Mysterious Liquor Privatization Initiative Moves Forward

This story was produced by the Oregon Journalism Project, a nonprofit newsroom covering the state.

Chief petitioners of Initiative Petition 43, which would privatize the sale of hard liquor in Oregon, crossed a key threshold June 26, when the secretary of state’s Elections Division certified their initial 1,000 signatures.

That means the Oregon Department of Justice will now craft a ballot title, the next step before the chief petitioners, David Allison and Kyle LoCascio, begin gathering the 117,173 valid signatures they’ll need to qualify for the 2026 ballot.

Neither of the deep-pocketed groups who favor privatization, the Northwest Grocery Retail Association, which funded failed efforts in the past, and United Food and Commercial Workers Local 555, is backing the initiative. The Oregon Beer & Wine Distributors Association, which has opposed previous privatization attempts and opposes this one also, is mystified by who might bankroll it.

LoCascio, who has experience gathering signatures, and Allison, a serial entrepreneur, have not yet filed to form a political action committee. Allison says the pair is merely seeking the “greater convenience” privatization could afford consumers.