Raise The Sunday Alcohol Sales Bill From The Dead

Dear Georgia Legislators,

I’m writing to you today regarding SB-10 and HB-69 – the Sunday alcohol sales bills.  Thus far this session, I’m extremely disappointed that these bills have not been voted on publicly.  I find it sadly amusing that Republicans constantly bash Obama for being a socialist, yet they impose their religious views on the state of Georgia when it comes to the sale of alcohol on a day that only a portion of the state observes as “the Lord’s day”.  Furthermore, Obama understands that open and transparent government does not mean private and secret caucus meetings excluding those from the other political party while behind closed doors to decide issues.  There is nothing open or transparent about that.  Furthermore, as a resident of Powder Springs, by holding this private vote amongst Republicans only, you’ve excluded my state Senator, Steve Thompson, from having a say in the matter.  Here’s a few of your own quotes that I’d like for you all to consider…

“While I support it, I certainly recognize there are a lot of people who do not support it, and if there is not the support, there is no need to continue to dwell on it. And we are moving onto the much more important issues: education, HOPE scholarships, balancing the budget and creating jobs,” he said.  (Chip Rogers, via AJC article.)

There is no one line item that you can strike from the budget to balance it.  It’s going to be a lot of little things.  I’ve seen several different sources estimate that Georgia would take in a minimum of an extra $4M in taxes were retail sales of alcohol legalized on Sundays.  Furthermore, this allows package stores to open an extra day of the week which has the ability to create more jobs.  More sales means more deliveries which means more hours for the drivers (or more driver jobs).  More deliveries means more fuel sales, which means more tax revenue derived from fuel sales.

“You do remember all that ‘land of the free’ mumbo jumbo, right?” (Barry Loudermilk, via Political Insider post – ‘They came for our toilets. Now, they want our light bulbs’)

So it’s the land of the free when it comes to light bulbs, but land of the TaliBaptists when it comes to alcohol, right?  Let me guess, you want to be able to buy those light bulbs on Sunday too?

If Jesus can rise from the dead and bring Lazarus back from the dead, you all can bring Senate Bill 10 back from the dead.  Alternatively, you could pass House Bill 69.  It’s time for those hiding in back rooms to come out of the closet and vote on this publicly.  Allow Georgians to see what their legislators are really up to.  It’s not a matter of if a Sunday sales bill will pass… it’s when.  That time is now.

David A. Staples