As a senior at Ball State University, Brad Buhle said he understands the trouble Hoosiers encounter when trying to purchase alcohol. Indiana is one of 15 states that still has the prohibition-era blue laws in place that prohibit the carryout sale of alcohol on Sunday.
"They're useless," Buhle, a technology education major, said regarding the blue laws. "You can still go into a bar or a football game to get alcohol. Why can't you go to the store?"
Blue laws, which limit the sale of alcohol on Sunday, originated after the ratification of 21st Amendment, which allowed the sale of alcohol in the United States and was ratified in 1933. Since 2002, 13 states have repealed the blue laws, and one organization is aiming for Indiana to join that group. Hoosiers for Beverage Choices, an organization comprised of citizens with the support of the Indiana Retail Council, the Indiana Petroleum Marketers and Convenience Store Association and the Indiana Petroleum Council, has spearheaded the movement to repeal the blue laws. To date, more than 10,000 supporters have signed a petition on the Hoosiers for Beverage Choices' Web site.
"The retail community have been fighting for decades to repeal these laws," Grant Monahan, president of the Indiana Retail Council and spokesperson for Hoosiers for Beverage Choices, said. "It's time to move on from these outdated policies and finally give the consumer the choice to purchase alcohol when they want."
Although the movement to repeal the laws will benefit consumers and drug, grocery and convenient stores, liquor stores will suffer as a result of the repeal.
"It wouldn't be possible for us [to stay open]," Chris Johnson, general manager of Muncie Liquors Inc., said. "Grocery stores and gas stations don't have a problem with this because they are already staffed and open."
Johnson said the money required to be open Sunday would be much more than the profit he would make by being open an extra day. He also said repealing the laws would hurt all Indiana liquor stores, which are mostly small, privately owned businesses.
Monahan said liquor store owners have combatted the efforts by the retail community to repeal the laws over the years because they don't like competitiveness in the market. Monahan also said Indiana is losing money by keeping the blue laws in place.
"Sunday is the second-busiest shopping day of the week," he said. "Indiana is losing somewhere in the ballpark of $8 million in yearly tax revenue as a result of these laws."
With widespread media coverage and the number of names on the petition growing daily, Monahan said the organization will begin to talk with members of the Indiana General Assembly about repealing Indiana's blue laws.
Brad Gideon, director of Legal Studies and instructor of political science at Ball State, said he thought Hoosiers for Beverage Choices will be successful in its efforts because of the coalitions supporting it.
"In the past it was easy for opposing groups to write them off as a rag-tag group of young people that just wanted to get drunk," Gideon said. "The public seems to be on the side of repealing the law, and now that there are major retailers and lobbyists involved, the issue will be taken seriously."
Indiana lawIn Indiana alcohol can be purchased from 7 a.m. Monday to 3 a.m. on Sunday. The exceptions to the Sunday blue laws are:
- Lawful holder of a retailer's permit to sell alcohol an hour before the scheduled start time for athletic or sports events in specified counties or cities or if the sale is with conjunction of a paved track more than two miles used mainly for auto racing
- If New Year's Eve is on a Sunday alcohol can be sold from 10 a.m. to 3 a.m.
- Holder of a beer, wine or liquor wholesaler's permit can sell to a holder with a valid retailer's or dealer's permit at any time.
Source: Indiana Code 7.1
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