Request By:
Ms. Mary Ann Delaney
Assistant Commissioner of Law
Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government
Departmet of Law
136 Walnut Street
Lexington, Ky 40507
Opinion
Opinion By: Steven L. Beshear, Attorney General; By: Suzanne Guss, Assistant Attorney General
This is in response to your request for an opinion of this office as to the latest closing hour for Sunday sale of distilled spirits and wine by the drink, pursuant to KRS 244.295(3).
KRS 244.295(1) provides that in any county with an urban county government, no premises licensed to sell distilled spirits or wine at retail shall be permitted to remain open between midnight and 8 a.m. or during the twenty-four hours of a Sunary. Subsection (1) provides an exception to the rule above, stating that the legislative body of an urban county government shall have "the exclusive right and power," by ordinance, to establish the times in which distilled spirits and wine may be sold within its boundaries. The only limitation upon the power of an urban county government to establish such times is also set forth in subsection (1): no distilled spirits or wine may be sold in any portion of a county containing an urban county government during the twenty-four (24) hours between 6 a.m. Sunday and 6 a.m. Monday, except as provided in subsections (2) and (3).
Subsection (2) permits a county-wide local option election on the question of Sunday sales by the drink in accordance with KRS 242.020 to KRS 242.040 and KRS 242.060 to KRS 242.120. Under the petition method sales by the drink would be permitted throughout the county between 1 p.m. and midnight on Sunday.
Subsection (3) provides an alternative method for introducing Sunday sale by the drink. The legislative body of an urban county government may by resolution or ordinance submit to the electorate a proposal to permit the sale of distilled spirits and wine by the drink on Sunday between 1 p.m. until a closing hour designated in the proposal by hotele, motels, convention centers, restaurants and commercial airports which are appropriately licensed and which meet the seating capacity and gross income requirements set by the statute.
Clearly, under the method provided by subsection (2) the latest closing hour must be midnight on Sunday. However, the method permitted by subsection (3) imposes no such closing hour restriction and the legislative body is free to designate, in a proposal submitted to the electorate, any closing hour it deems appropriate.
We trust this information has satisfactorily answered your inquiry. If you have additional inquiries, please contact us.