A bill proposed by a 1977 Marquette alumnus that would make it legal for restaurant goers in Wisconsin to take unfinished bottles of wine home from restaurants home has raced through the state Assembly and is headed to the state Senate.

The bill, AB 619, is titled "the Wine Doggy Bag Bill." It was unanimously passed by the Assembly Committee on Small Business and passed on the Assembly floor with no opposition, according to Eric Bott, legislative assistant to Rep. Karl Van Roy (R-Howard) .

The bill has received little or no opposition in every stage of its life until this point, according to Bott. As a result, he said he expects the bill to encounter a similar lack of opposition in its hearing before the Senate.

No hearing or voting date has been set.

He cited the fact that during a recent town meeting to discuss the bill "not a single person showed up to testify against it" as proof the bill has a strong following.

Rep. Don Pridemore (R-Hartford), who proposed the bill, said the driving force behind was the requests of multiple private business owners asking him to sponsor such a bill.

In addition, Bott said the desire to boost the sales of restaurants and small businesses as a major factor in the creation of the bill.

The bill has received the backing of the Wisconsin Restaurant Association.

Tracy Kosbau, director of marketing and public relations for the association , said the bill would eliminate the pressure for people to finish a bottle of wine and would discourage them from drinking more than they should.

Kosbau said she does not see any negative effects as a result of the bill.

Some people in the restaurant business, however, said the bill is not necessary.

Joseph Megna, general manager of Mimma's Café , 1307 E. Brady St. , said he sees no reason for the bill.

Wine is one of Mimma's top sellers, according to Megna. Mimma's sells between 350,000 and 500,000 cases of wine each year, he said.

Megna said he rarely sees customers not finished the bottles they order.

"At our restaurant 99.9 percent of people finish their wine at the table, and if they don't most people take it home anyway," he said. "I didn't even know it was illegal.

"We've just always cautioned our customers to put (the wine) in the trunk of their car," he said.

Megna said the Assembly is wasting its time on such a small issue.

"What affects our sales is the guy who is afraid of being accused of drunk driving, so he only has one or two drinks," he said. " Our major problem is not the unfinished bottles of wine, but rather the drunk driving levels."

Mothers Against Drunk Driving Wisconsin has decided to stay neutral on the subject.

"We're not supporting or formally opposing the bill," said Kari Kinnard, executive director of MADD Wisconsin. "We do not see a direct link in reducing alcohol-related crashes, injuries or fatalities as a result of this legislation."

The next step for the bill is for it to be brought before the state Senate. Once inside the Senate, the bill will be sent to a committee, which will hold a public hearing to discuss the proposal before bringing it to a vote, according to Bott.

Pridemore said a vote on the proposal could be scheduled for later this week. If passed, the bill could become a law as early as this winter or as late as next spring, Bott said.