Sale of beer and wine at MTSU sporting events passes House
By Sam Stockard
April 26, 2018
MTSU took a step toward tapping kegs for campus sporting events as the state House of Representatives passed legislation Monday enabling the university to sell alcoholic beverages during ball games.
The House voted 50-38 Monday in favor of legislation giving MTSU and Tennessee State University the option to offer wine and beer during football, baseball, basketball and soccer games at facilities on campus. The Senate approved the measure last week 25-4, but it will have to return for another vote because it contains an amendment, unrelated to MTSU, prohibiting statewide liquor stores from opening and grocery stores from selling wine on Christmas, Easter and Thanksgiving.
The measure reverses a previous House 45-35 vote to kill legislation by state Rep. Pat Marsh allowing MTSU to set up a mechanism for beer and wine sales at sporting events. The new bill is sponsored by Republican Sen. Frank Nicely in the Senate, where it was amended by Murfreesboro Sen. Bill Ketron, and carried by Democratic Rep. Rick Staples of Knoxville in the House.
Beer and wine sales at MTSU events are estimated to bring in $25,600 annually to the state’s general fund and $20,900 each year to local coffers, according to a fiscal review.
Marsh, who previously represented a portion of Rutherford County, was the only House member other than Staples who spoke in favor of the legislation.
“I agree with Rep. Staples, this is a great bill,” Marsh said, noting he believes TSU and MTSU should have the right to sell alcohol on campus and control consumption. The universities could end the practice if it doesn’t work out, he said.
State permits and licenses will be required for the alcohol sales, and MTSU and TSU will have to manage the situation, Marsh added. TSU would limit customers 21 and older to two drinks, according to Staples.
Reps. Bryan Terry and Dawn White, both Murfreesboro Republicans, voted for the bill, while Rep. Mike Sparks, a Smyrna Republican, voted against it. Rep. Tim Rudd, a Murfreesboro Republican, was present but did not vote.
The House voted down a move by Republican Rep. Matthew Hill of East Tennessee to send the bill back through the House committee system. Hill argued the House had defeated similar legislation already.
Rep. Jason Zachary, a Knoxville Republican, argued the Legislature would be setting a bad precedent by allowing universities to sell alcohol during sporting events. Zachary previously contended 21-year-old students would buy beer and pass it around to their underage friends at sporting events.
“We are going to open the door to all college campuses to sell alcohol,” Zachary said, adding eventually the General Assembly would allow alcohol sales in “outhouses and warehouses.”
Another opponent of the bill, Rep. Jerry Sexton, a Republican from Bean Station, said, “This is just a stepping stone to have alcohol at high school events.”
The Legislature passed a bill in 2017 allowing the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga to sell beer at its off-campus stadium. In addition, beer is sold at the Liberty Bowl where the University of Memphis plays its home games. But no universities in the state sell beer or wine at on-campus stadiums.
MTSU President Sidney McPhee and his administration, as well as the MTSU Board of Trustees, are behind the initiative, said Marsh, who noted he also has spoken with TSU officials who support the bill.