JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- A state senator wants to force Missouri stores to sell warm beer.

Under a bill by Sen. Bill Alter, grocery and convenience stores would risk losing their liquor licenses if they sold beer colder than 60 degrees. The intent is to cut down on drunken driving by making it less tempting to pop open a beer after leaving the store.

"The only reason why beer would need to be cold is so that it can be consumed right away," Alter, who has been a police offer for more than 20 years, said Thursday.

He said the idea came from a fifth-grade student in Jefferson County who was participating in a program to teach elementary students about state government. He sought their suggestions for new laws and chose the cold beer ban from a list of the top three ideas.

"I thought it had the best chance at getting legislative attention," said Alter, R-High Ridge. "Plus, I think it's a good idea whether or not other people do."

Some lawmakers and lobbyists, however, are lukewarm about the idea.

Ron Leone, executive vice president for the Missouri Petroleum Marketers and Convenience Store Association, said the combination of Missouri's drinking and driving laws and designated driver programs already have curbed the number of people who drink and drive.

"It would be an inconvenience for law-abiding citizens who want to purchase cold beer for picnics, parties and social gatherings," he said. "People who want to drive drunk will drive drunk anyway."

Leone said he didn't know if there was a standard temperature at which beer is sold, but added that most refrigerators are set in the mid-to-low 40s.

'Just Ludicrous'

KMBC's Jim Flink reported that some Missouri business owners had a strong reaction to the plan.

"My first reaction is that's just absolutely ridiculous -- just ludicrous," said Bob Sullivan, with Boulevard Brewing Company. "It's as ridiculous as the idea of prohibition."

"We can't, in all honesty, think it would have any impact whatsoever," said Maj. Roger Yates, with the Clay County Sheriff's Department. "Our information, from drivers who've been stopped for DUI, is that they were drinking at a friend's house, at a party, at a bar or a restaurant."

Alter told KMBC that he's surprised by the national attention and the controversy over the bill. He said he didn't consider the bill would get a negative reaction from the St. Louis-based Anheuser-Busch.

Alter said the student who suggested the legislation would be a witness at the bill's hearing, which hasn't been scheduled.

Last year, a fourth-grade class from Kansas City submitted a proposal to make the American bullfrog the state amphibian. It passed in the final moments of the 2005 legislative session.

Alter said the jump from naming state animals to restricting how alcohol can be purchased didn't really surprise him.

"You never know what's on the mind of young kids -- some of them are pretty smart," he said.