Whitmer signs bill allowing alcohol sales at college football, basketball games in Michigan
Athletic departments at Michigan State University and the University of Michigan now can catch up to their Big Ten colleagues, after Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed a bill Tuesday evening allowing public universities in Michigan to sell alcohol at college football, basketball and hockey games.
Senate Bill 247, introduced by state Sen. Sean McCann, D-Kalamazoo, allows for the licensing of all Michigan public universities to sell alcohol at football, basketball and hockey games, with sales being permitted an hour before kickoff, tip off and puck drop, and ending with the game.
Schools would be allowed to apply for licenses for 100 total days during a calendar year.
Whitmer celebrated the bill. "Authorizing the legal sale of alcohol at sporting events will bring us on equal footing with other universities, help reduce the likelihood of binge drinking before games, and bring in a heck of a lot more revenue that we can use to improve the student experience," she said in a statement. "I am proud that we are getting this done and making fall evenings at Spartan Stadium or the Big House safer and more fun."
Currently, 11 of the 12 other Big Ten schools allow alcohol sales at football games, with Nebraska being the lone exception still prohibiting sales, according to Front Office Sports. USC and UCLA, two schools joining the Big Ten next year, also sell alcoholic beverages at home football games.
Michigan Dems:Mayoral races could temporarily cost Democrats their majority in the state House
In addition to putting Michigan’s public universities on a similar playing field as their counterparts, advocates for the plan say it will lead to a decrease in binge drinking before fans get into stadiums.
McCann previously noted that alcohol has been available at some college sporting events — for those watching the game from a suite.
"These bills will help create parity and fairness with other states that currently allow alcohol to be served to patrons in college sporting venues," McCann said in a news release when SB 247 was introduced. "There is no good reason for this option to be available only for people watching the games in suites and no one else."
More:To-go cocktails allowed during COVID-19 pandemic in Michigan become permanent change
It is unclear if all of Michigan’s universities will be quite ready for alcohol sales at football games this fall — an MSU spokesperson told the Lansing State Journal the university is "committed" to putting a plan for alcohol sales in place, but it "cannot speak definitively at this time on whether we would be ready by the fall."
More:Michigan State commits to stadium alcohol sales, but timeline up in the air
The University of Michigan, meanwhile, has not said whether it will take advantage of the new opportunity to sell alcohol at its sporting venues. "At the University of Michigan, our campus leaders continue to discuss this legislation," spokesperson Rick Fitzgerald said in an email. "There has not been a decision regarding this matter."
While Senate Bill 247 gives public universities the option to apply for liquor licenses, they are under no obligation to do so. The bill passed the Senate 36-2, and the House by an 85-23 vote.
In the state Senate, Sens. Thomas Albert, R-Lowell, and Sam Singh, D-East Lansing, voted against the bill. MSU is in Singh's district. One House lawmaker, Rep. Abraham Aiyash, D-Hamtramck, questioned the necessity of alcohol sales in stadiums, noting many fans already drink, sometimes in excess, before getting to the actual game.
"You can enjoy Michigan State football or basketball, or Michigan football and basketball, with a nice glass of Coke or a bottle of water," Aiyash said when the House voted on the bill June 23. "Tailgates usually accomplish the goal of getting folks warmed up before the game.
"I would just implore my colleagues, if you really believe in the Big Ten schools here in Michigan, or all the other ancillary schools in our great state, that you just think twice before you vote today on whether or not we make our fans drunk in the middle of a beautiful sports match that so many of us enjoy here in the great state of Michigan."
One group, Michigan Alcohol Policy Promoting Health and Safety, opposed the bill, according to the House Fiscal Agency.
Universities have been allowed to obtain liquor licenses to allow alcohol sales at events they have hosted, just not for college games. At Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor, beer was sold during the 2014 NHL Winter Classic between the Detroit Red Wings and Toronto Maple Leafs, as well as a 2014 international soccer friendly between Real Madrid and Manchester United.
Contact Arpan Lobo: alobo@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @arpanlobo.
Contact Clara Hendrickson at chendrickson@freepress.com or 313-296-5743. Follow her on Twitter @clarajanehen.