A bill that will require Anheuser-Busch to sell its minority stake in Chicago's City Beverage has passed the Illinois Senate. Anheuser and the Illinois Liquor Control Commission have been involved in a string of litigation on this issue since the commission blocked the world's largest brewer from acquiring City Beverage in 2010. The matter was sent to the General Assembly for clarification.
Most states regulate alcohol sales through a "three-tier system," designed to separate manufacturing, distribution and retail sales among distinct business interests.
In a statement, Sen. Tony Munoz said the bill "reaffirms Illinois' policy and the state's regulatory structure that manufacturers of beer, including out-of-state brewers, are prohibited from holding a distributor's license, from owning any ownership interest in a distributorship and from exercising vertical integration between a manufacturer of beer and a distributor or importing distributor through any ownership interest or through control of the distributor or importing distributor."
The Illinois House had passed the bill in April. Upon receipt from the General Assembly, Gov. Pat Quinn will have 60 days to sign the bill. Anheuser has until January 2015 to sell its stake in City Beverage, its largest local distributor.
