Bill Summary – FastDemocracy

OHIO LEGISLATIVE SERVICE COMMISSION
                                               Office of Research                              Legislative Budget
        www.lsc.ohio.gov                         and Drafting                                        Office
                             S.B. 320                                Bill Analysis
                  135th   General Assembly
                                                                      Click here for S.B. 320’s Fiscal Note
Version: As Introduced
Primary Sponsor: Sen. DeMora
Effective date:
Jeff Grim, Research Analyst
                                                          SUMMARY
                   ▪ Requires an owner or employee of an agency liquor store, at the time of the retail sale
                          of a bottle of allocated spirituous liquor, to open and reseal the bottle.
                   ▪ Prohibits a person from consuming a bottle of allocated spirituous liquor until the bottle
                          is opened and resealed as required under the bill, and subjects a person who violates
                          the prohibition to civil penalties established via rules adopted by the Liquor Control
                          Commission.
                   ▪ Specifies that “a bottle of allocated spirituous liquor” is a bottle of spirituous liquor in
                          high demand that is sold in Ohio in limited quantities.
                   ▪ Requires the Commission to adopt rules that establish an appropriate and effective
                          method of resealing a bottle of spirituous liquor.
                   ▪ Exempts from the Opened Container Law a bottle of spirituous liquor purchased from an
                          agency store if specified criteria are met, including the bottle is open for resealing in
                          accordance with rules, and no spirituous liquor has been consumed or otherwise
                          removed from the bottle prior to resealing.
                                                DETAILED ANALYSIS
Opening and resealing of spirituous liquor bottles
         The bill requires an owner or employee of an agency liquor store,1 at the time of the
retail sale of a bottle of allocated spirituous liquor, to do both of the following:
1 The owner of an agency liquor store has a contract with the state to sell spirituous liquor for
off-premises consumption. An agency store can be a stand-alone store or part of a larger grocery store.
                                                                                                              November 7, 2024
Office of Research and Drafting                  LSC                           Legislative Budget Office
      1. Open the bottle of spirituous liquor that is sold; and
      2. Reseal the opened bottle in accordance with rules adopted by the Liquor Control
         Commission under the bill.
        A “bottle of allocated spirituous liquor” is a bottle of spirituous liquor to which both of
the following apply:
      1. It is sold by the manufacturer to the Division of Liquor Control for retail sale at agency
         stores; and
      2. The brand and type of the bottle of spirituous liquor is sold to the Division only in
         limited quantities such that there is a high demand for the bottle as determined by the
         Division.
      The bill prohibits a person from consuming a bottle of spirituous liquor until the bottle is
opened and resealed as required under the bill.
      The Liquor Control Commission must adopt rules in accordance with the Administrative
Procedures Act establishing both of the following:
      1. An appropriate and effective method of resealing a bottle of spirituous liquor for the
         bill’s purposes; and
      2. Civil penalties for violating the above prohibition. The amount of the civil penalties must
         not exceed $2,000 per violation.
        The bill exempts the rules from continuing law requirements concerning reductions in
regulatory restrictions. Currently, the Commission must take actions to reduce regulatory
restrictions, including, by June 30, 2025, reducing the amount of regulatory restrictions
contained in an inventory created in 2019 in accordance with a statutory schedule.
A ”regulatory restriction” is any part of an administrative rule that requires or prohibits an
action.2
    Opened Container Law exemption
       The bill exempts from the Opened Container Law a bottle of spirituous liquor purchased
from an agency store if either of the following apply:
      1. The bottle is open for resealing in accordance with rules adopted under the bill, and no
         spirituous liquor has been consumed or otherwise removed from the bottle prior to
         resealing; or
      2. The bottle is securely resealed in accordance with those rules and has not subsequently
         been opened after resealing.3
2   R.C. 4301.73.
3   R.C. 4301.62(K).
P a g e |2                                                                                     S.B. 320
                                                                                         As Introduced
Office of Research and Drafting         LSC                 Legislative Budget Office
                                      HISTORY
                             Action                        Date
Introduced                                      10-31-24
ANSB320IN-135/sb
P a g e |3                                                                  S.B. 320
                                                                      As Introduced
Statutes affected: 
As Introduced: 4301.62