Sunday Liquor Sales and other Beer/Liquor Legislation

[twincitizen]

http://mnbeeractivists.com/legislative- ... -minnesota

Visit this site, educate yourself, print out a resolution to bring with you to caucus, and (optional) get yourself elected as a delegate to your state house/senate district convention*

*The district convention, likely taking place in March/April is where you will vote on a ballot of the party platform and "action agenda" items. These items need some kind of supermajority threshold of support to be added to the action agenda. While a lot of long-tenured legislators are really set in their ways, getting the topic on the official party platform would be harder to ignore. Even if 2016 is a bust, there is going to be a tremendous amount of turnover in the legislature before the 2017 session, so this convention would absolutely be the time for you to influence the process. Everyone should attend their district conventions anyways to meet neighbors, your legislators, other party types, etc. The world is run by those who show up!

[twincitizen]

Watch LIVE in the House, right now: https://events.qwikcast.tv/QwikCast/Qwi ... ageId=1366

EDIT: Good god Joe Atkins. Shut the **** up already. I look forward to your retirement.

[twinkess]

Was that the grandpa telling Rep Loon that she needed some more moxie?

[twincitizen]

So many urban & inner suburban DFLers really suck on this issue. Atkins, Davnie, Dehn, Thissen, Bernardy, Shoen, etc.

Props to Rep. Kahn and Rep. Liebling for being among the few DFLers to speak in favor of the repeal.

EDIT: Predictably, the amendment does not pass. 56-69, actually one less green vote than last year (Speaker Daudt did not vote, but voted yes last year).


The DFL (who form vast majority of opposition) will lose this argument in the court of public opinion, and that really ticks me off. The next DFL nominee for Governor better support Sunday Sales, because you know for damn sure the GOP candidate will.

[twinkess]

Aaaand they voted no again.

[Silophant]

Shocker.

[VAStationDude]

The amendment failed. 56-70. Capps brew pub license has a better chance advancing without anti small business and anti union Sunday sales (which had no hearings this session) bogging down the licensing bill.

[twincitizen]

Yes, by all means, let's hold up allowing Sunday Sales statewide because of some stupid brewpub that no one outside of a 1 mile radius gives a crap about.

[VAStationDude]

Sunday sales has no chance of making through the Senate. Senate Majority Leader Bakk rightly represents the interests of small business owners and members of progressive unions over beer bros and "progressive" libertarians.

The only effect attaching Sunday sales would be to bog down the entire licensing bill.

I've never understood how fired up people get about beer buying. I'm a big time boozer and I've never once in over a dozen years of my legal drinking career found myself in want of alcohol on a Sunday.

[twinkess]

I think VAStationDude should take protecting small businesses farther and prohibit sales of anything on Sunday.

I never understood how fired up people can get about buying groceries and toiletries on Sunday. I'm a big time consumer and I've never once in over thirty years of buying things found myself in want of anything on a Sunday.

Down with commerce on Sundays!

[acs]

Or he could just be a Teamster

[David Greene]

How in the world is Sunday sales anti-union and anti-small business? Businesses can choose when they are open. I'm sure some will remain closed on Sunday.

As for anti-union...I just don't get it. So they might have to work Sundays and reopen contract negotiations? Those contracts are going to be renegotiated at some point anyway and the proper place to set work rules like this is in the contract, not in state law.

[VAStationDude]

There is no inconsistency in maintaining Sunday sales. Booze is highly regulated - age of purchase and consumption, labeling, production, distribution, marketing, other aspects of sales, etc. Keeping Sunday sales is consistent with that high level of regulation.

I'm interested in realistic progressive policy. Keeping small businesses afloat and urban commercial spaces occupied in the face of competition from big box stores is consistent with that general philosophy. Spreading the same sales across another day can do nothing but hurt small retailers.

I'm not in any way employed by or affiliated with the teamsters union, lobbyists or a liquor retailer. I do like my local neighborhood store and refuse to set foot in a total wine.

[David Greene]

The amendment explicitly prohibited deliveries on Sunday so any "anti-union" argument was not valid.

Spreading the same sales across another day can do nothing but hurt small retailers.

I'm sorry but if that makes your business go under, you were in trouble long before.

[cnelson]

The union thing is a red herring. The claim last time around was that one (unnamed) employer told the Teamsters that Sunday sales would (maybe) allow them to ask for a reopener. Presumably, Sunday sales might lead to Sunday deliveries and the current contract doesn't account for that given the current setup in MN. Assuming that's all true, they'd ask to reopen negotiations to deal with the scheduling issue. That would not require them to reopen negotiations for all the other provisions of the contract. Sunday sales won't magically allow the employers to cut wages/benefits/etc. Their contracts is likely only for 3 or 4 years, so they're going to be renegotiating fairly soon one way or another so I don't see why this should be a factor.

Spreading the same sales across another day can do nothing but hurt small retailers.

Allowing Sunday sales is not the same as mandating Sunday sales. Any business that wants to stay closed on Sunday, or any other day, is free to do so. There are plenty of local business right now that choose to close up a couple days a week. They manage to do this without having their schedule mandated by the state. I don't know why mom & pop liquor stores are the only group incapable of managing this on their own.

[VAStationDude]

Ever notice how other retail sectors are dominated by massive publicly traded corporations and large regional chains? I have and I don't like it. The ship sailed long ago on target being the place selling the most toilet paper in Minnesota. I do not think it's realistic to legislate the return of mom and pop general stores. I do my best as an individual to support progressive outcomes by spending my grocery dollars with unionized chains and my neighborhood union shop store. I think the best progressive outcomes are served by helping small businesses in the face of competition from massive chains.

[FISHMANPET]

OK, please explain how banning Sunday sales helps those progressive outcomes.

[MNdible]

What if the law was changed to state that liquor stores could only be open six days a week? And then stores could choose what day that they want to be closed?

[seanrichardryan]

They can still stay closed Sunday. Remember when they pushed the weekday closing back to 10pm? Well my local liquor store still closes at 8 pm though they could choose not to. And damnit it's inconvenient, and I've told them that. Alas, they still have made a business decision to stay closed.

[VAStationDude]

If your local liquor store is in saint Paul their hours are limited to 8pm except for Friday and Saturday

People gotta step up their reading comprehension game.

Yes, by all means, let's hold up allowing Sunday Sales statewide because of some stupid brewpub that no one outside of a 1 mile radius gives a crap about.

The Senate would not pass Sunday sales under any circumstances. The choice wasn't between booze at 50th and Hiawatha and The MLS Stadium and Sunday sales. It was between no liquor bill (possibly) or booze at 50th and the midway.

Read what I wrote fish pet your answer is in there.