Sunday alcohol sales bill dies in Senate

The sponsor of legislation letting voters decide whether to allow Sunday store sales of beer, wine and liquor pulled the bill Wednesday when he realized he wouldn’t have the votes to pass it out of the Senate Regulated Industries Committee.

It marked the third consecutive year that the Senate has provided a stumbling block for the Sunday sales legislation sponsored by Sen. Seth Harp (R-Midland).

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While any issue can be resurrected, Harp’s inability to get it out of the committee was surprising considering that his bill is co-sponsored by Senate Majority Leader Chip Rogers (R-Woodstock) and Rules Chairman Don Balfour (R-Snellville). The Senate’s president, Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle, has sent out letters saying he supports letting voters decide the Sunday sales issue.

But Harp said Wednesday, “There were forces there [in the committee] that wanted to do it in. We didn’t have the numbers. I would rather live to fight another day.”

While Regulated Industries Chairman David Shafer (R-Duluth), has been accused of stalling the bill, he said before the meeting that he was not standing in the way. He noted that his committee passed it two years ago, although it never got a Senate floor vote.

Allan Williamson, project manager for a software company and a supporter of the bill, said he is “very disappointed that this is the third year in a row with no action.”

Williamson, finance director for the Georgia Federation of Young Republican Clubs, said he expects that voters will want to know how legislators stand on the issue during the 2010 election season.

“People are definitely disgusted and frustrated” by the lack of action on the bill, he said.

Jim Beck, head of the Georgia Christian Coalition, which fought the bill, called it a “very tough issue” for lawmakers to vote on.

“Good people can disagree,” Beck said. “We feel it would be bad for Georgia and bad for Georgia families.”

A similar Sunday sales bill remains alive in the House.

Alcoholic beverages can be sold on Sundays in restaurants and bars in many parts of Georgia.

The Distilled Spirits Council of the United States says Georgia is one of three states with a total Sunday ban on beer, wine and liquor sales at stores. The others are Connecticut and Indiana.

The bill is backed by the grocery and convenience store lobbies and other business groups. It is opposed by religious groups such as the Christian Coalition of Georgia — which object to sales on the Christian holy day — and some liquor store owners who don’t want to have to open on Sundays.

Independent polls have generally shown support for the idea of letting local voters decide the issue. An Atlanta Journal-Constitution poll in January 2008 showed about two-thirds of respondents supported the idea.

A Web petition drive supporting Sunday sales garnered about 50,000 signatures last year, and backers have started several pages on Facebook.

Some stores supporting Sunday sales put up fliers telling customers to contact Cagle and Shafer.

Beck of the Christian Coalition has said his group will raise the issue during next year’s elections. Cagle is running for governor, and one of his fellow contenders, Insurance Commissioner John Oxendine, has already come out against Sunday sales.

Shafer and Sen. Eric Johnson (R-Savannah), who is on the Regulated Industries Committee, are running for lieutenant governor.

Kathy Kuzava, lobbyist for the Georgia Food Industry Association, said supporters will also make Sunday sales an issue in next year’s elections.

“This is a very popular issue,” she said. “We will definitely be back to fight this issue because the polling is coming across overwhelmingly for local option for Sunday sales.

“We’ve got a lot of retailers and a lot of constituents out there that are very interested in the outcome of this bill.

“Today it’s dead. We look forward to moving forward.”