The state House on Thursday passed a bill that would allow more potent beer in Mississippi.

The bill, HB 1422, passed by a vote of 67-45, with seven lawmakers not voting. It now heads to the Senate.

State Rep. David Baria, D-Bay St. Louis, has pushed for the measure for years, to allow the sale of gourmet and craft beers sold in most other states and to help the state's only brewery, the Lazy Magnolia in Kiln.

Baria said the brewery has had to turn down contract brewing jobs because of the state's 5 percent alcohol by weight limit on beer. The bill passed by the House allows beer to be 8 percent by weight.

Read more about this and other legislative action in the Sun Herald and at sunherald.com