A bill introduced in the Tennessee Senate seeks to ban the sale of cold beer in the state.

SB2636, sponsored by Republicans Sen. Paul Rose and Rep. Ron Gant, states “a person or entity holding a beer permit issued under this chapter shall not sell refrigerated or cold beer at retail.”

According to Breaking911, the bill passed initial considerations.

“The bill will proceed to committee for further debate and possible amendments before a final vote,” Breaking911 noted.

The motivation behind the bill is to “decrease DUI incidents in the state.”

The New York Post reports:

The bill is motivated by a push to decrease DUI incidents in the state, Gant told WREG.

“We see the evidence in many accidents where alcohol is found in the car, beer cans, and beer bottles,” the politician explained.

“And we see it on the side of the road in many of our roads across the state and every county, you see the many beer bottles, beer cans that litter our highways,” he added.

In 2019, about 21.5 % of fatal traffic accidents in Tennessee involved alcohol use, according to the Tennessee Safety Resource Prosecutors.

But business owners are concerned about the bill’s potential to put a chill on their business.

“That would be very detrimental to our brewery and the beer business in general,” Andy Ashby, co-owner of Memphis Made Brewing, told WREG of the legislation.

Convenience and grocery store sales are a key part of his enterprise, Ashby explained, and shoppers largely prefer cold beer.

From The Tennessean:

Gant said a significant contributor to alcohol-related fatal crashes is the illegal consumption of beer while driving, due to the availability of cold beer being sold, which can be immediately consumed upon leaving the store.

“If you look on the side of the road across our state, you’ll see the beer cans,” Gant said. “That’s your evidence that people are drinking and driving. They’re getting that beer, that alcohol from the convenience stores.”

Another contributor, according to Gant, is bars and restaurants which serve patrons an unlimited number of alcoholic drinks without a designated driver or alternate transportation.

“What this legislation does, is if you cannot prove that you have a designated driver then this legislation would put a cap on the number of drinks that you can be served,” he said.

Gant said lawmakers will continue to work at figuring out what that cap would be, as alcohol levels differ across different alcoholic beverages.

The bill would also require the Alcoholic Beverage Commission to report to the General Assembly all statistics surrounding alcohol in Tennessee. If someone is involved in an alcohol related fatality, local law enforcement would be directed to to investigate the accident and trace where the driver obtained the alcohol.

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