009. However, no licensee may hold more than one tasting per month during the project period.
     (b) The pilot project locations shall be determined by the board and must be equally allocated between independently owned grocery stores and national chain grocery stores.
     (c) Licensees chosen to participate in the pilot project must meet the following criteria:
     (i) Their primary activity is the retail sale of grocery products for off-premises consumption; and
     (ii) They operate a fully enclosed retail area encompassing at least nine thousand square feet.
     (d) Tasting activities of licensees under this section are subject to RCW 66.28.010 and 66.28.040 and the cost of sampling may not be borne, directly or indirectly, by any liquor manufacturer, importer, or distributor.
     (e) A "tasting" may be conducted under the following conditions:
     (i) Each sample must be two ounces or less, up to a total of four ounces, per customer;
     (ii) No more than one sample of any single brand and type of beer or wine may be provided to a customer during any one visit to the premises; and
     (iii) The licensee must have food available for the tasting participants.
     (f) The service area and facilities must be located within the licensee's fully enclosed retail area, and must be of a size and design such that the licensee can observe and control persons in the area to ensure that persons under twenty-one years of age and obviously intoxicated persons cannot possess or consume alcohol. Customers must remain in the service area while consuming samples.
     (g) The licensee may only advertise the tasting event within the store.
     (h) All other criteria needed to establish and monitor the pilot project shall be determined by the board.
     (i) The board shall report on the pilot project to the appropriate committees of the legislature by December 1, 2009.
     (2) The liquor control board shall adopt rules to implement this section. The rules must include a requirement that employees of licensees under RCW 66.24.360 and 66.24.371 who are involved in tasting activities complete a board-approved limited alcohol server training program that addresses only those subjects reasonably related to the licensees' tasting activities.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 2   This act expires December 1, 2009.