Weekly Legislative Update
Throughout the session, there will be important moments for you to use your voice and take action on key bills. Stay up to date on these key issues by checking out our weekly Legislative Update.
Your voice can make a big difference on important bills we all care about.
January 27, 2016
On the last day of bill introduction, General Affairs Committee Chairman Tyson Larson introduced LB 1105, a liquor omnibus bill that includes a number of changes to the Nebraska Liquor Control Act that would exacerbate existing problems related to excessive alcohol consumption in our state. For more information on how to provide your comments, please see the information below.
LB 1105 includes several components, including but not limited to the following:
- Allows 16- to 18-year-olds to serve and/or sell alcohol if they have completed a certified training program, and allows all 16- to 18-year-olds to complete a transaction for the sale of alcoholic liquor if they are not handling or serving the liquor;
- Creates a Class T license for an off-sale retail licensee whose annual gross revenue from alcohol sales does not exceed 20% of the licensee's total annual gross revenue from all retail sales;
- Removes requirement that licensees located in an annexed area must reapply for a licensee to the annexing local governmental body.**
- Creates the Nebraska Craft Brewery Board and the Nebraska Beer Industry Promotional Fund to advise the Nebraska Liquor Control Commission (Commission) on all maters related to the beer industry, and to promote the Nebraska beer industry and Nebraska agricultural products for use in the beer industry;
- Redefines "club" to remove the requirement for kitchen and dining space, and for an adequate number of servants and employees for the cooking, preparation and serving of food and meals.
- Creates a manufacturer's license for the operation of up to five retail locations for the manufacture and retail sale of beer manufactured on the licensed premise for consumption on the licensed premise if the amount exceeds 20,000 barrels per year.**
- Classifies the manufacture of alcoholic liquor other than spirits without a valid license as a Class I misdemeanor for the first offense and a Class IV felony for a second or subsequent offense.**
**Changes requested by the LCC in their 2015 legislative letter.
PROMPT ACTION NEEDED: LB 1105 has already been scheduled for a hearing before the Legislature's General Affairs Committee on Monday, February 1st at 1:30 p.m. in room 1510 at the Capitol. Unfortunately, Project Extra Mile is unable to attend because we are attending a national conference for coalitions working in the substance abuse prevention field. Therefore, our state needs you to make your voice heard on behalf of Nebraska's kids and communities by providing comments or testimony during the hearing, or by emailing a letter to the Chairman of the Committee and requesting that it be included in the official transcript for LB 1105. You may also call and ask committee members to indefinitely postpone this bill. The Committee's contact information is as follows:
Phone: (402) 471-2633
Address: Room 1423, State Capitol, Lincoln NE 68509
Address: Room 1423, State Capitol, Lincoln NE 68509
Email: tlarson@leg.ne.gov
