Alcoholic beverage control states, generally called control states, less often ABC states, are 17 states in the United States that have state monopolies over the wholesaling or retailing of some or all categories of alcoholic beverages, such as beer, wine, and distilled spirits.
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At the beginning of the temperance movement in the United States, many states controlled where and when alcohol could be sold. Before this time, most alcoholic beverages for off-premises consumption were often sold just like any other item of commerce in stores or bars. Because of heavy lobbying by temperance groups in various states, most required off-premises beverages to be sold in dedicated stores (primarily called dispensaries) with controls over their location. To further enhance oversight of beverage sales, some states such as South Carolina operated state-run dispensaries. A national prohibition began in January 1920, following ratification of the Eighteenth Amendment in January 1919.
Following ratification of the Twenty-first Amendment in 1933, resulting in the end of national prohibition, some states initially decided to continue their own prohibition against the production, distribution, and sale of alcoholic beverages within their borders. Other states decided to leave the issue to local jurisdictions, including counties and cities, a practice called local option.
States were also able to restrict the importation of "intoxicating liquors" into their territory under the provisions of the Twenty-first Amendment, which, while ending the Federal role in alcohol control, exempted liquor from the constitutional rule reserving the regulation of interstate commerce to the federal government. Thus, states that wished to continue prohibition could do so.
Among those states which chose not to maintain complete prohibition over alcoholic beverages, approximately one-third established government monopolies while the remaining two-thirds established private license systems. In its simplest terms, the license system allows private enterprises to buy and sell alcohol at state discretion. In actual effect, the license operates as a device of restraint and not merely a grant of privilege or freedom. In a constitutional sense, the license confers no property right and the exercise of its privilege is continuously contingent upon the holder's compliance with required conditions and the general discretion of the licensing authority.
The remaining states adopted the monopoly system of regulation, the more cautious of the two regulatory frameworks. As alluded to above, under the monopoly plan the government takes over the wholesale trade and conducts the retail sale of heavier alcoholic beverages through its own stores. That is, the state itself engages in the sale and distribution of alcoholic beverages. Most of these states have an Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) board—exact naming varies by state—and run liquor stores called "ABC stores" or "state stores". In all monopoly states, a parallel license system is used to regulate the sale and distribution of lighter alcoholic beverages such as beer and wine.
Beginning in the 1960s onward, many control states loosened their monopoly of beverage sales. States like West Virginia and Washington sold all of their state liquor stores to private owners, [1] while others like Vermont permit private store owners to sell alcohol on behalf of the state for a commission.
The 17 control or monopoly states as of November 2019 [update] are: [2]
About one-quarter of the United States population lives in control states. [31]
Maryland as a whole is not a control state. [32] Private liquor stores sell beer, wine, and spirits in most of the state, but under state law, Montgomery County uses a control model, operating 25 off-premise beer, wine, and liquor stores. [33] These county stores are the only off-premise spirits outlets; however, beer and wine only stores are privately owned. Four grocery chain stores in the county have grandfathered alcohol licenses. [34] The regulatory agency is Montgomery County Alcohol Beverage Services (ABS). Dorchester County was an alcohol control county until 2008, when the County Council voted to permanently close the county-owned liquor dispensaries, with subsequent change in the state law. [35] Worcester County was an alcohol control county until July 2014, when the Maryland General Assembly abolished the Liquor Control Board by statute, replacing it with the Department of Liquor Control. [36]
In Minnesota, a city with a population of 10,000 or less may choose to open a municipal liquor store while prohibiting private liquor stores. The city may maintain this monopoly even if its population grows. [37] As of 2018, 190 cities in the state operate their own stores. [38]
In California, the state constitution prohibits the state or any agency thereof from becoming a manufacturer or seller of alcoholic beverages. [39]
The Liquor Control Board of Ontario (LCBO) is a Crown agency that retails and distributes alcoholic beverages throughout the Canadian province of Ontario. It is accountable to the Legislative Assembly through the minister of finance. It was established in 1927 by the government of Premier George Howard Ferguson to sell liquor, wine, and beer. Such sales were banned outright in 1916 as part of prohibition in Canada. The creation of the LCBO marked an easing of the province's temperance regime. By September 2017, the LCBO was operating 651 liquor stores.
The three-tier system of alcohol distribution is the system for distributing alcoholic beverages set up in the United States after the repeal of Prohibition. The three tiers are importers or producers; distributors; and retailers. The basic structure of the system is that producers can sell their products only to wholesale distributors who then sell to retailers, and only retailers may sell to consumers. Producers include brewers, wine makers, distillers and importers. The three-tier system is intended to prohibit tied houses and prevent "disorderly marketing conditions."
A liquor store is a retail business that predominantly sells prepackaged alcoholic beverages, including liquors, wine or beer, usually intended to be consumed off the store's premises. Depending on region and local idiom, they may also be called an off-licence, off-sale, bottle shop, bottle store or, colloquially, bottle-o, liquor store or other similar terms. A very limited number of jurisdictions have an alcohol monopoly. In US states that are alcoholic beverage control (ABC) states, the term ABC store may be used.
The Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission (OLCC), formerly known as the Oregon Liquor Control Commission, is a government agency of the U.S. state of Oregon. The OLCC was created by an act of the Oregon Legislative Assembly in 1933, days after the repeal of prohibition, as a means of providing control over the distribution, sales and consumption of alcoholic beverages. To this end, the agency was given the authority to regulate and license those who manufacture, sell or serve alcohol.
The Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board (PLCB) is the independent state government agency in Pennsylvania that manages the beverage alcohol industry in the state under the regulations of the Pennsylvania Liquor Code. The board is responsible for licensing the possession, sale, storage, transportation, importation, and manufacture of wine, spirits, malt or brewed beverages, and operating the state's system of liquor distribution, including retail sales, and providing education about harmful effects associated with underage and dangerous drinking.
The Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis Commission (AGLC) is an agency of the government of the Canadian province of Alberta, and regulates alcoholic beverages, recreational cannabis, and gaming-related activities. References to cannabis were added to AGLC's name and governing legislation as cannabis in Canada moved towards legalization in 2018. AGLC was created in 1996 as the Alberta Gaming and Liquor Commission by combining the responsibilities and operations of the Alberta Liquor Control Board (ALCB), Alberta Lotteries, the Alberta Gaming Commission, Alberta Lotteries and Gaming and the Gaming Control Branch. The current chief executive officer as of 2020 is Kandice Machado.
The Iowa Alcoholic Beverages Division is the alcoholic beverage control authority for the U.S. state of Iowa. Since March 8, 1934, it has regulated the traffic in, and maintained a monopoly on the wholesaling of, alcoholic beverages in the state, thus making Iowa an alcoholic beverage control state.
The Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board, formerly the Washington State Liquor Control Board, is an administrative agency of the State of Washington. The Liquor and Cannabis Board is part of the executive branch and reports to the governor. The board's primary function is the licensing of on and off premises establishments which sell any type of alcohol, and the enforcement and education of the state's alcohol, tobacco, and cannabis laws.
A liquor license is a governmentally issued permit for businesses to sell, manufacture, store, or otherwise use alcoholic beverages.
An alcohol monopoly is a government monopoly on manufacturing and/or retailing of some or all alcoholic beverages, such as beer, wine and spirits. It can be used as an alternative for total prohibition of alcohol. They exist in all Nordic countries except Denmark proper, and in all provinces and territories in Canada except Alberta. In the United States, there are some alcoholic beverage control states, where alcohol wholesale is controlled by a state government operation and retail sales are offered by either state or private retailers.
Oklahoma allows any establishment with a beer and wine license to sell beer and wine up to 15% ABV, under refrigeration.
The alcohol laws of Kansas are among the strictest in the United States, in sharp contrast to its neighboring state of Missouri, and similar to its other neighboring state of Oklahoma. Legislation is enforced by the Kansas Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control.
Alcohol laws of New York are a set of laws specific to manufacturing, purchasing, serving, selling, and consuming alcohol in the state of New York. Combined with federal and local laws, as well as vendor policies, alcohol laws of New York determine the state's legal drinking age, the driving under the influence limit, liquor license requirements, server training, and more.
The alcohol laws of Pennsylvania contain many peculiarities not found in other states, and are considered some of the strictest regulations in the United States.
The U.S. state of Oregon has an extensive history of laws regulating the sale and consumption of alcoholic beverages, dating back to 1844. It has been an alcoholic beverage control state, with the Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission holding a monopoly over the sale of all distilled beverages, since Prohibition. Today, there are thriving industries producing beer, wine, and liquor in the state. Alcohol may be purchased between 7 a.m. and 2:30 a.m for consumption at the premise it was sold at, or between 6 a.m. and 2:30 a.m. if it is bought and taken off premise. In 2020, Oregon began allowing the sale of alcohol via home delivery services. As of 2007, consumption of spirits was on the rise while beer consumption held steady. That same year, 11% of beer sold in Oregon was brewed in-state, the highest figure in the United States.
The alcohol laws of Utah regulate the selling and purchasing of alcohol in the U.S. state of Utah and are some of the most restrictive in the United States. A person must be 21 years old or older to buy or consume alcohol. The Utah Department of Alcoholic Beverage Services (UDABS) has regulated the sale of alcoholic beverages since 1935, two years after the end of Prohibition. Utah is one of seventeen control states, meaning the state has a monopoly over the wholesaling and/or retailing of some or all categories of alcoholic beverages.
Alcohol laws are laws relating to manufacture, use, being under the influence of and sale of alcohol or alcoholic beverages. Common alcoholic beverages include beer, wine, (hard) cider, and distilled spirits. Definition of alcoholic beverage varies internationally, e.g., the United States defines an alcoholic beverage as "any beverage in liquid form which contains not less than one-half of one percent of alcohol by volume". Alcohol laws can restrict those who can produce alcohol, those who can buy it, when one can buy it, labelling and advertising, the types of alcoholic beverage that can be sold, where one can consume it, what activities are prohibited while intoxicated, and where one can buy it. In some cases, laws have even prohibited the use and sale of alcohol entirely.
Blue laws, also known as Sunday laws, are laws that restrict or ban some or all activities on specified days, particularly to promote the observance of a day of rest. Such laws may restrict shopping or ban sale of certain items on specific days. Blue laws are enforced in parts of the United States and Canada as well as some European countries, particularly in Austria, Germany, Switzerland, and Norway, keeping most stores closed on Sundays.
The Mississippi Office of Alcoholic Beverage Control is a Mississippi state government agency responsible for licensing or permitting participants in the alcoholic beverages industry in Mississippi. The agency is part of the Mississippi Department of Revenue. Mississippi is an alcoholic beverage control state, thus the state has a monopoly over the wholesaling or retailing of some or all categories of alcoholic beverages.