By Rob Moritz
Arkansas News Bureau

LITTLE ROCK — A bill that would require brewers of beer to be consistent in the prices they charge distributors across the state was endorsed by a Senate panel Tuesday.

The 5-2 vote to endorse House Bill 1807 came after lengthy debate in which the Senate Committee on State Agencies and Governmental Affairs was told that wholesalers across the state get different rates from the same brewer.

“This is about one thing … fairness,” said the bill’s sponsor, Rep. Keith Ingram, D-West Memphis. “At the end of the day, we’re trying to help the consumer.”

The bill now goes to the full Senate.

Kevin Young, a regional vice president for Anheuser-Busch Co. in St. Louis, spoke against the bill, saying it could cause the cost of beer to rise.

Young said Kansas recently approved legislation similar to HB 1807 and  that beer prices have risen in that state.

The committee also heard from several groups that provided a variety of opinions on whether the price of beer would actually go up if the bill is approved.

Sen. Bobby Glover, D-Carlisle, a member of the committee who said several major rice companies are in his district, spoke against the bill, saying it could cause the beer companies to go elsewhere for rice, a major ingredient in beer.

After the vote, Glover handed reporters a copy of a letter he has sent to the state attorney general’s office seeking an opinion on whether the bill is constitutional.

The letter asks whether the bill, which includes “price posting provisions,” could be subject to a legal challenge.

Former state Sen. Steve Higginbothom, representing the Wholesale Beer Distributors of Arkansas, testified that the price posting provisions would not be made public and would not violate federal anti-competitive provisions.