This is a report on Alaska's "local option law" which allows villages to choose one of the following four options on alcohol availability in their communities: (1) the sale of alcoholic beverages is prohibited unless sold under a community liquor license; (2) the sale of alcoholic beverages is limited to one of several types of retail licenses such as a restaurant wine license; (3) the sale of alcoholic beverages is prohibited; and (4) the sale and importation of alcoholic beverages is prohibited. Since effects of the law are not yet known, the purpose of this study was not to evaluate the law's effects but rather to enhance the information available to villages and to guide the design of future evaluations. The report includes discussions of the history of alcohol control in Bush Alaska; community purposes and the local option law; village character, alcohol use, and control history; alcohol use patterns and regional hubs; sources of village controls; village control and state control; exercise of formal village controls; form and limitations of local ordinances governing alcohol; village control of alcohol; community conflict on the local optin law; and changes in village life since the local option law. (ABL)