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CALENDAR
January 30: Preventing Underage Drinking Webinar
February 5: Registration Deadline for Spring Board Meeting
February 13 - 14: Beverage Dynamics BDLive! Off-Premise Retailers Convention | Dallas, TX
February 23-26: Wine and Spirits Guild of America Winter Meeting | New Orleans, LA
March 9 - 11: ABL Spring Board Meeting | Atlanta, GA
2013 State Legislative Session Dates
ABL & PUBLIC POLICY News
ABL Economic Impact Study Expanded to Include State Legislative Districts
With state legislative sessions gaveling in throughout the country, American Beverage Licensees
(ABL) is pleased to announce that it has expanded its2012 Economic Impact Study of America's
Beer, Wine and Spirits Retailers to include the economic contributions of beverage licensees in
state house and state senate districts across the country.
MPC Press Release: Americans Don't Trust Banks, Surveys Find
It should come as no surprise that recent surveys find the majority of Americans do not trust big
banks and believe the fees they charge are unfair, said the Merchants Payments Coalition
(MPC), a group of merchants concerned about rising credit card swipe fees.
Consider cash, not credit, for local service (Op-Ed)
Recently, I was having dinner at a popular restaurant in Bellevue when I happened to notice a
small, printed card displayed on my table. In some detail, it explained the negative impact
which credit card processing fees have on a restaurant's ability to do business, and it concluded
by asking patrons to consider paying for dinner with cash.
Will you start paying more for using your credit card? It's up to the retailer
Shoppers may soon pay more for their purchases, but not because the price of the product has
gone up.
Beginning Sunday, Jan. 27, merchants can legally levy a 1 to 4 percent surcharge to every
purchase made with a credit card. Eliminating the ban on surcharges is part of that settlement.
Beverage industry, NYC lawyers duel over city government's sugary drink limits
The city defended its groundbreaking size limit on sugary drinks Wednesday as an imperfect but
meaningful rein on obesity, while critics said it would hurt small and minority-owned businesses
while doing little to help health.
FTC study taking aim at online marketing of booze
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) plans this summer to recommend ways that the alcoholic
beverage industry can better protect underage viewers from seeing its advertisements online.
ABL AFFILIATE News
Colorado Licensed Beverage Association
Battle brewing over beer in supermarkets
Beverage Retailers Alliance of Illinois
Unity Dinner Sponsorship Information (PDF)
Indiana Association of Beverage Retailers
Sunday booze restrictions remain stringent in Indiana
New York State Liquor Stores Association
New York State Liquor Store Association Selects Statewide Leadership for 2013
INDUSTRY News
Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB)
TTB Announcement: Alcohol Beverage Products Affected by Hurricanes and Flooding (PDF)
Campaign for Healthy Alcohol Marketplace
A History Lesson from the UK
Responsible Hospitality Institute
Video - Calgary RHI Hospitality Zone Assessment process
FOLLOW Friday
Founded in 1938, NABCA is the national association representing
the Control State Systems - those jurisdictions that directly
control the distribution and sale of beverage alcohol within their
borders.
Headquartered in the Washington, D.C. area, NABCA serves its
members as an information clearinghouse and as liaison to
federal, state and local governments, research and advocacy
groups, and other organizations impacting alcohol policy.
Twitter | Facebook | Android App
STATE News
Colorado: Bill To Set Limit For Driving While Stoned Has A Good Chance
A plan is in the works to set a limit for people driving while under the influence of marijuana,
and this time lawmakers say they'll get it done.
Georgia: Atlanta's legislative wish list includes higher alcohol taxes
The city of Atlanta's legislative wish-list for the 2013 General Assembly includes changes in state
law that would allow the city to increase taxes on alcohol, sell condemned and blighted
property to private parties, designate sales tax revenue disbursements by tenths of a cent
rather than a full penny, and charge the public school system for the cost of running school
board elections.
Maine: Liquor director says contract can make money
The director of Maine's Bureau of Alcoholic Beverages and Lottery says he's confident the state
can make a lot more money than it does now from liquor sales.
New Mexico: Republican legislator wants to allow concealed firearms in liquor
establishments
State Rep. Zach Cook is aiming lower with his latest gun-rights bill. Cook, R-Ruidoso, introduced
legislation two years ago that would have allowed people with permits for concealed handguns
to bring their firearms to public schools, college campuses, liquor establishments, state parks
and onto buses.
North Dakota: Measure would reimburse smoking ban costs
North Dakota's anti-smoking agency on Wednesday protested a proposal by lawmakers to have
the state reimburse business owners for signage and other costs incurred from smoking bans.
Ohio high court takes up lawsuit affecting liquor bonds
The Ohio Supreme Court on Wednesday resuscitated a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality
of a state law behind the scheduled sale of about $1.5 billion of revenue bonds this week.
Ohio: Legal challenges mount against controversial breath-alcohol tester
Doubts about the reliability of a breath-alcohol tester have undermined drunken driving
prosecutions in Ohio and other states, four years after Ohio bought hundreds of the machines
on the recommendation of a state official who later went to work for the manufacturer.
Oregon: Liquor privatization issue still percolating in Oregon
After the bumpy start for Washington's liquor privatization law last year -- which included price
hikes that led some consumers fleeing to stores across the border -- you might think the issue is
off the table in Oregon.
Pennsylvania: Bar, tavern owners say small games of chance causing big problems
Bob Weimar is a bar owner who is complaining, but says he wants people to understand one
thing first.
Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania Liquor Board CEO To Step Down In February
The chief executive officer of the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board has announced plans to
step down after six years in the position. A statement Saturday says Joe Conti will retire Feb. 2
"to pursue future opportunities in higher education and the private sector."
Texas: Irving relaxes limits on restaurants' alcohol sales
After three decades as one of the driest cities in North Texas, Irving relaxed its alcohol laws
Thursday. The City Council voted to raise the amount of alcohol restaurants citywide can sell
from 40 percent of annual sales to 50 percent. And it significantly raised the alcohol limit to 70
percent for restaurants in the Urban Center of Las Colinas - opening the possibility for other
areas to follow.
Texas: Not everyone embracing Sunday liquor store bill
A bill has been introduced in the Texas Legislature to allow liquor stores to stay open on
Sunday, but store managers and owners are not supporting it. State Rep. Senfronia Thompson,
D-Houston, filed House Bill 421 on Jan. 9. If passed by both houses of the Legislature and signed
into law by the governor, the bill will allow liquor stores in Texas to be open from noon to 10
p.m. on Sunday.
Washington: Wash. looks to build strict controls for marijuana
Washington voters passed I-502 in the November 2012 general election. The law legalizing
marijuana possession in the state, even though federal law still proscribes its sale and use.
Washington: Bill would regulate liquor purchases at self-checkouts
The sale of liquor in grocery stores may be giving minors access to alcohol in an unexpected
way: through self-checkout machines, an Olympia legislator says.
BDLive! Conference
For off-premise retailers of beer, wine
and spirits, BDLive! is the event of the
year. No wonder: BDLive!
is packed with information and ideas
to help your business thrive, and it offers you a variety of networking opportunities, from our
first-ever Town Hall Forum to our special "I Love Dallas" Reception featuring Dallas Bar Stars.
Click here to view the event | Connect on Facebook
BUSINESS & LIFESTYLE News
Do your guests go to Xtremes?
It's mid-January. That means some of us are still sticking to our weight-loss resolutions, others
have already starting finding reasons to skip the gym and still others are probably trying to find
the loopholes in their new health club memberships over a 3,000-calorie plate of Bistro Shrimp
Pasta at The Cheesecake Factory.
Report: Craft Beer Set to Triple by 2017
A research report shows that the growth of the popularity of craft beer is going to continue.
Research firm Mintel took a look at the popularity of the specialty brews. Growth was strong
from 2007 through 2012 - the height of the recession - so what does the future hold for craft
beer?
Unemployment claims drop to 5-year low
The number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits fell last week to the lowest level in
five years. The Labor Department said that weekly unemployment benefit applications dropped
5,000 to a seasonally adjusted 330,000. That's the fewest since January 2008.
Consumer Wine Trends: Americans Drinking More, "Better" Wines
The fundamental consumer base has and will continue to change, and wine marketers and
makers can not ignore the new way people drink wine, according the research presented at the
Wine Market Council Update on Jan. 18, 2013. Consumers are finding more reasons to
"celebrate" with a bottle of wine or drinking more wine when a bottle is opened, and in some
cases doing both-a very good sign for an industry that posted $13.3 billion in off-premise sales
last year.
Family Dollar stores to begin selling alcohol
Olivia Lopez has lived in the same neighborhood for 16 years and she worries about people
loitering and drinking. It's a problem she thinks will get worse if a nearby Family Dollar Store
starts selling beer and wine.
Bartenders Are Doing More Than Taking Orders
Around the neck of every bottle from the fledgling spirits outfit the 86 Co. - the gin, the vodka,
the tequila, the rum - is a small glass ridge. To the untrained eye, it looks like a packaging
flourish. It is not.