The alcohol laws of Missouri are among the most permissive in the United States. Missouri is known throughout the Midwest for its largely laissez-faire approach to alcohol regulation, in sharp contrast to the very strict alcohol laws of some of its neighbors, like Kansas and Oklahoma.
History of Missouri alcohol laws
Nicknamed the "Show Me State",Missouri Secretary of State - State Archives - Origin of "Show Me" slogan this tendency always has been readily visible with regard to the state's alcohol laws. Missouri's laissez-faire approach to alcohol regulation also stems from its position as the leading alcohol-producing state in America, well known for wine production in the Missouri Rhineland and for beer production in St. Louis by Anheuser-Busch, which produces Budweiser. Anheuser-Busch is the principal advocate of keeping Missouri's alcohol laws as lax as they are."Anheuser ends opposition to .08 in Missouri," Modern Brewery Age, January 22, 2001
These laws have generally always been this way. During the height of the temperance movement in the late-19th century and early-20th century before nationwide prohibition, Missouri never implemented its own statewide prohibition.Kenneth H. Winn, "It All Adds Up: Reform and the Erosion of Representative Government in Missouri, 1900-2000," published by the Missouri Secretary of State On the contrary, the voters of Missouri rejected prohibition in three separate initiative elections in 1910, 1912, and 1918.Ira M. Wasserman, "Prohibition and Ethno-Cultural Conflict: the Missouri Prohibition Referendum of 1918," Social Science Quarterly, Volume 70, pp. 886-901. When temperance crusader Carrie A. Nation entered a bar in Kansas City in April 1901 and began to smash liquor bottles with her hatchet, she was promptly arrested and fined $500 ($17,844 in 2023 dollarsThe Inflation Calculator ), which her judge stayed as long as she agreed to leave Missouri and never return."Mrs. Nation Barred from Kansas City," The New York Times (April 16, 1901) The Missouri General Assembly did ratify the 18th Amendment in 1919, but only after it already had received enough previous ratifications to become part of the Constitution.
During Prohibition, political boss Tom Pendergast ensured that the national prohibition law would not affect Kansas City's liquor industry and saloons.Allan May, "The History of the Kansas City Family," Crime Magazine, October 10, 2002 Kansas City's federal prosecutor, who was on Pendergast's payroll, never brought a single felony prosecution under the Volstead Act. Effectively, thanks to Pendergast, prohibition did not affect Kansas City. This atmosphere led the editor of the Omaha World-Herald to remark, "If you want to see some sin, forget about Paris. Go to Kansas City."
An 1857 Missouri statute left all liquor regulation to localities, including the question whether to go dry, except the collection of licensing fees."Anti-saloonists win: St. Louis must close her saloons on Sunday", 'The New York Times', May 8, 1888 As a result, despite the lack of statewide prohibition, by the end of nationwide prohibition in 1934 half of Missouri's counties had gone dry. Immediately, though, Missouri enacted its first Liquor Control Law, which repealed and superseded those local laws.11 CSR § 70-1.010(1) (Missouri Secretary of State - Code of State Regulations)Annotations to Mo. Rev. Stat § 311.010 This was the first time Missouri had any statewide control of liquor."For Missouri Prohibition; Senate Passes Resolution Submitting Constitutional Amendment to People", The New York Times, May 6, 1909 Today, Missouri has no dry jurisdictions whatsoever.
Before state alcohol regulation began in 1934, many Missouri cities, including both St. Louis and Kansas City, had banned Sunday liquor sales."Kansas City Lid Padlocked: Not a Saloon Opened on Sunday Either on the Missouri or Kansas Side", The New York Times, July 2, 1906 Missouri's original 1934 Liquor Control Law prohibited Sunday sales of beverages with more than 5% alcohol by volume, but this restriction was lifted entirely in 1975.Missouri Attorney General's Opinion 39-77
For 2013, the annual "Freedom in the 50 States" study prepared by the Mercatus Center at George Mason University ranked Missouri third in the nation in alcohol freedom, noting Missouri's "alcohol regime is one of the least restrictive in the United States, with no blue laws and taxes well below average."
What constitutes "intoxicating liquor" Unlike many states, the alcohol laws of Missouri do not differentiate between types of alcohol based on the percentage of alcohol in a given beverage. Missouri's Liquor Control LawMo. Rev. Stat. Chapter 311 covers any "alcohol for beverage purposes, alcohol, spiritous, vinous, fermented, malt, or other liquors, or combination of liquors, a part of which is spiritous, vinous, or fermented, and all preparations or mixtures for beverage purposes, containing in excess of one-half of one percent by volume."Mo. Rev. Stat. § 311.020 Thus, the Liquor Control Law covers any type of alcoholic beverage which contains more than 0.5% alcohol by volume.
Until 2009 there was a separate regulation for beer containing at least 0.5% alcohol by volume and at most 3.2% alcohol by weight, which was classified as "nonintoxicating beer" (rather than a liquor) and was subject to a separate law from the Liquor Control Law.Mo. Rev. Stat Chapter 312 For a long time, however, the Nonintoxicating Beer Law was rarely invoked, as the Liquor Control Law's permissive sale provisions for any alcoholic beverage made so-called "three-two beer" a rarity in Missouri. The Missouri General Assembly repealed it in August 2009. The Liquor Control Law now controls all alcoholic beverages containing more than 0.5% alcohol by volume.
Any beverage containing less than 0.5% alcohol by volume (including low alcohol beer) is expressly exempt from all alcohol regulation in Missouri (including age restrictions), and is subject only to ordinary food safety laws.Mo. Rev. Stat. § 312.020
Liquor sales Off-premises sales
Missouri has no specific state limitations on the places where alcohol may be sold "off-premises" (i.e. for consumption elsewhere). As a result, Missouri is famous in the region for grocery stores, drug stores, and even gas stations throughout the state which sell a wide variety of beer, wine, and liquor. As long as it is not located within of a school or church,Mo. Rev. Stat. § 311.080 virtually any retail business (including a vague and undefined "general merchandise store") which obtains the proper licenses from the Division of Alcohol and Tobacco Control and local authorities may sell any type of alcohol.Mo. Rev. Stat. § 311.200 State law even forbids a local option and prohibits cities and counties from banning the off-premises sale of alcohol.Mo. Rev. Stat. § 311.170
Missouri does, however, limit the hours of retail alcohol sales to between 1:30 AM and 6:30 AM Monday through Saturday,Mo. Rev. Stat. § 311.290 and – for an additional license fee – between 1:30 AM and 6:30 AM on Sunday (beginning August 28, 2021).Mo. Rev. Stat. § 311.293
Most municipalities, including St. LouisCity of St. Louis Rev. Code of Ordinances §§ 14.03.030-040 and Kansas CityKansas City Code of Ordinances §§ 10-333 and 10-104 have enacted local laws following the state law, which prohibit the retail sale of liquor between 1:30 AM and 6:30 AM Tuesday through Saturday, and between midnight on Sunday and 9:00 AM the following morning. Sunday hours were changed to the same hours as weekdays on August 28, 2021.
No Missouri law prohibits establishments from holding both off-premises and on-premises licenses. As a result, some businesses are licensed to sell liquor both "by the drink" (individually for consumption on premises) and "by the package" (by the container for consumption off premises). Effectively, these are bars which double as liquor stores. In these places, off-premises sales are allowed until 1:30 a.m., even in those in St. Louis and Kansas City specially licensed to serve liquor by the drink until 3:00 a.m. (on-premises sales may continue until 3:00, but off-premises sales must cease by 1:30).
On-premises sales Generally, the hours for sales of liquor by the drink (for consumption on the premises) are the same as liquor by the package: between 6:00 AM and 1:30 AM Monday through Sunday, State law allows incorporated cities to prohibit the on-premises sale of liquor by public referendum,Mo. Rev. Stat. § 311.110 although no city in Missouri ever has held such a referendum. The on-premises sale of liquor is allowed throughout the state, without any limitation except for the hours when sale is permitted.
Since 1981, properly licensed establishments with certain levels of annual revenue in Kansas City,Mo. Rev. Stat. § 311.174 Jackson County, North Kansas City, St. Louis,Mo. Rev. Stat. § 311.176 and St. Louis CountyMo. Rev. Stat. § 311.178 have been permitted to sell liquor by the drink between 6:00 AM and 3:00 AM Mondays through Sunday.
Shipping Except for wine, Missouri places no limitations on the interstate shipping of alcohol into the state, as long the alcohol is in a quantity less than five gallons, has been lawfully manufactured in its source jurisdiction, and is shipped to a person who is at least 21 years of age.Mo. Rev. Stat. § 311.410Mo. Rev. Stat. § 311.420 There are no quantity limits whatsoever for shipments which are entirely within Missouri or which are made by licensed Missouri alcohol retailers.
Bulk shipments To ship alcohol into Missouri in quantities greater than five gallons, both the commercial carrier doing the shipping and the sender itself must obtain a "transporter's license" from the Missouri Department of Revenue and pay the necessary licensing fees. Additionally, for such shipments, the commercial carrier must be generally licensed to do business by the Department of Economic Development. In practice, ordinary commercial shippers like FedEx and UPS have the necessary licenses.
Special regulations for wine shipments An alcohol retailer licensed in Missouri or in any other state which has similar, "reciprocal" wine-shipping laws may ship up to two cases of wine each year to any Missouri resident over the age of 21, provided that the wine is for personal use and not for resale.Mo. Rev. Stat. § 311.462 Such a delivery is deemed not to be a sale in Missouri.
Missouri allows wine manufacturers licensed in any state to obtain a "wine direct shipper license" from the Division of Alcohol and Tobacco Control, which allows them to ship up to two cases of wine per month directly to any individual in Missouri who is at least 21 years old.Mo. Rev. Stat. § 311.185 Unlike shipments under the "reciprocal" provision, for shipments under this provision, the wine manufacturer must use a licensed alcohol carrier.
Open container Driving