If you want to run a bar or restaurant in this town, you currently cannot advertise any temporary alcohol price reductions outside your establishment. As OLCC spokeswoman Christie Scott put it: "It could be the 'OLCC Social Hour' and still not be allowed." The idea behind the happy hour ad ban is, ostensibly, that telling people about cheap booze available in a finite time frame will encourage people to actually take you up on the offer. That kind of behavior will lead to unhealthy binge drinking. Free listings of happy hours, like here in the Mercury, are legal because they are not paid ads.
But under the new proposed rules (pdf), bars and restaurants would be allowed to advertise with the words "happy hour" as long as they do NOT mention a specific price. "Happy hour is out there, it's everywhere, it can be for food as well as alcohol," says OLCC's Jennifer Huntsman. But is it actually better for anti-binge drinking efforts to advertise a "happy hour" rather than a specific price, even though everyone translates "happy hour" as "cheap"? "To the public safety folks, yes," replies Huntsman. The OLCC board will vote on the proposed change in April.
Ah, well. Two steps forward, one step back. In other news, has anyone at the state noticed that OLCC.org links to Our Lord's Community Church? Maybe there's not much difference? (Like how PBOT.com links to a porn site written in comic sans. Har har har.)
