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SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- Utah's hospitality industry isn't the only group trying to loosen the state's unusual liquor regulations.
The "private club" designation for bars that serve liquor could be history. Liquor-control commissioners voted, 3-1, to start gathering information on abolishing the system.
Utah is the only state that requires patrons to fill out an application and pay a fee before entering a bar that serves liquor.
Commissioner Bobbie Coray said country clubs and fraternal groups might want to remain private, while clubs that only serve alcoholic drinks might want to end memberships.
"I've said that I've wanted to eliminate liquor laws that seem to be unreasonable," Coray said. "This should be done in (an) orderly way, having a sensitivity to people who wish to drink and those who do not want to have drinking in their environment."
If approved by the liquor board, the plan would go to the Legislature, which would have to change the law.
The proposal already has the support of Gov. Jon Huntsman, who believes the private-club system tarnishes the state's image and hurts the $6 billion tourism industry. But he doesn't have a sponsor for the bill in the Legislature, where leaders are skeptical.
Senate President John Valentine, R-Orem, contends that membership cards prevent excessive drinking, keep minors from drinking and reduce drunken driving. "We've been doing a very good job on overconsumption," he said. "I won't do anything to jeopardize that."
Bar owners and their supporters say it's nonsense to argue that filling out a form reduces alcohol consumption. They also note that someone has to be 21 to be served alcohol regardless of whether a bar is private or not.
If the effort to repeal private clubs fails in the Legislature, the Utah Hospitality Association says it will continue to try to put the issue on the ballot in 2010. The association is the primary trade group for Utah bars.
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
