MI: More Michigan gas stations than ever licensed to sell beer and wine
By Emily Lawler
July 4, 2017
LANSING, MI — Changes making it easier for gas stations to get a license to sell beer and wine resulted in a deluge of applications to Michigan Liquor Control Commission earlier this year and 567 new license approvals.
It was two bills that laid the groundwork for more gas stations to sell beer and wine. The first, House bill 4895 of 2016, loosened the requirements for gas stations seeking Specially Designated Merchant, or SDM, licenses allowing them to sell beer and wine.
Under the old rules, most gas stations had to sell the alcohol at least 50 feet from the gas pumps, maintain an inventory of merchandise other than alcohol and gas totalling $250,000 and be located in a shopping center.
The new law shrunk that 50 feet to five, expanded a provision letting some gas stations maintain only $10,000 in merchandise and allowed retailers to expand their beer and wine licenses to a nearby secondary location with fuel pumps.
And then Senate bill 929 created a cap on beer and wine licenses, stipulating one could be issued per 1,000 people in a city, incorporated village or township. But it also gave gas stations a 60-day free-for-all, meaning they could apply without regard for the 1-per-1,000 quota starting Jan. 4.
The Michigan Liquor Control Commission typically approves 975 licenses allowing establishments to sell beer and wine per year, according to information provided by the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs.
But as of mid-June they’d issued 567 specifically under the section allowing gas stations to bypass the quota. And 1,191 businesses have applied for SDM licenses under that portion of the act.
During the committee process last year, Dan Papineau, director of government relations for the Associated Food and Petroleum Dealers, which represents a broad array of groceries, convenience stores and gas stations, testified in support of Senate bill 929.
“We believe SB 929 creates a fair and level playing field for all of our members to compete in whether they are a gas station, convenience store, supermarket, etc.,” Papineau said in written testimony.
“Eliminating arbitrary criteria for a gas station to meet in order to sell beer and wine makes sense.”
But Mike Tobias, a member of the steering committee for the group Michigan Alcohol Policy Promoting Health and Safety, said a greater number of licenses could lead to more societal harm.
“We’re very concerned about the expansion of licenses. We feel there’s too many already, and certainly we don’t need any more,” Tobias said.