Communities in the Northwest Territories could have the choice of opening bars on Sundays or voting not to have alcohol at all if proposed changes to the territory's Liquor Act are approved.

The territorial government introduced a new liquor act last week that would replace the existing Liquor Act. The current act was established in 1983 but has had only a few changes. The new act is expected to undergo third reading in August.

"I think there was some concern that we are not like southern Canada, that we need to have a made-in-the-North liquor act," Deputy Finance Minister Margaret Melhorn said.

"I think that's where we are trying to find some ways to provide some flexibility, so where some communities may want less regulation — that might be possible. But where communities feel that they need to continue to have regulations, that would also be possible."

Under the changes in the proposed act, communities would be allowed to open bars on Sundays. As well, people would be allowed to bring their own bottle of wine to a licensed restaurant in communities that would permit it.

Melhorn said the proposed act would also give communities more control over how much alcohol they want to allow.

Under the current act, a community that wants to ban or restrict alcohol must obtain permission from the finance minister to hold a plebiscite and then have at least 60 per cent of residents voting to support such restrictions. The new act would remove the need for ministerial approval and lower the voter approval requirement to a 50 per cent plus one majority.

"The 50 plus one, I think that's more fair than the 60 [per cent]," said Fort McPherson Mayor Rebecca Blake. "I think many times before, [Fort] McPherson made the 50 per cent but it wasn't just quite enough."

The proposed law would also hike fines for bootlegging from $5,000 to $25,000.