Alcoholic Beverages in Oregon - Legislative History

Legislative History

Oregon has been regulating alcohol through its laws for over 150 years. In 1844, the Oregon Territory voted to prohibit alcoholic beverages. This is often referred to as the first prohibition in the United States. The law was repealed in 1845. From 1845 to 1915, various local laws governing alcohol were passed. In 1915, Oregonians voted to ban all alcohol, preceding national alcohol prohibition by four years.

In 1933, national prohibition ended with a repeal of the Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. Oregon's governor, Julius Meier, appointed Dr. William S. Knox to study the situation. Knox recommended adopting the Canadian system of sales of alcohol by the state. The reasoning was that this would provide revenue and lower alcohol abuse.

The Oregon Legislative Assembly held a special session and the OLCC was created days after the repeal of national prohibition. Eighteen states in total chose to regulate alcohol. Oregon Revised Statutes Chapters 471, 472, 473 and 474 were the commission's enabling statutes. OAR Chapter 845 governed its administrative rules. The OLCC's mission is "to effectively regulate the sale, distribution, and responsible use of alcoholic beverages in order to protect Oregon's public health, safety and community livability."

In 1939, the advertising of hard liquor on billboards and in newspapers was voluntarily discontinued. Also, in 1939, a "club bill" was passed by the Legislative Assembly. The bill gave regulatory power to the OLCC over hotels, restaurants and private clubs where liquor was served. Lobbyists then succeeded in having the bill referred to the voters in 1940. Voters passed the bill in 1940.

In 1944, the "Burke Bill" became law: wines with more than 14% alcohol could only be sold by Commission stores and agencies. Also in the 1940s, a "service bars" license was established. This restricted liquor licenses to establishments serving food. In 1949, the Legislative Assembly approved a method where establishments that sold liquor could ask for proof of age from patrons they thought were under the age of 21. Measure 15—passed in 1952—amended the Constitution (Article I, section 39) to regulate the sale of liquor by the individual glass.

Five more types of licenses were created in the 1950s, dealing with liquor-by-the-drink operations, industry agents, salesmen, out-of-state manufacturers of malt beverages, and conventions, group meetings, etc. In 1960, establishments were required to have food sales equal to 25% of their total sales. In the 1970s, the OLCC began enforcing the Oregon Bottle Bill and wines of up to 20% alcohol became allowed with certain licenses. In the 1980s, the number of OLCC commissioners was changed from three to five, to reflect the number of congressional districts. The 1990s saw a flurry of laws passed governing the OLCC's oversight of the newly numerous Oregon wineries and microbreweries. House Bill 4028–passed in 2002–allowed liquor stores to operate in Sunday; they had previously been restricted to six days a week.

This sort of licensing is very important for maintaining safe production and sales of alcoholic beverages in Oregon. Under Oregon law, specifically ORS 471.565, bars and restaurants can be held legally responsible for any damages to property or injuries incurred when an intoxicated person is served alcohol and causes a car crash. In these circumstances, the victim (or the victim's family in cases of death), can file a Dram Shop Notice for compensation.