The Racine Journal Times editorial page writes:
So how did this silly piece of legislation come to be? The original law change was simple enough: It extended the hours a winery could stay open from 9 p.m. to midnight. A nice clean bill change. The intent was to allow wineries — which have grown in number in Wisconsin from 13 in 2000 to more than 131 last year — to stay open later for wedding receptions.
But, as with all things Wisconsin when it comes to regulating alcohol licensing, an amendment was added, with the support of the Wisconsin Tavern League, to require private properties that rent space for parties to obtain a liquor license. That was a protectionist bit of language that was aimed at ending competition to taverns from wedding receptions held in barns that had no liquor license, according to news reports.
The Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty then pointed out that the language would also apply to homeowners who rent homes or parking spaces for tailgating at Badgers, Packers and Brewers games — and also could ban alcohol consumption in the parking lots at Lambeau Field and Miller Park.
That’s a lot of slip between the cup and the lip.