By L.A. Williams Christian Action League September 12, 2019 Alcohol abuse is an expensive habit. Excessive drinking leads to increased medical bills, costly accidents, lost wages, etc. And who picks up the tab? According to a new study, the majority of the costs of alcohol’s harms are borne by those who don’t drink excessively or […]
Alcohol
ABC Regulatory Reform Bill: Nothing to Celebrate (Part 3)
By Rev. Mark Creech Christian Action League August 21, 2019 Looser Liquor Laws Let You Buy More than 1 Beer, Even in Dry Counties, read the headline in Wednesday’s edition of the Asheville Citizen-Times. Hillman Beer, a brewery located on Sweeten Creek Road in Asheville, hailed the recent changes in alcohol policy that now allow […]
ABC Regulatory Reform Bill: Nothing to Celebrate (Part 2)
By Rev. Mark Creech Christian Action League August 15, 2019 Monday, July 29th, Gov. Roy Cooper signed into law the most extensive reform of North Carolina’s alcohol policies since the repeal of Prohibition. Lawmakers, The Retail Merchants Association, the John Locke Foundation, and high profile members of the alcohol industry lauded the measure and celebrated […]
ABC Regulatory Reform Bill: Nothing to Celebrate (Part 1)
By Dr. Mark Creech Christian Action League August 2, 2019 This week, Gov. Roy Cooper, signed into law, SB 290, which was originally filed as the Distillery Regulatory Reform Bill. The legislation later became two bills rolled into one, when the language from HB 536 – ABC Omnibus Regulatory Reform, which passed the House, was […]
House ABC Committee Takes Up Privatization of Liquor Sales
By L.A. Williams Christian Action League July 26, 2019 On the heels of an omnibus bill (SB 290 – ABC Regulatory Reform) that the Christian Action League considered the worst alcohol proposal in state history, lawmakers are now looking to do away with the entire control system and put liquor sales totally in the hands […]
Blatantly Bad Alcohol and Gambling Bills Pass (Championed by Republicans)
By Hunter Hines Christian Action League July 19, 2019 RALEIGH – Dr. Mark Creech, executive director of the Christian Action League, said he returned to work Tuesday, after suffering a health scare, and sat in the gallery of the state Senate to watch them pass “perhaps the most egregious piece of alcohol legislation that has […]
URGENT ALERT: Proposal to Privatize Liquor Sales in NC to be Heard in House ABC Committee, Tuesday
Christian Action League July 18, 2019 Dear Pastor and other Citizen Christians, What if I told you that there was legislation afoot that would increase the number of ABC liquor stores in North Carolina from 433 to approximately 2000? How would you feel if you learned that this higher concentration of liquor stores would seriously […]
Drinking in Open Areas of the Mall?
By M.H. Cavanaugh Christian Action League July 2, 2019 Could you imagine people walking around with an alcoholic beverage in a place like the Mall? That’s what one bill would allow if the measure finishes moving through the Senate. Senate Bill 344 – Allow Common Area Entertainment ABC Permit, would authorize the Alcoholic Beverage Control […]
Bill is a Veritable Christmas in July for Distilleries
By Hunter Hines Christian Action League July 2, 2019 Distilleries are a burgeoning industry in North Carolina. There were eight distilleries across the state in 2010. Today there are eighty-one. With that kind of growth, there also comes political leverage. In recent years, distillers have coalesced into a politically powerful group and have been pushing […]
Gargantuan ABC Omnibus Bill Pared-Down, But Remains Severe Threat to Public Health
By Hunter Hines Christian Action League June 29, 2019 Thursday, the House Finance Committee took up a Proposed Committee Substitute (PCS) for HB 536 – ABC Omnibus Regulatory Reform. The measure originally was a gargantuan piece of alcohol legislation with broad-sweeping reforms that would unravel North Carolina’s alcohol policies. The bill was sixteen pages in […]