A state senator and a liquor-control commissioner who routinely push for tighter regulations on booze in Utah are driving legislation that some contend would have the unintended effect of increasing the flow of free alcohol at corporate gatherings.
A little-known provision in Sen. John Valentine's comprehensive liquor bill would strip smaller convention centers of their ability to obtain licenses that enable them to regulate the sale of liquor at business conventions.
For years, such centers as The Gathering Place at Gardner Village lobbied for the licenses so that business hosts would not have to bring their own alcohol -- which resulted in free, open bars, said General Manager Shauna Lund. "And frankly, when liquor is free, people usually drink more."
Four of the five liquor control commissioners agreed with that premise and last year expanded licenses to include small convention centers. The centers, in turn, must have trained servers, meters atop bottles to measure the amount of alcohol in each drink and insurance that covers any injuries that might occur related to drinking.
But Valentine, R-Orem, did not discuss this with the four commissioners when he inserted the provision into SB187 that would allow only the state's largest facilities of 30,000 square feet or more to serve liquor at business meetings. Instead, he said he turned to Kathryn Balmforth, the only commissioner who opposed making licenses available to convention centers with the minimum standard of 600 square feet.
Liquor control commissioner Sam Granato said that if Valentine and Balmforth's measure passes, "our control over liquor at many business conventions goes out the window."
Valentine says no one mentioned that unintended consequence during legislative hearings on the broader bill. Balmforth argues that the commission's decision to issue the licenses was "outrageous" and that it opened the door for almost anyone to apply for one. She would not directly address the worries some have about Valentine's legislation.
Among her colleagues on the commission, she has found herself the lone no vote on many other issues. Hers was the only vote against abolishing club membership fees and tearing down glass partitions at bars dubbed Zion Curtains. She initially insisted that she had nothing to do with Valentine's legislation, but when pressed, she said allowed that she has with her Utah County legislative delegation "from time to time."
"I never asked the Legislature to clarify the law," she said. "I've only spoken about it, so it doesn't surprise me that the Legislature has picked up on that."
Balmforth fears that if lawmakers fail to undo her colleagues' decision to give licenses to small convention centers, such as the 8,000-square-foot Gathering Place, which can accommodate 360 guests, "anyone with a little house can call themselves a wedding reception center and qualify."
State population quotas allow for 94 convention permits. Currently, 26 licenses are available.
Four other small convention centers have been granted licenses this past year: La Caille, on 22 acres in the Little Cottonwood Canyon area of Sandy; Pierpont Place at 163 Pierpont Ave., in downtown Salt Lake City; Cucina Nassi, in the historic former Sugar House Post Office building at 2155 S. Highland Dive; and Woods on Ninth, 6775 S. 900 East, Midvale.
Before licenses were available smaller centers, Woods manager Brent Simmons said business hosts often were annoyed when he told them they had to pack in their own liquor during corporate gatherings "because they don't want the liability. We are licensed and bonded so we carry the risk."
