Are unlimited liquor sales fuelling bootlegging in the N.W.T.?

It's not unusual to see a clerk at a Yellowknife liquor store ring up bottle after bottle of vodka mickeys. RCMP seize dozens of the same type of bottles on their way into "dry" communities, arranging them for display in photos sent out to the press after a bust.

While many communities in the N.W.T. have restrictions on the amount of liquor allowed, most liquor stores in the territory have no limit on how much a person can buy.

Even if a store employee notices certain people buying them by the case, there's nothing they can do. Under the Liquor Act, staff can only refuse to sell alcohol to someone who is underage or intoxicated.   

It's a disconnect some say is fuelling bootlegging.

Frame Lake MLA Wendy Bisaro says she heard all about the frustration two years ago while the Government Operations Committee held hearings on the Liquor Act in the Sahtu.

It made recommendations to the government in 2013 about limiting the amount of liquor people who live in restricted or dry communities could purchase.   

"So if you live in Norman Well [where liquor is allowed], prove that you are from Norman Wells," she said. "But if you're in a community that's restricted, you could potentially only buy what you are allowed to for your community. And if your community is restricted and totally dry, what we were hoping was that the liquor store could say, 'It's a dry community: I can't sell you anything.'"

"We were looking for anything we could suggest to the government that might put a stop to some of the bootlegging or at least reduce it," Bisaro said.

The Liquor Commission operates under the authority of the minister of Finance, which did provide a response to the committee's recommendation.  

But the CBC was told it would need to file an access to information request to get it.