Liquor Stores Open on Sundays

For many years, liquor stores could legally be open on Sundays from noon to 9 pm. In the article Bills Would Let Liquor Stores Open on Sundays on www.texastribune.org, author Elena Schneider informs citizens of State Sen. Juan Hinojosa and Rep. Senfronia Thompson decision to file companion bills that would eliminate state laws limiting liquor sales on Sundays and also extend Monday – Thursday sales from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. The bills would supposedly generate $7.4 million in revenue. The legislation would not require liquor stores to open on Sundays, but the competition would force all stores to be open. Surprisingly, the opponents against the bills are liquor stores themselves. David Jabour who is president of Twin Liquors in Austin states “We won’t generate enough sales to handle the change”. Main supporters who are mostly alcohol distributors argue that “sales and tax revenue boost would make up for any other costs”. The author notes that similar bills have come before the Legislature in the last three sessions, but none have made it out of committee.

The impact on the small business liquor stores in Texas is why this article is important. Citizens should be informed of the consequences (good or bad) that come with having liquor stores open all day on Sundays. If the bills are passed, many liquor stores may be forced to close because not enough revenue is being generated, or the outcome could generate millions as the alcohol distributors suggest. I personally believe that the liquor stores themselves would know whether or not if being open longer on Sundays would generate more revenue than the distributors.