Brief Summary of Bill

Allows certain special occasion licensees, who hold an event on the fairgrounds of an agricultural fair, to allow the consumption of alcohol within the entire fair venue, under specified conditions.
Requires the Liquor and Cannabis Board to adopt rules setting the criteria and conditions for the issuance of a new fairgrounds endorsement.

Background: Special Occasion Licenses. A not-for-profit society or organization that obtains a special occasion liquor license may sell spirits, beer, and wine by the individual glass to be consumed on the premises. If an organization gets prior permission from the Liquor and Cannabis Board (LCB), the licensee may also sell:

spirits, beer, or wine in original, unopened containers for off-premises consumption; and
wine in unopened bottles for on-premises consumption.

The special occasion license permits the licensee to serve liquor at a specified event, on a specified date and place. The sale, service, and consumption of spirits, beer, and wine must be confined to specified premises or designated areas only. All liquor sold under the special occasion license must be purchased from a licensee of the LCB.

The fee for the special occasion license is $60 per day and the organization is generally limited to sales on no more than 12 single-day events per year.

Agricultural Fairs. Agricultural fairs are fairs or exhibitions intended to promote agriculture by including, among other things, a balanced variety of exhibits of livestock and agricultural products. Agricultural fairs are divided into four categories:

area fairs are organized to serve an area larger than one county;
county and district fairs are organized to serve the interests of certain single counties;
community fairs are organized primarily to serve a smaller area than an area fair or county fair; and
youth shows and fairs serve three or more counties, educate and train rural youth, and are approved by Washington State University or the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction.

Summary of Bill: A special occasion licensee who holds certain special events on the fairgrounds of an agricultural fair may allow the consumption of alcohol within the entire fair venue, if the following conditions are met:

the licensee has obtained a fairground endorsement from the LCB that allows the use of the entire venue or a designated portion of the venue for the consumption of alcohol;
the fairgrounds or designated area for the special event is enclosed by fencing;
access to the fairground or designated area is controlled; and
the event primarily caters to adult patrons and may not include such events as state fairs or agricultural fairs.

The LCB must adopt rules setting the criteria and conditions that must be met in order to issue a fairgrounds endorsement.

The new provisions do not limit any existing right or benefit currently authorized or provided to special events or special occasion license holders.

Staff Summary of Public Testimony: PRO: This bill does not concern the state fairs, but is intended for other events that are held on the fairgrounds. It would allow a patron to walk around within the enclosed areas with an alcoholic beverage. The bill only applies to events that primarily cater to adults. The fairgrounds in Puyallup cater to 160 other events per year and the fairs rely on the rental income to support the fair events. The bill would be limited to contained areas that would allow patrons to carry their beverages between multiple building sites, hosted by one event. This is a convenience for the attendees who would otherwise be forced to drink or dump their beverage before walking to the next building, where they could buy another beverage. We are not seeking to expand the consumption of alcohol.

CON: A recent study concluded that there is not a safe level of alcohol consumption. We need to carefully evaluate all legislation that expands alcohol access and promotion. Not all legislation on alcohol is equally objectionable. This bill further allows alcohol in atypical situations that do not exist now and further contributes to the normalization of alcohol. These are not situations that are exclusively adults-only settings.