State questions cover wine, hunting, taxes

MCT Direct
One of the state questions Oklahoma voters will consider would allow wine manufacturers to sell their products directly to retail stores and restaurants. State Question 743 is similar to a 2000 referendum, which passed with 78 percent of the vote.

Voters have more to decide on Nov. 4 than the next president and who will represent them in Washington: Four state questions are also on the ballot.

In previous years, voters made decisions on items like the Oklahoma Lottery and the sale of alcohol on Election Day.

If this year’s questions are approved, voters could add new sections to the Oklahoma Constitution and create new regulations for property taxes.

Voters might recognize State Question 743, which will allow wine manufacturers to sell their products directly to retail stores and restaurants, provided they produce less than 10,000 gallons of wine, about 4,500 cases, and use their own leased or owned vehicles to distribute it.

This year’s referendum is similar to one approved by voters in 2000; That measure passed with 78 percent of the vote, but in 2006 a federal court ruled that the legislation violated interstate commerce laws because it excluded out-of-state manufacturers from the process.

State representative Danny Morgan submitted the revised bill to the Oklahoma House of Representatives. He said he sat down with resellers, wholesalers and restaurants to ensure that everyone was happy with the legislation.

“We have arrived at a compromise that will work and is constitutional,” Morgan said.

He said the legislation will help wineries be price competitive by cutting out the middleman.

“This gives smaller wineries the chance to compete with larger wineries,” Morgan said.

The legislation could save consumers as much as 50 percent per bottle of wine, said Becky Brinkley, owner of Black Sheep Winery and Vineyards.

“This will help small family-owned wineries,” Brinkley said. “We hope to sell our wine in a lot more stores if this is passed.”

State Question 735 creates an exemption from personal property tax for 100 percent permanently disabled veterans. To qualify, the veteran’s disability must have occurred through military action or an accident or disease contracted while in active service. The veteran also must be the head of the household.

State Question 741 would require a person or business to file an application when requesting an exemption from property taxes. It would also prohibit individuals and businesses from retroactively filing for a property tax exemption.

State Question 742 adds a new section to the state constitution, giving Oklahoma residents the right to hunt, trap, fish and take game and fish, subject to reasonable regulation while not affecting existing laws related to property rights.

State Senator Glenn Coffee said animal rights activists in some states are trying to halt fishing by seeking legislation declaring that fish feel pain.

“To protect Oklahomans from this kind of nonsense in the future, I authored SJR 38 to ensure the protection of hunters and fishers whose rights are under attack nationwide,” Coffee said.

Chris Cox, the National Rifle Association’s chief lobbyist, said Oklahoma is blazing the trail for sportsmen in virtually every other state with this amendment.

“Question 742 will provide sportsmen a permanent defense against attacks from radical, well-funded anti-hunting zealots who want to eliminate hunting and fishing throughout the country,” Cox said.