A recent proposal to allow convenience and grocery stores to sell beer in Pennsylvania – without on-premises consumption – will put distributors out of business, shrink the workforce, generate violations, aggravate problem drinking, reduce availability of craft brands, hurt taverns and be generally unfair, local distributors said.
If state Sen. John Rafferty, R-Montgomery, succeeds with his “beer reform” bill, retail distributors couldn’t compete, said Steve Rawlings, owner of Roxy Beverage in Altoona.
That could cost the county 60 or 70 jobs, he said.
The additional sales in the food stores wouldn’t translate into offsetting hires, because “it’s just one more item for them,” he said.
The food stores may also card customers less diligently, because their bigger, generalist staffs wouldn’t be as well-trained and because they have less to lose if they get their license suspended, said Penny Weyant, co-owner and manager of Williamsburg Beverage.
After all, it’s just one item among many they sell, she said.
Distributors are the least-cited license holders, said Tim Galbraith, owner of Blair County Beverage, Hollidaysburg.
Rawlings said he’s never been cited.
He cards even if there’s “the slimmest chance,” the would-be buyer is underage, he said. “I’ve carded 40-year-olds,” he said.
Compounding the issue is persistent understaffing at LCE [state police Bureau of Liquor Control Enforcement] , Galbraith said.
The Rafferty proposal could lead to more problem drinking because beer would become more easily available, and because food stores might use beer as a “loss leader” to lure customers in to buy other products, Weyant said.
More people will be consuming more beer, she predicted.
And if beer is available at all convenience stores, people who now stop and have a couple beers at a tavern before buying a six-pack for home may skip the on-premises consumption and just get the six-pack at a convenience store, she said.
Read more in the Altoona Mirror
Tags: beer revolution
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