Gov. Bobby Jindal has signed legislation that will likely result in more resi dents washing down their popcorn or Twizzlers at movie theaters in Louisiana with a bottle of beer or a liquor drink.
Jindal's office announced Friday (June 20) the governor had signed Senate Bill 654, sponsored by Sen. J.P. Morrell, D-New Orleans, legalizing the sale of alcohol under certain conditions at movie theaters.
The law, which became allow commercial film theaters to obtain a liquor permit as long as the alcohol sales separated physically from other concessions. People under 18 must also be banned from entering the area where alcohol is sold.
The state commissioner of alcohol and tobacco control currently has discretion to issue alcohol permits to movie theaters. The law sets up a process by which any theater could apply for a permit and receive it upon meeting those requirements rather than be subject to the whim of the commissioner.
Theaters would also be required to get approval from their local government to sell alcohol.
The bill faced strong opposition during the recent Louisiana Legislative session, narrowly earning final passage in the Louisiana House of Representatives. The most vocal opponents were lawmakers representing north Louisiana or more rural parishes that tend to reflect more conservative Christian values on social issues than larger cities like New Orleans and Baton Rouge. Rep. Barry Ivey, R-Baton Rouge, though, was one of those who pushed against the bill.
AMC theaters in Baton Rouge Rouge recently took steps to obtain alcohol permits at two theaters there, a process that will likely be greatly aided with by the new law.
Five commercial movie theaters, including the AMC theaters in the New Orleans metro area, already have alcohol permits. The Theaters at Canal Place, too, sell alcohol but isn't included in the list because it bans attendance of minors. In the New Orleans area, AMC movie theaters in Elmwood, on Clearview Avenue and on the West Bank sell alcohol. A theater in Lafayette and one in Houma also sell alcohol, according to Rep. Jeff Arnold, R-Algiers, who carried the bill for Morrell.
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