Sunday Alcohol Sales
It's Sunday here in Indiana. And it's the only state that bans off-premise beer and hard liquor sales on Sunday while allowing restaurants/bars/stadiums to sell them. Why Sunday? Well, there is no lawful reason why Sunday is any different from any other day. Most Prohibition-era Blue laws, also known as Sunday laws, have been repealed in the United States but somehow alcohol has not been totally repealed.
In February, Indiana failed to pass a bill that would have allowed Sunday alcohol sales. But restrictions were added to the bill for grocery, drugstores, and convenience stores; these restrictions included liquor required to be behind counters and the beer/wine must be kept in a designated area. Existing grocery, drugstores, and convenience stores would have to spend millions of dollars in renovating; they would also require the cashier to be over 21 years old with mandated training. Those provisions were added to the bill state that it is for "safety purposes". But if they were truly about the safety of the people, then they wouldn't have to amend it to the Sunday alcohol sales bill, rather deal it separately. Is it deemed unsafe as stores have it now?
The opposition of Sunday alcohol sales comes mainly from liquor stores. These stores think Sunday sales would not be beneficial as it wouldn't increase revenue but would increase overhead to have employees there on Sundays. Personally, I don't find this to be a valid reason for not legalizing Sunday alcohol sales. Liquor stores have upsides to them that other multifaceted stores don't offer: larger selections and greater knowledge of their products are obvious advantages.
I don't drink very much and it probably wouldn't affect me directly too much, but I don't see why Sunday alcohol sales are still illegal today. The fact that microbreweries and wineries can sell on Sundays make the illegal Sundays sales for other stores look ridiculous. With many households shopping on Sundays, it doesn't make much sense not to allow consumers shop for alcohol at the same time; it's actually a hinderance, particularly during the summers and football season. 38 of 50 states currently allow Sunday alcohol sales. It's time for all the states to legalize Sunday alcohol sales.
Don't even get me started on the restrictions of minors in a restaurant that have beer taps...