The general tendency of the marketplace suggests that the more open a market is, the more that can be made, traded, or sold. When a company begins manufacturing or even just setting up ordinary operations, it must call upon other companies and individuals to acquire or handle all that is needed. This includes office supplies,...
A bill up for discussion in a House committee this week went surprisingly far to reveal the convoluted mess the state-run alcohol monopoly has become. Lawmakers call House Bill 669 Distribute Alcohol Without Discrimination, although that title is vague and misleading. The bill offers a taste of the spoiling mash. Made from a set of...
The N.C. Alcoholic Beverage Control Commission voted unanimously last week to recommend the state award a 10-year contract for warehouse services to LB&B Associates, the target of an audit in 2018 that has over previous years cost the state about $13.5 million. To fund the new contract, bailment — which pays for warehouse operations —...
N.C. Alcoholic Beverage Control stores remain open throughout the state, although many staff members within the ABC system are working from home. The stores have established new protocols to minimize direct contact between the public and staff working on site, Jeff Strickland, ABC spokesman, said in an email. “Our goal is to protect the safety...
Say you want a fidget spinner. Well, if you have a few bucks for one, then you go buy it. Same goes for a burger. Lots of choices, lots of options. Then, say, you want a mixed drink at your favorite local restaurant. If the town or city in which you live allows so-called liquor-by-the-drink,...
It’s time to wake up, North Carolina. Enough is truly enough. In truth, it’s well past time lawmakers take substantive steps toward rewriting or eliminating much of the arcane laws governing alcohol, painfully documented in N.C. General Statute 18b. It runs nearly 150 pages and almost 70,000 words. So, let’s open that cracked and weathered...
The N.C. Alcoholic Beverage Control Commission is scheduled to meet 10 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 16, to consider and adopt rules for spirits sold and consumed in North Carolina. The N.C. ABC is seeing record profits, at the same time state some lawmakers are looking at moves to reform the arcane and monopolistic system. North Carolina...
The North Carolina excise tax on distilled spirits has risen to the fifth-highest in the country, according to recent data from the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States. Industry experts say the news is bad for business. Consumers pay an average state excise tax of $14.66 per 750 milliliter bottle of 80-proof liquor. The...
