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Pennsylvania House of Representatives
06/02/2024 07:04 PM
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
https://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/Legis/CSM/showMemoPublic.cfm?chamber=H&SPick=20130&cosponId=11695
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House of Representatives
Session of 2013 - 2014 Regular Session

MEMORANDUM

Posted: February 13, 2013 02:19 PM
From: Representative John A. Lawrence
To: All House members
Subject: Legislation to Privatize the State's Involvement in the Liquor Business
 
Dear Colleagues -

In the near future, I will introduce significant legislation to privatize the state's involvement in the liquor business. My proposal has some key differences from other plans that have been offered, and I would appreciate your thoughtful review and support of this initiative.

Highlights of the plan:

  • Divestiture of Wholesale and Retail wine and liquor sales from state control
  • Significantly increased consumer choice and convenience
  • Package Reform for taverns and distributors
  • Broad availability of wine and liquor through existing beer outlets
  • Path to grocery store sales through existing tavern licenses
  • Closure of existing state stores over time

Details of the plan:

Retail divestiture –
Holders of existing Eatery and Tavern licenses:
  • Can do nothing and keep current license
  • Option to buy enhanced license to sell up to a 30 pack of beer, 150 different varieties of wine, and 150 different varieties of hard liquor. Different sizes of the same brand do not constitute a new “variety.” Limit of 6 bottles of wine to go and 6 bottles of hard liquor to go per transaction.
  • License can be sold by an existing license holder to a grocery store, allowing for grocery store sales of beer, limited wine, and limited hard liquor. Grocery store liquor sales areas would be segregated from the rest of the market and an eating establishment would be installed.

Distributors:
  • Can do nothing and keep current license
  • Option to buy enhanced license that allows sales down to a 6 pack of beer, unlimited wine and hard liquor sales, and mixed 6 packs of single bottles of beer
  • Remains only outlet to sell kegs
  • Current quota system remains in place

Pricing system for new licenses
  • LCB will determine the issuance price for an enhanced eatery/tavern license and an enhanced distributor license for each county based on population, number of potential wine/liquor outlets, and other data as they deem appropriate.
  • Licensees can pay up front or over four years. Licensees who elect to pay over four years will be charged quarterly, with a built in interest rate of 5%.

LCB will establish a biennial license renewal fee and a transfer fee similar to fees charged for renewal and transfer of other licenses issued by the LCB

Current Employees of the State Store
  • Receive preferential treatment for placement in other state jobs, with additional job placement and training resources

Closing of existing state stores:
Once twice as many privately run wine/liquor outlets open per county as currently exist, within six months LCB must review the situation in that county, taking into account access to wine/liquor for all county residents, and at its discretion close one or more state stores in that county. Written rationale must be given for specifically closing or keeping any given store in that county open and published in the PA Bulletin. LCB must under any circumstance close all state stores in a given county within one year after four times as many privately run wine/liquor outlets open per county as currently exist. At no time shall the LCB operate 50 or fewer state stores in the Commonwealth.

Regulations:
  • Increased fines for selling to underage and intoxicated patrons as per governor’s plan

Wholesale divestiture
  • Wholesale licenses to sell individual brands of wine and hard liquor will be sold using a regional territory approach.

Proceeds raised from the sale of new retail and wholesale licenses will be placed in a segregated account for further consideration by the General Assembly.

I would appreciate your support of this commonsense plan. Thank you for your consideration.